Are you sitting comfortably? Then you are not in school.
I declare war in Slate on the uncomfortable, ill-fitting school desk. And no, it’s not the “best way” to fix education. It just might makes things a little better for the children.
posted by Linda Perlstein at
4:45 PM
2 Comments:
Hi, Linda. I am an educational planner and an architectural partner of Integrated Design Solutions in Troy, Michigan. I've often said the same exact thing. Restless or fidgity students? Maybe we should do something about it. Stand up workstations? Multiple height, ergonomic tables and chairs vs. our one size fits all attitude toward furnishing our "modern" schools might be the answer. I think it gets deeper than this however and relates more to engaging students in learning activities. A shift in, dare I say it, pedagogy is required to allow students to simply stand up and walk around the room to lock-in that Quadratic Equations...You guys remember that X=-b+/- the square root thing...right?! In the end, we all want young learners to continue learning after they are done with their K-16 or 20 career. Let's make it exciting for them now and maybe we'll have a chance.
The most important thing we can do is engage their individual learning styles. I happen to be 22% visual, 31% Auditory, and 45% active according to HowtoLearn.com. I've also written a blog post regarding supporting active learning as I don't fit into the standard fixed tablet chair. I am a tall and large human and I know that my flights are awful when I don't get the exit row. Here is my blog if you'd like to peruse it.
http://ids-troy.blogspot.com/2010/10/classroom-square-footage-supporting.html
I'd welcome any comments too.
Thanks,
Jeff Johnson, AIA
Ha - I've never taught in a classroom that had desks like what was featured on the first page of your article.
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