Classroom Design and Student Engagement

Engaging learning spaces are as much about physical and interior design as it is instructional: one study found that the physical space of schools can positively (or negatively) affect a student’s academic performance by as much as 25% in one school year.

Businesses are moving away from the Office Space days of cubicles and fluorescent lighting, opting instead for couches, standing desks, bean bags and other methods of creating comfortable environments. (In fact, I’m writing this sprawled out on a couch tucked away in a cozy corner of Flocab HQ.)  The same should go for classrooms, and yet it has stagnated.

Here are some things to consider when evaluating a shift in your classroom design: