Classroom Layouts: Seating Arrangements for Effective Learning
18th May 2022
Classroom Seating Arrangement
Choosing the right classroom furniture and classroom seating layout is just as important as the syllabus, teaching methods and differential instructions. Classroom seating arrangement can have an impact on students learning. Rearranging a classroom is a key component to achieving desired learning results when it comes to your students. Different teaching techniques demand different types of classroom layouts. When the seating layout is in harmony with your teaching style, the number of students, and the classroom size the outcomes are super beneficial.
Most effective classroom seating layouts are dependent on many factors: such as classroom size and shape, age group of the students, distractions, teaching styles and their objectives. The classroom seating layout is a large component that can be used to assist beneficially in the outcomes of learning.
Studies have suggested that the classroom seating arrangement has an impact on the learning process of the students. Different furniture types are recommended for different classroom layouts.
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Types of Classroom Seating Arrangements
There are three types of classroom seating arrangements, in general, to serve and accommodate different size rooms, number of students in the class and facilitating the classroom function.
- Traditional Classroom (Large and Small)
- U-Shaped Arrangement
- Circle or Half-Circle Layout
All these classroom seating arrangements have their pros and cons. Let us discuss in detail one by one.
The traditional classroom layout is the most commonly used seating arrangement in schools, colleges and universities. It is the type of seating layout in which all the desks and chairs directly face the teacher and the presentation board, with students having their backs to one another. It is a highly effective learning layout for attending lectures and watching slides on projectors. Traditional classroom layouts are easily applicable in larger classrooms. There are specific furniture types that are suitable for traditional classroom layouts.
There are many pros and cons of a traditional seating layout. Let us discuss them briefly.
| Pros | Cons |
| It is a highly effective classroom arrangement, in which the students focus on the front of the lecture hall, naturally directing students’ attention towards the teacher. | Students' collaboration is usually hard as they are facing each-others back. Group involvement in traditional classroom layout is generally medium as it allows only one-way interaction between students and teacher. |
| It creates ample space for the teacher to walk between the rows and columns to keep an eye on the students. | Students sitting in the middle and back of the classroom can be easily distracted. They indulge in talks with one another during the lecture. |
| It accommodates a large number of students in smaller sized classrooms. | More suitable for the students seating in the front of the classroom, thus creating unequal opportunities. |
| Every student has enough space to sit and place their belongings on the front desk. | Sometimes sound reinforcement is needed to keep students in the back of the room on task. It is difficult for the instructor to keep an eye on the students sitting in the middle and back of the classroom. |
Traditional classroom layout is sub-divided into two different types; one is the large layout the other is the small layout. Different furniture types are available to suit both kinds of situations.
Traditional Small Classroom Desk Layout
Traditional Large Classroom Desk Arrangement
| Large Classroom | Small Classroom |
| Rows of the chairs facing desks on their front, facing the writing board and lecturer. | Tables are arranged in long rows facing each other with ample space in the middle for the instructor to walk. |
| It is hard for the instructor to move effectively between the rows, thus allowing distraction. | The instructor can easily walk between the rows for discussion purposes. |
| The front row students are more focused on the instructor. |
More suitable for classrooms that have
a smaller number of students.
Mostly used for computer-based classrooms. Wires must be carefully placed underneath the tables to prevent any accidents. |
U-Shaped Layout
The next type of classroom seating layout is one where the chairs and desks are arranged in a U-shape with teachers facing all the students and students are facing one another.
U-Shaped Classroom Layout
This layout is more suitable for smaller classrooms that require frequent interaction among the students and the instructor. It's a much better arrangement as it enables the teacher to observe the students and give every student personal help and commands if needed while keeping eye contact with them.
The key characteristic of the U-shape seating arrangement is that the students never have their backs to one another, and it gives an uninterrupted view of the central stage.
| Pros | Cons |
| The instructor keeps uninterrupted attention to every student. | This type of layout is not space efficient. It needs a lot of space to be implemented. |
| It is the best classroom arrangement for the 'larger group discussions'. It encourages face to face interaction among students and instructors. | It produces noise that accumulates in the middle of the classroom, thus creating a disturbance. |
| It is also helpful for guided practice that requires a lot of presentation from the teacher. | There is a lack of gap between tables, and students take a long time to walk around the space between their seats. |
| There is an open presentation space between the seating arrangement, facilitating the instructor and students. There is always ample space for group discussions and viewing PowerPoint slide presentations. | It creates anxiety in the students who are shy of discussion in groups. |
Double ‘U’-Shaped Seating Arrangement
There is another type of U-shape classroom seating arrangement called 'Double 'U' seating' arrangement. In the 'Double-U' arrangement, another seating row is created inside the 'U' shape layout, increasing the seating capacity of the classroom.
Double U-Shape Seating Arrangement
It does limit the discussion between groups. The outer group in this arrangement is mostly treated as observer groups. This type of layout is commonly used in larger classrooms. U-shape seating arrangements are useful in computer training. It allows the electrical wires to run beneath the tables. All students' faces are to the front of the classroom to have a clear vision of the writing board or slides.
However, in a double U-shape arrangement, the middle area is occupied, and there is less space for presentation, modelling and active learning. U-shape classrooms have open space in the middle of the desks, and the middle-space seems like the 'action zone' in this arrangement.
Circle and Half Circle Classroom Layout
In this classroom seating layout, all the students face one another, and no one is facing anybody's back.
The circle or 'O' shape layout has desks that close the space. It is an uncommon classroom layout and only suitable for the classes that require scientific demonstrations and students' performance in the middle of the classroom.
Circle Classroom Seating Template
| Pros | Cons |
| It is the best arrangement for thorough discussion among all students. | This type of arrangement lacks mobility. The person standing in the middle always has his back to someone else. |
| The teacher can stand in the middle and demonstrate something very clearly. | It needs a much larger space for accommodating the studen ts. |
This is the classroom layout in which the chairs and desks are arranged in such a way that helps the students stay focused on a focal point while allowing eye contact for both students and instructors at a glance. It is the second most popular beside the traditional row method.
Half-Circle Classroom Desk Layout
It provides uninterrupted eye contact and is suitable for smaller classes that need higher-order thinking with direct interaction between students and teachers.
This type of classroom layout needs much larger spaces and it creates dead space in the middle of the classroom. Less interactive students are likely to face anxiety issues adversely affecting their learning outcomes. This issue needs to be addressed before implementing such kind of seating layout.
Effective Seating Arrangement Statistics
Different types of classroom seating arrangement positively affect the learning process. To understand completely we have provided links with supporting documentation below.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11218-016-9353-y
https://www.edutopia.org/article/science-of-effective-learning-spaces-melina-uncapher
https://www.displays2go.com/Article/Tips-Most-Effective-Classroom-Seating-Arrangement-32
https://www.todaysclassroom.com/blog/classroom-layouts-seating-arrangements-for-effective-learning/https://blog.advancementcourses.com/articles/maximizing-learning-through-effective-classroom-seating-arrangements/
