The school is an old building, and we're only in half of it. I'm on the third floor, which seems great to me. There are two sets of stairs leading down. My classroom is at the end of the hall, across from the stairs. The teachers' resource room and bathrooms are also on the 3rd floor, at the other end of the hall. Of particular note are six big windows (they open! and there are working blinds!), lots of bulletin boards, lots of white boards, lots of space above the boards for posters, a small built-in closet for supplies, an overhead projector, and dictionaries under every desk.
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4 comments:
Catalina,
Congratulations. What a nice blank canvas you've been given.
is it absolute standard for American classroom to have rows of desks like that with everyone separated? I see it on movies and tv all the time but wondered if it was a cliche? The only time we had to sit like that when I was at school was during exams... did any aussies out there have to sit in rows at school?
That was the first thing I noticed too, Wamut! "Wow, a genuine American classroom!!" And like you, the only time I've sat like that in a school setting was during exams.
Given your worldwide teaching experiences, do you have any impression of what may be 'standard'?
And, congrats!!
Yeah, I thought it looked classic, too. Like the most stereotypical American high school classroom possible. Especially with the big round clock above the front board. How typical is it?
Having individual desks is definitely the norm in my experience. At one school I requested tables instead and got them (a table that holds about 3 people across). But a lot of schools prefer the the desk-chair combo (they're welded together), with the wire basket underneath for books. It was what I had in all my high school classes except art, I think.
As for the configuration in rows, it's common but definitely not universal. Most teachers would have students move desks around for different types of activity (group work vs. individual). Another common configuration is the horse-shoe or semi-circle. That's good for discussion.
One thing to remember about American schools is that the students move around (individually, not as a class) between 4-7 different classes each day. Each classroom is occupied by a single teacher (usually), so that room has that teacher's "stamp" or personality or style.
Aussies and others, what is normal or usual in terms of high school desks?
Other Americans, did you have this style of classroom in school?
Oh, Bulanjdjan asked about my experience in other places. Unfortunately, my experience isn't that vast. Eritrea and the Solomons are both in the British model, so if there's anything in common there it may be simply British. But, then I guess Britishness does define a certain standard!
In both places it was common to have rather narrow tables designed for 2-3 students, who sat on a long bench which was attached to the desk. However, in the Solomons at least one of the classrooms had some individual desks and they were much favored by certain students.
In both places, resources were scarce and the benches were hard and uncomfortable in my opinion!
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