Focus Question 2: Students & Learning Environment: Focus on places, spaces, and boundaries
Core Questions: Using your own educational experiences, what did the learning environment look like? Describe and draw a sketch of what your classrooms looked like as you went through the grades. How did your classroom space indicate power relationships in your classrooms? Did the space in your classrooms provide you with opportunities to engage with all students in your classrooms? How did this space make you feel? What could teachers do to make classroom spaces more relational?

---

In kindergarten, my classroom was vibrant, had tables rather than desks, play spaces, and a reading area. As I moved on to grades one through five, my classrooms became progressively less vibrant, and tables switched to desks. However, my teachers often grouped desks into “pods” or partners, allowing peer interactions. After the fifth grade, my classrooms typically consisted of consecutive columns of desks with the teacher’s desk at the front of the class. The classrooms almost entirely lost their vibrancy, and everything felt strict and mechanical to me. The teachers regularly sitting at the front of the classroom in their massive desks gave them a powerful image of always being “above” their students. It is vital to note that although teachers have authority over their students, they should not abuse it to make students feel belittled and irrelevant. I also felt that my interaction with other students while in desk columns was limited. Further, with teachers always utilizing pre-made alphabetical seating charts, I was constantly sitting beside the same people, preventing me from expanding my relationships or engaging with a friend who was always across the room. I felt these boxy classrooms were unnecessarily restricting. There was little to no movement allowed, and classrooms did not encourage peer relationships. I think there are several things that teachers could do to make the learning environment more relational. First, by simply walking around the classroom offering help (rather than expecting students to come to them), teachers are making themselves more approachable, engaging, and developing more of an understanding of the student’s individual needs. Secondly, teachers should create more inclusive seating. Rather than consistently making alphabetical columns of students, teachers could branch out and put desks in semi-circles, pods, partners, or even use tables and chairs instead. Additionally, they could swap alphabetical seating charts with randomized charts, allowing students to meet and form relationships with new peers. Thirdly, icebreakers can be incredibly cheesy, but I find them effective at making a classroom of new students feel more comfortable with each other. Every teacher should consider organizing icebreakers during the first class or two to ease tension. Lastly, by incorporating group work into the lessons, students are given the opportunity to interact and develop more connections with one another.