Gone are the rows

When I was in high school, not THAT many years ago, we always picked the same seat to sit in daily in our nice and neat rows. The teacher stayed at the front of the classroom unless they went to their desk.  Our group discussions were done with the people sitting nearest us.  The only time we used technology was when we went to our Business Ed class, also in rows.  My senior year the school just opened a "computer lab" that teachers could sign up to go to.  Of course, no one ever went.

This is my 13th year of teaching school.  In my current school, we have two computer labs, one laptop and the other is desktop computers.  In the Media Center, I have two laptop computer carts where teachers can check them out for classroom use.  Most of the classrooms have students sitting in groups of 3-4 students. The teacher floats around the room and pulls students to a table in the back of the room for extra practice. This class setting is very different from when I was in school.

Which is setting is better?  According to the article, Do Seating Arrangements have an Impact on Student Learning?  "Studies have reported that seating arrangements impact the learning process.  Students occupying the front rows are more attentive than those in the back."  When I was in school, I saw this happen often.  I wanted to sit in the middle, not the front because I didn't have all the answers and not the back because I wasn't bad.  As a teacher, I like the option of groups to mix the students who are more likely to answer all the questions.  Is one way better than the other, I am not sure.  I do know that when I am working with students in a group setting, I seem to get more students to respond if they are in groups than if they are just in rows.  Maybe the students are more relaxed and comfortable to discuss the topic in a group rather than the rows.  Maybe distractions are not as prevalent when in rows. Maybe students feel like they can learn more from peers than from the teacher.  Whatever the reason is, when students work in groups, knowledge content is retained better.

Now that technology and 1:1 devices are becoming more common, students are able to collaborate on an assignment a lot easier.  The collaboration develops community and fosters social skills.  In order for these projects to work, students sitting in groups and participating in productive discussion is vital.  When this happens, sometimes the teacher loses full control of the class.  I don't mean behavior problems happen, I mean students are discussing and moving around and not just sitting and listening.  This can be nerve racking for a classroom teacher who thrives on control.  As technology becomes more prominent in classrooms, I see this being a normal routine for everyday instruction.  Students learn better when they can collaborate.  As educators, we might have to rethink our seating arrangements. 

According to the text incorporating technology into the classroom might have an impact on schools in 10 areas.  They include increased student writing, higher quality student writing, enhanced cooperative learning, integration of curriculum, learning applications, cross-age tutoring, increased teacher communication, greater parent communication, enhanced community relations, and global learner (p. 13 - 14).  Cooperative learning does not usually happen when students are positioned in rows.  Most of the time, students learn best by working in groups.  Whitehead states, "collaborative learning is linked with technology it is known to have a strong positive influence on student achievement." (p. 13).  Technology has the potential to open the world for our students.  All we need to do is figure out the best way to incorporate in in our classroom.  This will change as we feel more comfortable and the students become more fluent in using.  

The video linked below is a short video to explain different types of classroom arrangements and why they are important.  Not every classroom can benefit from these setups but maybe one will be beneficial to you.  

Classroom Setup | Teachers TryScience 

Reference

Classroom setup Teachers TryScience. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.teacherstryscience.org/ts/classroom-          setup

Does the Seating Arrangements have an Impact on Student Learning? (n.d.). Retrieved from
     https://k12teacherstaffdevelopment.com/tib/do-seating-arrangements-have-an-impact-
     on-student-learning/


Whitehead, B. M., Jensen, D., & Boschee, F. (2013). Planning for technology: A guide for school administrators,      technology coordinators, and curriculum leaders.  Thousand oaks: Corwin sage.