Publish at January 12 2021 Updated January 30 2025
Nowadays, many students have behavioral difficulties: lack of concentration, limited autonomy, incessant chatter, etc. What if part of the solution lay in the ergonomics and layout of a classroom? What if part of the solution lay in the ergonomics and layout of classroom space?
Indeed, there are many different ways of organizing classroom space, each of which can have an effect on student learning and attention, as numerous studies and academic research have shown. So how does the layout of a classroom affect students' concentration?
In 2015, a study by Peter Barrett, Yufan Zhang, Fay Davies and Lucinda Barrett of the University of Salford in the UK(The Holistic Impact of Classroom Spaces on Learning in Specific Subjects ) revealed that classroom layout has a considerable influence on student learning. The same applies to light, temperature, air quality and personalization (cf. archiclasse.education.fr). That's why today it's essential to optimize classroom space to adapt it to students' needs.
When we think of a classroom in France, we immediately think of the traditional "onion row", i.e. students facing the blackboard. This spatial organization of the classroom is ideal for transmitting information, but also for supervising students. It is notable for making it easier for students to concentrate, as there are fewer sources of distraction, but it does not encourage interaction and communication between students.
However, according to Le HuffPost, another arrangement could optimize student productivity by 25%. An island or "U" arrangement facilitates discussion and student participation. Nevertheless, classrooms can be quite noisy due to exchanges between students, and note-taking can also be difficult as some students will have to turn to see the board. This does not optimize student concentration.
Classroom space organization choices must be made by the teacher according to the subjects taught, the activities planned and the objectives. We also need to take into account situations such as a pandemic, which prevents certain activities from being carried out and makes certain arrangements difficult, such as islands or "onion rows", as physical distances are much harder to respect. The "U" arrangement seems to be the most suitable, but it's not easily applied to classes of over twenty pupils.
Although the majority of teachers associate immobility with concentration, it turns out that letting students move from one desk to another would enable them to learn and concentrate better. It also appears that the location of students in a classroom has an influence on their concentration.
In fact, Steelcase reveals in an article that students placed at the back of the room are more unfocused than those placed at the front and in the middle. This is why a flexible classroom, i.e. one that offers different spaces for different activities, seems to be the best solution for improving concentration. It also encourages student autonomy and adaptation.
In particular, a flexible classroom can include a group work zone, a debate zone or a digital zone. New technologies play an important role in student learning, and have been shown to improve concentration. Including a digital area in the room means providing students with computers and tablets - which they don't necessarily have at home - while retaining classic teaching methods that, for example, better develop memory.
If we also take into account a situation such as a pandemic, it seems that the layout of a flexible classroom is more favorable for enforcing physical distancing, as certain blogs such as classe-de-demain.fr attest. A flexible classroom requires students to be constantly on the move, which is highly inadvisable at this particular time.
In 2010, research by Diane M. Bunce revealed that students pay more attention to their teacher during active learning, as it directly engages them in the lesson (see Reclaim Classroom Attention with Active Learning and How Classroom Design Affects Engagement - steelcase.com).
Certain classroom layouts are also more conducive to student involvement, such as island or "U"-shaped arrangements. In fact, an island classroom enables students to work independently or in groups, and therefore to be less dissipated in class. This spatial organization also enables the teacher to move from table to table to check work, help students in difficulty and monitor progress.
A "U"-shaped layout encourages dialogue between students and enables the teacher to give lessons in front of the blackboard. It also enables the teacher to arouse the interest of his or her students, but makes it more difficult to keep an eye on them, unlike with a conventional layout. This spatial organization enables the teacher to have the students' full attention, but makes them passive and increases the risk of them being easily distracted.
Classroom layout has a direct influence on students' autonomy and attention span. However, conditions in a pandemic situation make these arrangements difficult to implement. Interaction between students is limited due to the pandemic, and it is more difficult for the teacher to provide individual support due to physical distance. Finally, overcrowded classrooms don't necessarily enable teachers to keep students' attention.
Numerous university studies have demonstrated that movement is an important means of improving student attention, but it must be essentially work-related to be truly beneficial. That's why most teachers send their students out to retrieve materials, hand out copies, and so on.
A flexible classroom also works in this way, as students move from one workspace to another, allowing them to refocus and regain their attention (see https://leblog.wesco.fr/les-grands-dossiers/carnets-decole ). This also promotes calm in the classroom and student motivation. Indeed, the aim of a flexible classroom is to respect a pupil's need to move, while making it useful, since movement is beneficial to learning, as numerous studies have shown in recent years.
A pandemic situation no longer allows students to move around as they wish in order to maintain physical distance. That's why some sites promote the use of stools to allow students to vary their posture and stretch their legs, while maintaining their attention on their teacher. However, not all teachers and schools have the school furniture they really need.
Kennesaw State University has demonstrated that by varying the content and interspersing the lesson with video projections or exercises on the blackboard, the teacher undeniably attracts the attention of his or her students (cf. steelcase.com).
Today, new technologies play an important role in teaching. They help develop communication and dialogue between students and teachers. However, excessive use of new technologies can lead to eyestrain, just as projecting a slide show to students all day long is likely to make them lose interest.
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