Does This Chair Make Me Look Smart? An Examination of Flexible Seating in Higher Education (Poster 16)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Nine
  In Poster Session: Learning Environments for Formal and Informal Education

Abstract

The goal of classroom design is to encourage academic, psychological, and cognitive growth. Furthermore, the design of a classroom should encourage flexibility and avoid prescriptive and restrictive classroom behaviors, for both instructors and students. One approach to classroom design that addresses the unique needs of many students is flexible seating. Both research and anecdotal evidence suggest that flexible seating options encourage choice, collaboration, communication, creativity, motivation, engagement, and critical thinking in the classroom. While flexible seating is fairly common in elementary classrooms, there is very little research on flexible seating in the higher education classroom. This session will share results from a mixed-method study that investigated the academic, social, and emotional effects of flexible seating in the higher education classroom.

Authors

• Rebecca Putman, Tarleton State University
  Presenting Author

• Heather Labansat, Tarleton State University - Fort Worth
  Presenting Author

• Beck Munsey, Tarleton State University
  Presenting Author