What are the secrets of good ergonomic in schools?

Standing at work has many benefits for adults. However, not only adults can benefit from these advantages. Younger people such as students can enjoy the freedom of standing at schools during their classes as well. Nowadays, many schools have invested in standing desks for their pupils.

Is it a good idea? Let’s discover the opinion of students and teachers around the world. Studies have been carried out in schools about the impact of standing desks on students.

At first, we might think that it’s a strange idea to see students standing and not sitting in classrooms. This idea goes against our casual sedentary lifestyle. To accept this new revolutionary way of teaching, people first have to get detached from their old sedentary life habits, which is not always easy.  That’s why, for a few older tradition-oriented teachers, it may seem impossible to see their students standing instead of sitting. They often think that it would hurt the atmosphere, and they associate standing with being loud and creating a mess. In their belief, sitting means being calm and quiet.

Though, many teachers are open-minded to put standing desks in their classrooms. They believe that sitting reduces physical activity, and they think standing may have serious benefits on their pupils. Reducing the time students spend sitting in an (often) unhealthy posture improves their well-being.

A study has been carried out in a primary school. Moving during the lessons by changing the posture may be more useful for primary school pupils as in secondary school, students move much more and change classrooms during the day.
According to the teachers’ opinions, standing desks are very flexible, they improve social interactions, motivation, concentration, and attention during classes.
They have the feeling that their pupils enjoy the lessons much more.
Standing is also a good way to support overweight pupils.

Now, let’s focus on pupils’ opinions concerning standing desks. The amount of their sitting time was considerably reduced. Some of them say that they can concentrate and focus on the lesson much more than when they are sitting. Some primary school pupils think that they have a better posture, they have a straight back. It makes them feel less tired and more energetic. According to them, there will certainly be an effect on their health and well-being after using standing desks for a long time. It also created vivid moments in the classroom.

Unfortunately, standing desks are not available in each school. Nevertheless, at Notadesk, we believe that one day I will be the case. We are convinced it would change education for the better.

*(Verloigne,M., Ridgers, N.D., Bourdeaudhuij, I. & Cardon, G. (2018). Effect and process evaluation of implementing standing desks in primary and secondary schools in Belgium: a cluster-randomized controlled trial. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act(15), 94, 1-17. doi : 10.1186/s12966-018-0726-9.)

Paulina Malinowska