Running head: THE EFFECT OF ASSIGNED SEATING 1

The Effects of Assigned Seating in the

Middle School Mathematics Classroom

Abbigale Duncan

EDUC 509
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 2

Abstract

The goal of this study was to explore how students’ grades are impacted when assigned

seating is implemented into a mathematics learning environment. Assigned seats were

implemented in one classroom, while students in a different room had free range to any seat.

Throughout the course of five different formal assessments, students took the same five tests as

they normally would, the only factors which had change was assigned seating for the

experimental groups. The results of this study found that the experimental groups assessment

scores benefitted from the assigned seats they were placed in, with evidence shown through the

improvement gap of scores between the two classrooms. This study was inspired by the curiosity

and challenge every teacher has when contemplating classroom management.

THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 3

The Effects of Assigned Seating in the Middle School Mathematics Classroom

Introduction and Rationale

The purpose of this study is to identify how students’ grades are impacted when assigned

seating is implemented into a mathematics learning environment. The study will focus on

whether or not students’ achievement is increased when a teacher implements an assigned

seating chart in their classroom.

More specifically, the study will take place in a middle school mathematics classroom.

Students’ achievement in the classroom will be measured by the increase or decrease in students’

grades.

During this study, the teacher will implement an assigned seating chart in their 1st period

classroom that will focus on separating students who usually gravitate towards sitting together.

The same teacher will give their students in 2nd period free range of the seats in class. After two

semesters of implementing both of the strategies, student achievement will be compared between

the two class periods. The results of this study could be used to assist teachers in deciding

whether or not implementing assigned seating in their classrooms would be worth their effort.

I believe assigned seating is a topic that is considered often to many classrooms. It is a

popular belief that “seating arrangements are important classroom setting events because they

have the potential to help prevent problem behaviors that decrease student attention and diminish

available instructional time.” (Wannarka and Ruhl, 2008) However, my inquiry is, are students’

grade impacted when assigned seating is implemented into a classroom environment?

I am unsure if I am in agreement that assigned seating will has a positive impact on

students’ achievements through grades. However, I predict that my study will rule against

implementing an assigned seating arrangement in the classroom, I believe that assigned seating
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 4

will not impact student achievement in the classroom. Wannarka & Ruhl (2008), conducted a

synthesis study on how seating arrangements promote positive academic and behavioral

outcomes. Their findings concluded that there is no single classroom seating arrangement that

promotes positive academic outcomes. Similarly, Oginyi, Chris, Mbam, Ehigie, & Joseph

(2016), report that a previous comparison study of self-selection and assigned seating found no

grade differences between the students. They also report that another study suggests that student

performance is not significantly altered by seating location.

I plan to determine through research and exploration if assigned seating has an effect on

student achievement.

Literature Review

Implementing Assigned Seats in the Classroom

According to the researcher, Assigned seating in a classroom refers to the placement of

students required by the teacher. Assigned seating is dependent on how a classroom is laid out. If

a classroom is split into rows, a teacher may find themselves deciding which students will sit in

the front of the room, and which will sit in the back. If a classroom is arranged by grouping, a

teacher may find themselves having to decide which students work best together.

Oftentimes, teachers face the difficulty of deciding whether or not they should assign

seats to their students, or let them sit in a place of the choosing. There are things to consider

when deciding on whether or not assigned seating should be implemented in your classroom,

student achievement being one of them. With this information in mind, there are only a few

sources who have reported studies on the subject of what should be considered when deciding

where students should sit in the classroom. According to Gremmen, Van Den Berg, Segers, &

Cillessen (2016), seating arrangements should be decided upon with the following goal in mind.
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 5

“Seating arrangements in rows may be chosen to improve information dissemination, whereas an

arrangement in small groups may be chosen to promote student interactions.” (Gremmen, Van

Den Berg, Segers, & Cillessen, p. 753)

There are different ways to justify a teacher's decisions for assigned seating. According to

Roy (2012), with the changing needs of our students, there cannot be one ideal arrangement for a

single classroom. For example, a teacher may focus on taking a student's physical needs into

consideration, such as auditory/visual problems or height differences. A teacher may also focus

on social considerations, such as whether close friends should be kept together or separated.

Academic considerations may be a focus, such as placing together students with

homogenous/heterogeneous academic capabilities. Classroom management could also be their

focus, such as doing what they can to increase peace and order in their classroom. (Gremmen,

Van Den Berg, Segers, & Cillessen, p. 753) If it is decided to implement assigned seating, it is

important for a teacher to decide what is best for that particular classroom. “In fact, an

arrangement that is disagreeable to the students may erect a needless barrier, possibly one that

will prevent learning in spite of other appropriate behaviors of the teacher.” (Roy, p. 13)

The Effects of Assigned Seating on Student Achievement

If a seating arrangement is implemented within a classroom, a teacher deserves the right

to know if it is working for it’s intended purpose. This particular study focuses on whether or not

assigned seating has a positive impact on student achievement, specifically grade improvement.

Wannarka & Ruhl (2008), conducted a synthesis study to determine if seating arrangements

promote positive academic and behavioural outcomes, and if so, which arrangements have this

potential. In this synthesis, eight studies were investigated to find a conclusion to the idea stated

above. Results such as, “A student’s location in the classroom is related to the number of
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 6

questions received from the teacher; this may influence the student’s opportunity to respond and

thus learn.” (Wannarka & Ruhl, p. 89) After further research, Rachel Wannarka and Kathy Ruhl

found the various texts to lack consensus. Their synthesis study concluded that “Results indicate

that teachers should let the nature of the task dictate seating arrangements.” (Wannarka & Ruhl,

p. 89)

Another study by Amanda Careena Fernandes, M.Ed. and Jinyan Huang, Ph.D. was

conducted by using a survey to investigate teacher perceptions on how seating arrangements

impacted their students in the classroom. Specifically, the question that impacts the study is ,

“What is the relationship between seating arrangements and student achievement?” (Fernandes

& Huang, p. 51) Their conclusions upon further research suggests that teachers agree, for the

most part, that assigned seating does affect student achievement. These results suggest that

participants tend to agree that if assigned seating was to occur, participants are more likely to

place high-achieving, well-behaved students near the front of the class. (Fernandes & Huang, p.

51)

A study conducted by Dr. Ronald C.N. Oginyi, Abojei Chris, Ofoke S. Mbam, Prof. B.O.

Ehigie, and Chia Francis Joseph in 2016 suggests different findings. They tested the effects of

students’ seating position in response to the decline of students’ academic performance. The

sample that was tested included 108 total male and female students at a secondary level. They

designed a test to assess students recall abilities in order to measure achievement. The conclusion

of this study agreed that their findings showed no significant effect of seating on recalling of

information. (Oginyi, Chris, Mbam, Ehigie, Joseph, p. 20)

Conflicting Findings

The conflicting results from multiple studies highlights the need for further testing. The
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 7

impact of seating on student achievement presents contradictory results. While some literature

shows no significant correlation between assigned seating and student achievement, others

contradict this idea.

Describing the Research Site

For the purpose of this study, my focus will be on a middle school mathematics

classroom. For the sake of privacy, the particular county in which the study is being conducted

will be called Lea County. Of the county’s 4,221 enrolled students, 91.3% are white, 4.6% are

African American, 1.8% are two or more races, 1.6% are Hispanic, 0.6% are Asian, and 0.1% are

Native Hawaiian. (Virginia School Quality Profiles, 2016). Of the enrolled students in this

county, 45.6% are considered economically disadvantaged, 11% of the students have disabilities,

and 0.4% are considered English Language Learners. (Virginia School Quality Profiles, 2017)

Lea County has 3 public middle schools, all a part of Lea County School District. This

study is based out of one particular middle school in Lea County School District which will be

referred to as Ventura Middle School. Approximately 328 students attend Ventura Middle

School, of those students 43.6% are considered economically disadvantaged, 14.3% of these

students have disabilities, and 0.6% are English language learners. The school is accredited and

87% of the enrolled students either met or exceeded expectations for achievement in

mathematics during the most recent years by performing at the proficient level or advanced level

on Standards of Learning tests and other states assessments. (Virginia School Quality Profiles,

2016)

The precise location of the research for this study is in the 6th grade Mathematics course.

The study will take place in 1st and 2nd period, classes consist entirely of 6th graders taught by

the same teacher. The two classes have a comparable number of students and students in each
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 8

class are dispersed equally according to levels of differentiation. The classes demonstrate

parallel levels of class-wide achievement on assessments. All students are required to take the

high-stakes Mathematics test at the end of the academic year. This study will offer the

Mathematics teacher a better understanding of what seating arrangements will increase student

achievement in the classroom.

Research and Design and Instruments

Participants

For this study, two classes of sixth grade mathematics students were selected. These

particular classes were selected due to their similar compositions; which included having the

same teacher, the same amount of students, and similar performances on academic assessments.

The control group, those who sat wherever they would like in class, consisted of 20 students. Of

these 20 students, academically speaking, 7 are above level, 10 are on level, and 3 are below

level. The experimental group, those who have assigned seats implemented by the teacher, also

consisted of 20 students. Of these 20 students, academically speaking, 7 are above level, 9 are on

level, and 4 are below level.

Instrumentation

The assigned seating for the experimental group was chosen based on classroom

dynamics. The considerations included: which students gravitated towards one another and

became talkative, which students had visual or hearing impairments, the students who grades

slipped when they sat in the back of the room.

There were 5 students in the class who had visual or hearing impairments. These students

were determined by diagnoses of doctors and came to the attention of the teacher at the start of

the school year. The students who had visual of hearing impairments were first equally dispersed
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 9

around the classroom. Two of these students had written permission of their eye doctors to sit

anywhere in the classroom when wearing glasses. These students were placed as follows; labeled

S1 and color coded orange.

S1 S1 S1

S1

S1

There were 7 students in the class who had low grades and always sat in the back of the

classroom. These students were determined by close observation and academic achievement. The

students who had low grades and sat in the back of the room were equally dispersed around the

classroom next. These students were placed as follows; labeled S2 and color coded blue.

S1 S2 S1 S2 S1

S2 S2 S2

S2 S1 S2

S1

There were 8 remaining students in the class who always gravitated towards each other

and became talkative, this excludes the visual or hearing impaired and also the students with low

grades. However, these 8 remaining students were split into two different friend groups. Each

group had 4 remaining students who gravitated towards each other. These students were

determined by close observation and noise levels. The students who were talkative when sitting

near friends were equally dispersed around the classroom last. The students in one friend group
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 10

are labeled as follows, S3-1 and color coded purple. The students in the other friend group are

labeled as follows, S3-2 and color coded green.

S1 S2 S1 S2 S1

S2 S2 S3-1 S3-2 S2

S2 S3-1 S3-2 S1 S2

S3-1 S3-2 S1 S3-1 S3-2

Assessments

The academic data of both the experimental and control groups will be collected using

five different mathematical assessments while the experimental group has assigned seats

implemented and the control group has freedom to sit where they would like. An average, or

mean, of all of the students scores from each of the five assessments will be calculated. The

assessment averages between the five assessments will be compared to find an increase or

decrease in scores. The differences between averages, an increase or decrease, will then be

compared between the experimental group and the control group.

Findings and Implications

The issue of assigned seating arrangements is one that has become more and more

discussed within schools today. Clearly, the results produced by this study, as depicted in Table

A, indicate that a classroom with an assigned seating arrangement has the capability of directly

influencing a student’s achievement levels in a positive way. As indicated earlier, the

comparison of two classrooms achievement levels helped to measure the effects of assigned

seating. Grades of students in both classes, who were similar in composition, were compared
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 11

throughout five different assessments. This method was produced to have a control and

experimental group to determine the effectiveness of assigned seating in a classroom. The

outcome of this study provided results in regards to the originally stated problem.

After five assessments had been given while implementing assigned seating in the

classroom, I noticed a difference in students achievement levels. Throughout the semester,

students were more likely to focus on the material being presented throughout lessons. The

students in the experimental group rarely had to take work home that went unfinished during

class time, whereas the students in the control group were more likely to have to finish this work

at home.

As a result of this study, the average increase of the experimental group's achievement

levels, as measured by five numerically graded assessments, increased by 2.68%. Table A shows

the results of all five assessments that were given to the students.

Table A
Experimental Group: Achievement Level by Assessment Grades

Assessment Assessment Assessment Assessment Assessment

1 2 3 4 5

Average of Scores 83.56% 83.22% 83.54% 84.09% 86.24%

Average Increase: 2.68%

This increase was then compared with the control group. The average increase of the

control group’s achievement levels, as measured by five numerically graded assessments,

THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 12

increase by only 0.9%. Table B shows the results of all five assessments that were given to the

students.

Table B
Control Group: Achievement Level by Assessment Grades

Assessment Assessment Assessment Assessment Assessment

1 2 3 4 5

Average of Scores 82.24% 81.37% 82.54% 83.12% 83.14%

Average Increase: 0.9%

Although Table C shows an increase in both classes achievement levels, the increase of

the experimental groups grades are 1.78% higher than that of the control groups. Now, some may

say that there is not much of a difference between the two classrooms but the important thing to

notice is that students in the experimental group were obviously retaining more information than

students in the control group.

Table C
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 13

It is believed that this study resulted in positive results due to the students in the

experimental group being challenged to learn in a seating arrangement where distractions had

been diminished as much as possible. All too often, students use class time to talk to friends,

sleep, or utilize other distractions instead of focusing on learning. Arranging students in class to

meet their physical disabilities and avoid problematic behaviors produced positive results

because students were either forced to rid themselves of distractions and focus on the material

being presented, or they were placed somewhere in the classroom that was more adaptable for

their physical disabilities.

Limitations of Study

Although the results of this study provides some encouragement to implementing

assigned seats in a classroom, one should be careful to recognize that this was a singular study

conducted to identify whether or not students achievement levels are affected by assigned

seatings. With this in mind, conclusions should not be made without further studies and

identifying variables that could have possibly affected the results of this study. The results of this

particular study could have contained certain limitations that should be taken into consideration

when looking at the results.

First, this study only contained one experimental group. To gain more insight into

whether or not assigned seating does in fact affect student achievement levels, it would be

beneficial to conduct the study using several experimental groups and compare them to several

control groups. Second, this study was done on 6th grade mathematics students. This particular

time in students lives could vary from week to week. Although there were differences in
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socioeconomic classes and academic success, it is difficult to factor in bodily changes the

students are experiencing, home situations, and other life factors. To gain more insight into

results, it would be useful to conduct the study over multiple age groups in various locations.

Thirdly, the study was only conducted under one teacher. The instructional styles of various

teachers in different schools are not uniform. To produce better, more reliable results, one should

conduct more studies under a variety of teachers with different teaching styles.

Although the results of my study provide a somewhat reliable basis for implementing

assigned seating in the classroom, we must also recognize that all studies, including this one,

have justifiable limitations.

Suggestions for Future Study

With the limitations of the study in mind, the best method for decreasing the amount of

limitations and finding more concrete results would be to conduct further research on the topic at

hand. As previously highlighted, future studies pertaining to this topic would further validate the

conclusions which my study found. Further studies should be conducted in various settings,

those of alike to my setting and those of difference. Further studies should also be done on

students of different ages, backgrounds, and in classrooms of different instruction.

A more complex study could also be done with the introduction of multiple variables. For

example, do assigned seats during group dependent classes affect the overall outcome of students

work? With the introduction of multiple variables, the possibilities for future research is greatly

expanded.

It would be very beneficial to experiment with changing factors, especially those

mentioned in the limitations of study. Replicating the same study with varied factors would bring
THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 15

about more dependable conclusions and could provide an opportunity to validate or contradict

the findings of my study.

References

Education, V. D. (n.d.). Wythe County Public Schools. Retrieved October 24, 2017, from

http://schoolquality.virginia.gov/divisions/wythe-county-public-schools

Education, V. D. (n.d.). Scott Memorial Middle. Retrieved October 24, 2017, from

http://schoolquality.virginia.gov/schools/scott-memorial-middle

Esha Roy, J. (2014). The Impact of Seating Arrangement on Students' Learning in

Secondary Schools. International Journal Of Information, Business & Management, 6(2),

1.

Fernandes, A. C., & Jinyan, H. (2012). Chinese Teacher Perceptions of the Impact of

Classroom Seating Arrangements on Student Participation. International Journal Of

Applied Educational Studies, 13(1), 49-67.

Gremmen, M. C., van den Berg, Y. M., Segers, E., & Cillessen, A. N. (2016).

Considerations for Classroom Seating Arrangements and the Role of Teacher

THE EFFECTS OF ASSIGNED SEATING 16

Characteristics and Beliefs. Social Psychology Of Education: An International Journal,

19(4), 749-774.

Oginyi, R. C., Dr., Chris, A., Mbam, O. S., Ehigie, B. O., & Joseph, C. F. (2016,

December). The International Journal of Indian Psychology, Volume 4, Issue 1, (No. 79).

Retrieved October 5, 2017, from https://books.google.com/books

Wannarka, R., & Ruhl, K. (2008). Seating arrangements that promote positive academic

and behavioural outcomes: a review of empirical research. Support For Learning, 23(2),

89-93.