Classroom Arrangement Matters
As many may think of a classroom as a room with a class of learners and an instructor, it goes far beyond and should be viewed in a much broader scope.
A classroom is a learning environment where both children and adults can learn either by self or by instruction and guidance from a tutor. In Ghana and across the world, most school communities have been divided into grade specific or subject specific learning communities called classrooms.The classroom, depending on it’s components, look and feel can be said to be a second teacher or the learner’s first assistant. Pupils and students spend a lot more time sitting and engaging in and with the classroom than they spend talking to their teachers or instructors. A classroom must have features that reflect the values and ethics of learning, teaching, resource use, student and teacher roles, power distribution and leveraging as well as responsibilities of members. The Ideal Classroom series will cover key classroom issues such as culture, learner-instructor engagement, the place of technology, classroom management, reward systems, assessment methods and teacher specification.Today’s series focuses on classroom arrangement.
The traditional classroom arrangement places learners into evenly spaced desk rows where the teacher’s desk is located in front of the class. Desks are usually spaced enough to allow movement in between rows and safe storage of students belongings. This arrangement is good for controlling student’s behaviour, ensuring that there is space for the teacher to walk, supervise and discipline each student. It also allows for optimum number of desks in a class. The disadvantages however are that, the rows can stifle continuous collaboration between learners. Additionally, the placement of the teacher or instructor in front of the class overemphasizes the role of the educator, leaving students as secondary participants or instruction receivers with little or no power to assert their views and learnings in contrast with the teacher’s when the need be. Also, the rows or desks create a maze of desks that can be an obstacle to the teacher engaging with every student.
It is agreeable that the physical classroom arrangement will differ depending on age group of learners and the subject. However, ideal classroom arrangement styles should achieve basic standards of supporting collaboration between learners while making room for independent learning, fostering dialogue, ensuring participation of all learners, andproviding comfort irrespective of learner age groups or the subject of instruction. Employing the principle of universal design as it applies to classroom layout and arrangement, teacher’s must consciously ensure that classroom activities, materials and equipment are physically accessible and usable by all students. The principle also recommends that there is space available for all students and teachers to easily move, dialogue, and negotiate. Ideally, a classroom arrangement should be a horseshoe with the instructor’s table or desk somewhere among the students instead of being in front. Nonetheless, large class sizes may not make this possible, soteachers can implement a double horseshoe arrangement, group pod arrangement or dynamic clusters to achieve the basic standards of an ideal classroom arrangement.
Author: EDUCATION 360.
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