TOPICAL REFERENCE LIST 2
Abstract
This study aims to acknowledge the effects of classroom arrangements on social
behaviors. The arrangement of the learning environment can either stimulate growth or have a
negative effect on students. Teachers are accountable for making their classrooms conducive to
learning. Teachers must be innovative, flexible, and inventive when setting up an instructional
environment. While classroom arrangements may have a variety of benefits, how does it
influence social behavior among students? What role may the universal design for learning play?
Introduction
The atmosphere of learning stimulates growth in children by playing a critical role in
their development. The classroom arrangement can be a reason for concern when children are
having issues progressing. To improve learning, a teacher needs to create a welcoming
environment suitable to meet the needs of all of their students. Intentional learning environment
designs are a critical necessity for modern educational settings, and all students can benefit from
interactions in inclusive classrooms. By examining this topic, I will be able to understand the
developmental enhancement of children in an environment that is designed to meet their needs.
This information will allow me to be able to apply certain methods in my classroom environment
to stimulate the growth of my students.
Reference List
Braun, Summer S., Van den Berg, Yvonne H.M., and Cillessen, Antonius H.N. (2020) Effects of
a Seating Chart Intervention for Target and Nontarget
Students. 191. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2019.104742Links to an external site.
This article is neither quantitative nor qualitative. The purpose of this article is to
focus on how Teachers’ efforts to manage classroom social dynamics with classroom
TOPICAL REFERENCE LIST 3
arrangements, can have positive effects on students’ social relationships. The data in this
article came from 1573 students in 59 Grade 5 classrooms in the Netherlands. Results
indicated that students in intervention classes exhibited more overt aggression and
perceived less cooperation among classmates than students in the control condition.
These effects were consistent across target and nontarget students and were not
moderated by teachers’ efficacy for managing social dynamics.
Faur S, Laursen B. Classroom Seat Proximity Predicts Friendship Formation. Front Psychol.
2022 May 3;13:796002. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.796002. PMID: 35592167; PMCID:
PMC9113197.
This article is neither quantitative nor qualitative. This study focuses on how
friendships form on the basis of classroom seating proximity. Participants included 235
students (129 boys, 106 girls) in grades 3–5 (ages 8–11) who nominated friends at two-
time points (13–14 weeks apart). Teachers described seating arrangements. The results
concluded that because children this age have few other persistent opportunities to meet
(and engage with) friends, and because companionship is important to the notion of
friendship, classroom closeness takes on an extra significance during the primary school
years.
Hoekstra, Nathalie A.H, Van den Berg, Yvonne H.M., Lansu, Tessa A.M., Mainhard, M.T
Cillessen, Antonius H.N. (2023) Teachers’ goals and strategies for classroom seating
arrangements: A qualitative study, Teaching and Teacher Education, Volume 124, 104016,
ISSN 0742-051X, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2023.104016.
TOPICAL REFERENCE LIST 4
This journal article uses a qualitative research method. The purpose of this article
is to focus on how teachers can use seating arrangements to effectively manage classroom
dynamics. The data from this article was collected from 13 upper elementary school
teachers. The results concluded that Teachers assigned students to seats based on both
their academic and social development and through their seating arrangements, teachers
indicated expectations not only about students' learning processes but also about students'
social-emotional progress. General classroom management is frequently discussed,
although social dynamics and seating arrangements are less frequently addressed in
teacher education programs.
Hymel, S. & Katz, J. (2019) Designing Classrooms for Diversity: Fostering Social
Inclusion, Educational Psychologist, 54:4, 331-
339, DOI: 10.1080/00461520.2019.1652098
This article is neither quantitative nor qualitative. The purpose of this article is to
explore how teachers play a significant role in promoting inclusive classes by
understanding the social dynamics that operate in educational contexts. The authors
further extend this discussion by reviewing the recent efforts to promote “Universal
Design for Learning”, which in return highlights social inclusion in academics. This
study included diverse students with disabilities, different ethnicities, language barriers,
and gender roles/norms. Results indicated that implementing the social and emotional
needs of students in inclusive classrooms led to significant increases in students’ self-
concept, coping skills, and perceptions of social support.
TOPICAL REFERENCE LIST 5
Lintner, T., & Šalamounová, Z. (2021). Classroom Space and Student Positions in Peer Social
Networks: An Exploratory Study. Studia Paedagogica, 26(2), 49 -76. Zobrazit Classroom
Space and Student Positions in Peer Social Networks: An Exploratory Study | Studia
paedagogica (muni.cz)
This journal article uses a qualitative research method. The purpose of this journal
article is to use network analysis to determine the relationship between individual
students' place in their peer social networks and their classroom seating arrangement. The
data for this article came from 17 classrooms with 363 students (183 boys and 180 girls)
from lower secondary schools. The findings revealed that social network positions could
not be linked to a particular individual seating location. By comparing these findings to
previous research on seating arrangements as a means of distributing learning
opportunities through student participation, specific zones in the classroom can be
identified that may benefit the children seated there both as students and as classmates.
Martinez-Maldonado, R, Schulte, J, Echeverria, V, Gopalan, Y, Shum, SB. Where is the teacher?
Digital analytics for classroom proxemics. J Comput Assist Learn. 2020; 36: 741–
762. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcal.12444
This journal article uses a mixed method of both quantitative and qualitative
research studies. The purpose of this journal article is to acknowledge how digital
analytics were designed to service a senior teacher's practice-based inquiry into
classroom proxemics. The data in the article was collected from five teachers. The results
concluded that if triangulated with other sources of evidence, positioning data could
constitute a major breakthrough in the way learning spaces research is conducted and
how professional reflection and development takes place.
TOPICAL REFERENCE LIST 6
Tobia, Valentina, et al. "The influence of classroom seating arrangement on children's cognitive
processes in primary school: the role of individual variables." Current Psychology, vol.
41, no. 9, Sept. 2022, pp. 6522+. Gale In Context: Biography,
link.gale.com/apps/doc/A714487438/BIC?u=vic_liberty&sid=summon&xid=062bcc37.
This article is neither quantitative nor qualitative. This article focuses on how
despite the great debate regarding the best seating arrangement for learning in
classrooms, no empirical studies have examined the direct effects of different seating
arrangements on children's cognitive processes. The data from this article was collected
from 77 children: Three 4th and Two 5th-grade classes. The results showed that when
students were positioned farther apart from one another, as in the single desk seating
arrangement, their logical reasoning performance improved.
Wilburn, V. G., Wasmuth, S., Fehr, C., Brokamp, K., Shupe, M., Hursey, B., Ross, K., & Nelson,
J. (2019). The implications of desk arrangement on social interaction in a third grade
classroom. Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools & Early Intervention., 12(1), 86–
97. https://doi.org/10.1080/19411243.2018.1474833
This journal article uses a mixed method of both quantitative and qualitative
research studies. The purpose of this journal article is to acknowledge the lack of current
research focused on the effects of classroom design on social interaction for all students.
The data from this article was collected from 24 students enrolled in a large metropolitan
school. The results concluded that desk arrangement does affect social interaction in the
elementary school setting of third-grade students in a large metropolitan school.
Xiaoming Yang, Xing Zhou & Jie Hu (2022) Students’ preferences for seating arrangements and
their engagement in cooperative learning activities in college English blended learning
TOPICAL REFERENCE LIST 7
classrooms in higher education, Higher Education Research & Development, 41:4, 1356-
1371, DOI: 10.1080/07294360.2021.1901667
This journal article uses a mixed method of both quantitative and qualitative
research studies. The purpose of this article is to acknowledge how insufficient attention
has been given to students’ preferences regarding classroom seating arrangements. The
data from this article was collected from 94 first-year college students. The results
indicated that students’ preference for the former seating type remained the same; that is,
they preferred semicircular seating both before and after they had experienced both kinds
of seating types because it promoted a better classroom experience.
Zhang, Y., Wu, X., Zhu, C., & Zhou, J. (2023). Classroom Quantitative Evaluation: A Method of
Both Formative and Summative Evaluation. Sustainability, 15(3), 1783.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su15031783
This journal article uses a quantitative research method. The purpose of this
journal article is to acknowledge that the quality of classroom teaching directly affects the
quality of formal school education. The data in the article was collected from five expert
teachers and five novice teachers. The results concluded that, In comparison to rookie
teachers, excellent teachers employ more indirect language, pay more attention to blank
space, have a more harmonious classroom atmosphere, and ask more innovative
questions. This article does include information about classroom atmospheres and
arrangements
