seventh blog

What are two ways classroom design has changed over the past twenty years?

Classroom design has changed over the past twenty years and we can mention some of these changes. Twenty years ago schools didn´t have all the technological tools we have nowadays and for that reason classroom design was entirely different.  In our country, elementary and junior high schools used to have small tables with small benches where 2 or more students used to sit. In fact, some schools still have those kind of furniture.  Furthermore, it is very important to mention that the way we arrange desks in the classroom because that will help us to have a good classroom management.

We need to keep in mind that school is our second home so we need to get our students feel comfortable. There are also other reasons why teacher must organize desks in different ways according to the activities we are going to develop. For example, when we need our students move or do some physical activities like warm-ups.

In the traditional way the students’ desks or chairs are organized with one behind the other. The teacher is in front of his students. One disadvantage of this way is that lazy students always sit at the back because they do not want to participate in the class.

The Nontraditional Classroom Design:

In this classroom design, the desks can be arranged in different way in which is most suitable for teachers and students. For instance, desks can be arranged in semi-circle or U shape. Teachers can arrange desks in the way they consider suitable for the activities they carry out.  Some of the activities we can apply with the nontraditional design are: collaborative exercises, storytelling, dramas, and so on.