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Seating arrangements in the classroomIn any classroom, a vital part to the lesson is the seating arrangement. Seating arrangements should be made accordingly to the desired objective of the lesson. A lack of understanding on the different seating arrangements and its use can hinder just about any planned lesson. By changing the seating arrangements, the teacher can increase student motivation and run activities run more smoothly . With each setup, it allows for a different type of learning. The most common setup types are as followed: rows, cabaret style, circle, theatre, horseshoe, boardroom and fishbowl. Rows This is a typical teacher centred classroom. The students are arranged in rows and are all facing the front of the classroom where the teacher is teaching his or her lesson. This allows the students to readily see the front of the board and also allows the teacher to maintain eye contact with the students to make sure they are paying attention. This setup doesn?t have too many advantages to a language teacher as it is mainly a teacher centered classroom. To increase students to engage in the learning process, a student centred setup should be implemented. The following are student centered setups. Cabaret Style There are usually 4-6 seats around a square or rectangular table. This allows for students to interact with each other which. This setup is good for group work and or project work. However, it is hard to get lessons started as some of the students will have their backs turned to you. Circle The chairs are arranged in a circle with no desks. This setup allows for games, group discussions, and welcoming the students at the beginning of class. This allows the teacher to really talk to the students. If the students need to write something down, they can rest a folder on their knees. Theatre In this setup, all of the chairs are close to each other facing the front with no desks or tables in front of them. This ensures that the students? attention is directed to the speaker at the front. This setup is useful if a lecture or an overhead projection presentation is given. Horseshoe The chairs and tables are setup in a way similar to that of a horseshoe. This setup is great if the teacher is using visual aids, doing board work, or whole group speaking activities. All of the students should have a clear view of the teacher, the board and each other. In addition, there?s a clear space in the middle which allows the teacher to easily distribute papers to the students. Lastly, breaking up the students into groups or pairs can be easily done. Boardroom The chairs are all placed around the big rectangular table. This setup easily allows debates and discussions to be initiated. Fishbowl If the class has too many students and a U shaped or boardroom setup won?t work, put the students into concentric circles maximizing the possibilities of discussions. As it has been discussed, an effective seating arrangement can increase lesson effectiveness through increasing student motivation and by making activities run more smoothly. By rearranging the setup of the classroom, this can change the classroom environment from teacher centred to student centred. By making the classroom student centered, students will be more engaged in the learning process.
