The external environment of a classroom can promote active learning, or it can interrupt it, because the arrangement of the various spatial areas in the classroom can affect the teaching effect. In general, the front seat is conducive to students' participation in teaching activities and easy to talk to the class, while the rear seat is more difficult to participate and convenient for daydreaming.

From a practical point of view, there is no ideal arrangement of tables and chairs, and the following arrangement is only to provide a reference for selection, so that active learning interior design is full of fun and challenging. In some classrooms, desks and chairs can be easily rearranged to create a different learning environment, and even traditional desks and chairs can be brought together to serve as a large table for discussion, or for other purposes. If the teacher decides to do so, he can ask the student to help move the table and chair, and the process of helping the student can also make the student move first.

Most of the arrangements described here do not mean that they are set in stone in the future, and if the desks and chairs and equipment in the classroom are easy to move, some of them can be used as needed. Here are some suggestions on how to set up active learning situations in the most traditional classroom.

1. Horseshoe arrangement (U shape)

Each student has their own desktop where they can read and write, see the teacher or audio-visual media directly, and have face-to-face contact with their classmates. The arrangement shown in Figure 2-1 makes it easy for students to sit in pairs, especially if they share a desk. This is ideal when handing out handouts, because the teacher can walk into the middle of the horseshoe shape at any time and hand out piles of handouts to students on each side. When arranging desks and chairs, make sure that there is enough space between the horseshoe shapes of each group so that students in each group can sit comfortably facing each other.

2. team-style

As shown in Figure 2-3, you can arrange seats tightly around and up the table to allow students to have the most intimate contact to facilitate group interaction. Under this arrangement, some students can only see the teacher on the podium, the blackboard, or the projection screen if their chair is slightly adjusted, or they can remove the chair in each group facing away from the front of the room so that students do not turn around too often and interfere with class participation.

3. conference table

If the table is rectangular or round, it is best arranged in this way (Figure 2-4). This arrangement makes the teacher less important and the student more important. If the teacher sits at the farthest end of the combined long square table, the square position in Figure 2-4, it can create a formal meeting form and atmosphere; If the teacher sits in the middle of the combined long square table, as shown in the squares in Figure 2-5, the students sitting on the farthest sides of the table will feel neglected. It is also possible to combine several long tables into a hollow arrangement, as shown in Figure 2-6.

4. circle Arrangement

Removing all desks and arranging student seats in a circle (Figure 2-7) promotes the most direct face-to-face communication among students. This is best for class discussion if it is arranged in a large circle. If there is enough radius space, ask students to quickly move their chairs into small groups. If students need to use a desk to write, they can arrange the desk next to their chair in the outer circle, as shown in Figure 2-8, and turn the chair around when they need to discuss in a group.

5. group on group

As shown in Figure 2-9, this arrangement is best suited for fishbowl discussion (also known as inner circle group discussion), or for role-playing, debating, or group observation. Its most typical arrangement is to arrange the chairs in two concentric circles. Alternatively, you can place a conference table in the middle with a circle of chairs around it, as shown in Figure 2-10.

6. workstations

This arrangement is suitable for teaching situations that require active experimentation, because each student can sit at the same table and collaborate on an assignment immediately after the teacher demonstrates the lesson. Only two people per workstation is the ideal way to foster learning partnerships