A 21st Century Education is Flexible

Funded Dec 29, 2018

Imagine the look of surprise on 35 students' faces, when they came into the classroom and found bean bags, balance balls, and wobbly chairs. As you may have imagined, smiles abounded and there was much excitement. At the same time there were some big questions looming. Who would get to use the chairs? How can we be fair and make sure everybody gets to use the chairs? Thus the flexible seating became more than giving students a choice in where they sat. Flexible seating became about equity, fairness, responsibility.

At first all students wanted to use the seats. The students thought it might be nice to rotate the chairs so that each student would have one day each week to use the chair of their choice. Other students thought that wasn't exactly fair, because we are not in the classroom for an equal amount of time each day. This lead to a conversation about equity versus equality and fairness. Students began to think about who might need to move more, who might not even want a special chair, and what happens when somebody is not using a chair responsibly.

Ultimately, the students decided that a system was not necessary. They would use a special chair if it was available. If they felt the need to move to a different space and needed a special chair, they would simply ask for a turn. Most students were able to work out who used a chair and when. The students established what was reasonable among themselves.

I learned to relax and let students sit where they needed to sit. The overall outcome was that students kept themselves on task and engaged, in order to have the freedom to choose where they sat each day. Overall, flexible seating made my class more responsible for their own learning and choices. I found myself enjoying my students more and had fewer negative behaviors to redirect.

This year I will be adding more seating choices. Thank you so much for helping to get started.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Dunham