Footloose And Fancy-Free: Furniture In The Classroom

Students who are more comfortable will be more engaged in class. Ordinarily, classrooms are set up in straight columns and rows. But a German study on classroom arrangements has proved that students asked more questions when rooms were set up in arrangements other than rows and columns of desks (Earp). If students are involved in class discussion, that means they are engaged in their learning. Plus, when we sit for a long period of time in an uncomfortable chair, we are distracted by our discomfort. When we fidget, we distract others around us, too. If we are fidgeting and drawing attention to ourselves, then we are missing out on important information or we’re not focusing on our tasks. They also say that variety is the spice of life, right? What works for you one day may not work for you another day, and it may depend on your tasks that day. At home, our students choose a place where they

There have been a number of studies done to show how the amount of space that is available in a classroom can have an effect on the behavior of the students and the overall environment of the classroom. In 2003, Duncanson found that classroom space impacts how teachers and students behave. He found that classrooms with small amounts of space were prone to have inefficient pathways and look cluttered. In part, it was found that this situation was caused by the large amount of room teachers reserved for their own use and the large amount of space covered by other pieces of furniture. The arrangement of the furniture hampered the natural flow patterns and created small open spaces for students to work. Thus teachers more or less identified and assigned the spaces that were to be used by students while working on an activity (Duncanson, 2003).

1. Ergonomics is the science of fitting workplace conditions and job demands to the capabilities of the working population (Ergonomics).

Importance of Ergonomics in Retail: An ergonomic hazard is a physical factor within the environment that harms the musculoskeletal system. Ergonomic hazards include themes such as repetitive movement, manual handling, workplace/job/task design, uncomfortable workstation height and poor body positioning (Australian Government Comcare, 2014). Cynthia L. Roth makes a great claim about the importance of ergonomics in retail by stating that at every stage of the supply chain, ergonomics can be used to protect

Poor posture affects the body as well the mind. Amy Cuddy, Jane E. Brody, and Glenn E. Weisfeld make valid points that support their individual arguments on the effects of one’s lack of good posture. They mention how posture can alter people's emotional and mental state and can determine whether you come of as dominant or submissive. Amy Cuddy, a professor at Harvard Business School and author, makes the most credible argument in her editorial "Your iPhone is Ruining Your Posture - and Your Mood". She supports her argument through evidence and data found in studies as well as her own. Cuddy also makes the reader understand that an everyday object most people use may be adding onto bad posture.

A short lecture lasting approximately seven minutes was used to start off the teaching session. This lecture consisted primarily of a definition of the problem, guidelines to address the problem, and obstacles that could be encountered while trying to implement solutions for the problem. A simplistic handout was dispersed among the group of attendees during the lecture to allow for easy reinforcement of the topics covered (see Appendix C for handout). The handout covers guidelines for patient mobilization, assistive devices, and potential obstacles to successful patient mobilization. In an effort to engage visual learners, the handout includes pictures exhibiting the guidelines for patient mobilization. At the end of the lecture, a one to two minute end survey directed by the educator served as the method of evaluation. Following the lecture, the group of ten students engaged in discussion regarding rules for proper body mechanics in the hospital setting. This took approximately five minutes in combination with a short end survey to evaluate effectiveness. After finishing with the discussion, the educator—with assistance from the physical therapy staff—gave a short demonstration on use of assistive devices. This lasted three to five minutes as well. Finally, the students were paired off and required give a return demonstration of use of assistive devices while adhering to proper body mechanics. They were given a patient scenario (one acted as nurse, other as patient),

Participants were made to sit comfortably with back straight, feet flat on the floor and eyes are closed

According to ergonomics.com “ergonomics aims to create safe, comfortable, and productive workspaces by bringing human abilities and limitations into the design of workspace, including the individual’s body size, strength, skill, speed, sensory abilities (vision, hearing) and even attitudes.” I think this option to both retain and entice older workers will become more popular in the near future. It sounds like a lot of extra work to get such accurate information on employees and reshape workspaces but is has proved in the long run to not only improve the health of employees and working longevity but then, in turn, save money due to reducing work-related injuries.

I had the chance to observe a fourth grade English teacher. Her room was arranged in a very different way than what I am used to in classrooms. She had different level seating ranging from bar stools, medium tables with yoga balls, short tables with giant pillows, and a long church pew bench. Some of the seating proved to be a distraction for some students because the children loved to roll around on the yoga

OSHA is the most appropriate agency to examine musculoskeletal disorders (MSD). OSHA has issued a standard developed by workers to reduce the risk of employee exposure to ergonomic health hazard. The purpose of the ergonomics standard is to reduce risk factors associated with musculoskeletal disorders (MSD). This includes fatigue muscles, bad posture, and repeated tasks. The principle behind ergonomic is to design workstations that adjust to fit the workers; rotate employees between jobs with similar responsibility can reduce MSD.

For many years, students have been sitting down in classrooms. But now people claim that all of this sitting has lead to several cases of heart failure. We will see how this affects both students and adults who sit down for most of the day. In a study from USA Today, sitting for too long has been linked to cancer, type two diabetes and heart failure. One study showed that if we sat down for only three hours a day, it would add two years to an average person’s life. Now if you can increase your life expectancy and prevent diseases, it would only make sense to increase the number of standing desks in the workplace and classroom. An article from CNN tells that when two parents organized an elementary school field day, the children were too big

The purpose of this study is to assess the benefits of allowing students to have choice in their seating. It is also being done to examine in sitting in desks, are friendly for children. The importance of the study is to give a students a more flexible and comfortable setting to work in. When students are comfortable, they will be more engaged, and therefore more knowledge can be obtained. I believe this study needs to be done so I can assess how different seating in the classroom will affect my students. I want to know if allowing flexible seating will make my classroom feel more welcoming or if it will be a classroom management night mare. Classrooms are becoming more student-centered and overall, I believe flexible seating allows for a more

An ergonomic hazard in the workplace can occur when a worker repeats the same movement, or engages in stationary/ uncomfortable positions over an extended period of time. The reason why employers must take such an initiative to prevent their employees from developing a

The theories of ergonomics, underlying principles and design methods put forward assistance to optimize human well-being and overall system performance. Its scientific applications make the working environment most efficient, safe and comfortable. The International Labour Organisation defines Ergonomics as 'the application of the human biological sciences in conjunction with the engineering sciences to the worker and his working environment, so as to obtain maximum satisfaction for the worker which at the same time enhances productivity'. Historically, the employers in the manufacturing sector have been addressing the issues related to improvement in the health and well being of the employees. There are enough statutes to protect and further the health and welfare of employees in this segment. But, now a days in the service sector also, there is an increasing trend in adopting scientific methods to

Kitchen is the workplace for housewife. We do not that the hazard at workplace are come from the poor ergonomic at kitchen. The job of preparing, serving and cleaning up after meals gets done there. Making that environment fit you is a most critical factor in your satisfaction with your kitchen. Ergonomics aims at making this work more efficient, faster, more pleasant, and less fatiguing by improving the interface between the human body and the things we need to interact with to get work done.