Students began the semester in a traditional academic seating arrangement. Two students were assigned to a table, and the tables were arranged in rows facing the front board. Two weeks into the semester, students were given a survey about their preferences in seating and the perceived impact they felt seating had on their education. As a data point for content area, students were also given the first speed reading activity that measured their ability to comprehend the language. This data point served as the measure of academic growth. All of this was collected prior to the implementation of flexible seating.
When flexible seating was implemented, students were given the choice of their seating. Their options included rocking chairs on the floor, legless floor chairs, traditional style seating at the table, or comfortable desk chairs that could be placed anywhere in the room. Students were free to change seats at any time during the class or each day as they felt it was needed. They were also given a classroom climate survey midway into the study.
The six week study concluded with the last speed reading activity, student interview, and a post survey in order to obtain students’ thoughts on flexible seating.
Flexible seating was chosen as my strategy for two major reasons. The first reason was that in a foreign language classroom, I saw the importance of comfort and maintaining an environment of low anxiety to assist students in acquiring a new language. Flexible seating allowed students the agency in seating themselves based on their needs. It also allowed me to meet the physical and emotional needs of my students. The second reason was that, as a content, world language pedagogy is modernizing. Lectures are being replaced with interactive activities and group collaboration. Traditional academic seating was not the most efficient support to this new style of teaching. I needed a seating arrangement that modernized with my instruction. Flexible seating allows for teachers to design a layout that sets students up to feel at ease and be able to feel natural in their interactions with other students. It facilitates relationships and helps build classroom culture, which increases their engagement.
The population of my classroom and school were very diverse, including general education students, free/reduced lunch, IEP accommodations, and ELL populations. Diverse students require a wide range of support within the classroom, beginning with the environment. All students need support in the classroom, and that support begins with the environment itself. Flexible seating allowed for students to group themselves with other students with whom they felt comfortable. This allowed the ELL students to process together using their home language, rather than put the pressure on them to explain what they had learned in this brand new third language. The types of seating were also chosen to potentially benefit my students with ADHD. The rockers provided a support that could help them stay focused in class while also allowing them some freedom of movement when needed. Finally, with some of my students who have jobs outside of school and who are in poverty working jobs outside of school, the last thing they want to do is sit in an uncomfortable chair for our 90 minute class and listen to me talk. Flexible seating allowed them to utilize the chairs that matched their comfort preference. The rationale and benefits for these target groups’ needs can be extrapolated to the entire class as well.
Equity does not mean equality. Flexible seating provided students who needed extra support with options to fulfill that need. If a student needed the structure of a desk they had that option. If they needed more freedom of movement in a moment of frustration, they also had that option. Flexible seating is all about maximizing my students' comfort level to increase positive engagement with me, the content, and with each other. These, coupled with the personalized instruction provided by modern world language instruction, allowed me to differentiate the environment and instruction to meet the students at their individual levels and needs.
Flexible seating helped create a positive and relaxed environment for students to acquire a new language. This accessibility was critical; because if a student was uncomfortable in a class, they were less likely to take risks and more likely to disengage with the material. Disengagement could occur, because students are only exposed to the language 90 minutes a day for 19 weeks of the school year. If they are unable to take advantage of that time, they will not acquire the language. That is why it is crucial that the environment promotes engagement and comfort for all students to access the academic information in the way that best meets their needs.
Students are not one dimensional. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the needs of students consist of multiple levels or perspectives. The first and second are physiological and safety, respectively. Flexible seating helped create a safe environment where learning could take place. The third perspective is social belonging, and flexible seating facilitated the discussion and interactions between students. The fourth and fifth perspective are esteem and self-actualization. Flexible seating allowed me to give individual attention to students and show them that their work and effort were valued. It supported the instructional strategies that promoted the utilization of their French skills and goal setting.
As the only French teacher in my district, the need for collaboration was a must. In my building, the world language department consisted of three Spanish teachers and myself. One of the teachers had implemented flexible seating in the past and was able to give advice about classroom management in regards to implementation. The four of us also collaborated on lesson plans and strategies to be used to bring the language to the students. This constant collaboration allowed for me to bring in my colleagues’ expertise to better serve my students. I also worked with my building pedagogical coach to try and improve my behavior management and organization to best maximize my students’ time with the language. I also worked with my principal by asking for permission to conduct this study and to ask for a grant to acquire some different seating options, and which she approved and paid for out of the school budget.
The CADRE program has provided me with many external supports while planning and implementing this action research. My UNO professors have focused my efforts on the needs of the whole student, not just academic needs. These needs included emotional, physical, instructional, and cultural. My CADRE associate aided me in collecting behavior data and keeping both myself and my data organized. Finally, my fellow CADRE teachers have supported me through my classes and creation of this product by helping me with writing and proofreading. They also provided emotional support during the intense and accelerated classes.