Seating Charts and Desk Positions

Posted by Tammy Andrew Aug 13, 2008

My first year of teaching I didn't realize how valuable a good seat arrangement could be. I was a floater - a teacher with no permanent classroom - and at the mercy of the host teacher's choice. In every room but one the chairs were in rows and columns. That other one was a computer lab and had tables and chairs set up with an aisle down the middle. The next couple of years I still floated, but started to encounter different host teachers with different room arrangements. Once I was provided with my own room I had an idea of what I liked, but it still took a couple of years before I found a favorite.

As for seating charts, it depends on what class I am teaching. My courses are primarily computer science or technology and I have students switching between computers and desks during class. For these classes I prefer to not keep a chart unless behavior or learning needs require a student to be assigned a specific computer or space in the room. When I teach math or science I base it on the needs of the learners and the age and maturity of the students. I always assign seats in a freshman class, whereas a mixed class I will allow them to choose if a majority of the students are mature enough to be given the responsibility.

I know teachers who frequently rearrange desks and others who love the circle or rows. I know some who would never consider a seating chart on the first day of school and others who cannot live without one. For all of us it is a learning experience; we have different teaching styles, subjects and classroom dynamics and need to discover for ourselves what works best.