Just How Flexible is Flexible Seating?
So there are a few new buzz words in the educational community-STEM, problem-based-learning, and oh yeah, flexible seating. I admit I'm guilty of not just diving onto the bandwagon (I'm a sucker for the new and shiny) but I am not satisfied with just jumping on. No, no. I oftentimes insist on DRIVING said bandwagon. Something about the crisp clear unobstructed view of the wild unknown from the driver's seat that just gets my heart racing!
I've been doing a lot of research on flexible seating. This idea stems from a TED talk video on Designing for the Edges, which is a philosophy surrounding the idea that there is no such thing as average. The thought is that school systems were designed for average students, when in fact there is no such thing as an average student. Our current school system was designed after the industrial revolution to churn out individuals prepared to work in factories on assembly lines. The reality we now face is that our current method of educating students does not prepare them for careers that exist right now.
In thinking about what flexible seating might look like in my middle school engineering class, I've started looking at examples of what's already out there. A quick Pinterest search will render thousands of ideas on flexible seating, but most appear to belong in an elementary classroom. I have 7th-grade students, and I can tell you the bouncy exercise balls or the crate seats are not likely to survive very long. Often, I find things like this green node chair when I try to modify my search for middle school. This chair makes me laugh because, it's a fairly new concept, yet every teacher I've come across who has experienced it hates it. Common complaints are that the work surface is too small or that the kids use them like Bumper Cars. (Who wouldn't? lol) Which is why I think it best to implement some sort of rules and procedures in the beginning. Common sense says flexible seating will be just like any other new thing; you have to train the kids how to use it, otherwise, you will end up with Bumper Cars. |
| https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/classroom-lounge/ |
Another issue I've been contemplating is one I have not found mentioned online: bedbugs. Flexible seating searches will render many images of wonderfully fluffy classrooms with overstuffed couches and chairs and cushions for kids to lounge on. The reality is that kids share many things, like germs and bedbugs, and therefore to create a flexible seating space that is safe, you must consider the preferred habitat of these parasites. I teach in an urban district and have seen a bug or two in my day, and my mother teaches in a very rural area and has seen just as many. So if you're going for the couch, you might want to consider the lawn furniture-style that is covered in vinyl instead of microfiber.
I came across this blog post that sheds some light on the dark side of flexible seating, too. Jasmine, a second-grade teacher from Louisiana, forewarns the need to prepare for the kid who just can't handle sitting in a bouncy chair. I had to laugh when I read this because I immediately thought about one of my upcoming students (You know this kid too, he's the one you already know his name and his story even though he's not even in your grade level yet.) So I like Jasmine's recommendation that you not only plan for this kid and the what if, but you also introduce the flexible seating slowly so you can manage the situation a bit more carefully.
Here's another blog post from Edutopia on the subject.
In considering Jasmine's blog post, I thought about my middle schoolers and their obsession with "fair." I'm sure this same obsession plagues elementary kids as well. In planning for the implementation of flexible seating, I plan to have a few mini-lessons on "Equity versus Equality," as this is bound to come up when kids start using the flexible options.
I've been looking at corporate offices that seem to embrace the flexible seating at the adult level. Here are a few of my favorites:
I find it beneficial to look here because the reality is that we are preparing today's student for tomorrow's global economy, therefore, they will be working in places like this.
Steelcase is a company I've been checking out that sells flexible seating equipment.
So, to sum all this up, flexible seating is a new concept that seems to be pretty straight forward at the elementary level but is in the process of being defined at the middle and high school levels. I think it's smart to say that whatever happens at these upper-grade levels, it should mirror what's also occurring in the global market, as that is the ultimate goal for our students. The overarching goal for flexible seating is to create a space that is designed for the edges, or in other words, that is designed with the needs of each and every unique student so that they can be inspired to learn, think, create, and grow. Sounds easy, right?
This concept of flexible seating has taken root in the STEM schools that I have toured, thus cementing the bond between the two concepts, and rightly so.
As for me, right now I still have my trusty red couch and I've added two bean bag chairs and one adjustable height hospital tray table. We'll see where it goes from there ;-)
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