Is there a need for newer desks in schools?
Students are in school for seven hours a day, Monday through Friday, for 9 months of the year. That’s 1,260 hours sitting in a desk; an inefficiently designed, uncomfortable desk. School desks are outdated (their design dating back to the 1970’s) and are designed in a way that causes physical problems for students and hinders efficient learning when sitting in them. They are often not designed to be ergonomic; in fact, “schoolchildren sit in disadvantaged positions for a substantial part of school lessons” (Saarni, Nygard, Kaukiainen, Rimpela). Today’s heavy school desks also prove to be harder for children to move; “success rates [of carrying a chair and table] decreased with increasing total weight of the desk and chair,” and younger children often struggle or fail to arrange classroom furniture in a way conductive to learning due to its weight (Purwaningrum, Funatsu, Xiong, Rosyidi, Muraki).
The effects of prolonged sitting on the body are numerous. An article published by the American Academy of Family Physicians states that evidence has shown prolonged sitting is “independently associated with negative health outcomes and mortality (Crawford).” Jason Matuszak, a sports medicine specialists, says, “People who don’t exercise can be healthier even if all they do is reduce the amount of time they sit…” (Crawford). Therefore, it’s important to realize that sitting affects health, but even more so for a child whose body is still growing and developing. In a study of the risk factors associated with back pain in New Zealand school children, their research and data showed “there was a significant relationship between neck and low back pain and attributes of chairs,” (Trevelyan). Children are in the traditional, one arm rest desks as early as the sixth grade when children are at the ages of 11-12 and sitting for long hours become problematic. As shown in the New Zealand study, there is an increase in scoliosis, lordosis, and kyphosis (Trevelyan). If children are developing bad posture at an early age, it will be hard to fix their habits later on in the future, especially if they happen to have desk jobs. Bad posture leads can lead to a decrease in health from sore shoulders and back to heart disease. A comfortable chair that provides support for the back and is at a height where the person sitting in it can reach the floor can drastically improve posture and so improves health.
In addition, prolonged hours in a stationary position has contributed to the increasing obesity population in students. In a study conducted in a district in Tullahoma, Tennessee from 2015-2016 the percent of screened students that were considered overweight was 38 percent, compared to the 35 percent from 2014-2015. To combat the increases in weight-related health issues, the district has implemented the "standing desks." Because these desks are meant to be raised, students are less sedentary during the school day; the benefits and concept is so favorable that teachers have become creative using bed risers to raise the desks in the classroom (McCullough).
The current desks are outlived and out dated. They are unbearably uncomfortable and can even be painful after sitting in them for extended amounts of time. This pain leads to distractions that can greatly hinder learning. Doctors in Germany (Ulrike Binge, Michael Rose, Jan Glaescher, and Christian Buechel) conducted a study about how pain can distract the brain. It was discovered that “pain interferes with the processing of other, less relevant stimuli to gather salience in a complex environment,” after the experiments. If a student is in pain, what teachers are trying to teach will quickly become irrelevant to the aching of the child. Even simple tasks such as studying can be hindered because “pain also interfered with the relevant task (i.e., working memory) as shown by the increased reaction times when high working memory load and pain occurred together.” This can greatly hurt how much the student can learn in class just because of the imperfections of the current school desk. A better designed desk would solve these painful problems with the old desks and increase efficiency and effectiveness in the classroom.
The weight of today’s school desks around the world has proven time and time again to be problematic; the children that use the chairs and desks are often unable to even lift them off the ground, preventing rearrangement of furniture to promote creativity or any kind of kinesthetic movement in general, as well as back pain or other bodily ailments caused by the moving of something that weighs too much. In a study conducted by several researchers focused on the weight of school desks in several different countries, results were staggering.
The effects of prolonged sitting on the body are numerous. An article published by the American Academy of Family Physicians states that evidence has shown prolonged sitting is “independently associated with negative health outcomes and mortality (Crawford).” Jason Matuszak, a sports medicine specialists, says, “People who don’t exercise can be healthier even if all they do is reduce the amount of time they sit…” (Crawford). Therefore, it’s important to realize that sitting affects health, but even more so for a child whose body is still growing and developing. In a study of the risk factors associated with back pain in New Zealand school children, their research and data showed “there was a significant relationship between neck and low back pain and attributes of chairs,” (Trevelyan). Children are in the traditional, one arm rest desks as early as the sixth grade when children are at the ages of 11-12 and sitting for long hours become problematic. As shown in the New Zealand study, there is an increase in scoliosis, lordosis, and kyphosis (Trevelyan). If children are developing bad posture at an early age, it will be hard to fix their habits later on in the future, especially if they happen to have desk jobs. Bad posture leads can lead to a decrease in health from sore shoulders and back to heart disease. A comfortable chair that provides support for the back and is at a height where the person sitting in it can reach the floor can drastically improve posture and so improves health.
In addition, prolonged hours in a stationary position has contributed to the increasing obesity population in students. In a study conducted in a district in Tullahoma, Tennessee from 2015-2016 the percent of screened students that were considered overweight was 38 percent, compared to the 35 percent from 2014-2015. To combat the increases in weight-related health issues, the district has implemented the "standing desks." Because these desks are meant to be raised, students are less sedentary during the school day; the benefits and concept is so favorable that teachers have become creative using bed risers to raise the desks in the classroom (McCullough).
The current desks are outlived and out dated. They are unbearably uncomfortable and can even be painful after sitting in them for extended amounts of time. This pain leads to distractions that can greatly hinder learning. Doctors in Germany (Ulrike Binge, Michael Rose, Jan Glaescher, and Christian Buechel) conducted a study about how pain can distract the brain. It was discovered that “pain interferes with the processing of other, less relevant stimuli to gather salience in a complex environment,” after the experiments. If a student is in pain, what teachers are trying to teach will quickly become irrelevant to the aching of the child. Even simple tasks such as studying can be hindered because “pain also interfered with the relevant task (i.e., working memory) as shown by the increased reaction times when high working memory load and pain occurred together.” This can greatly hurt how much the student can learn in class just because of the imperfections of the current school desk. A better designed desk would solve these painful problems with the old desks and increase efficiency and effectiveness in the classroom.
The weight of today’s school desks around the world has proven time and time again to be problematic; the children that use the chairs and desks are often unable to even lift them off the ground, preventing rearrangement of furniture to promote creativity or any kind of kinesthetic movement in general, as well as back pain or other bodily ailments caused by the moving of something that weighs too much. In a study conducted by several researchers focused on the weight of school desks in several different countries, results were staggering.
The above graph shows the success rates of children lifting their chairs onto a desk. Often times, just the weight of the chair proved to be too much for the younger children to lift, with success rates ranging from 20% to 85%, even with the lightest style of chairs.
The above graph shows the success rate of trying to move a chair and desk together. Only 80% of older children could lift the heaviest furniture, and younger children dropped as low as 15% or 20% success even trying to move the lightest furniture.
The above graph shows overall success rate; once again, success ranges from 80% to 40%, never anywhere close to 100%. The bulkiness and heaviness of today’s school desks prevent many students from moving them, and cause unnecessary hassle for teachers or supervisors required to perform the moving of the desks.
The conclusion of the furniture weight study is shown above; an overall trend appears in lighter furniture being much more conducive to a learning environment, which is exactly the opposite of what happens in schools today that employ the use of incredibly heavy and outdated desks and chairs.
School desks, as mentioned above, are often not designed to be ergonomic; in fact, extended amounts of times sitting in school desks can cause back pain, neck pain, and long lasting health effects, especially with the amount of time today’s generation spends sitting down in school. One team of researchers studied the different average measurements of the human body, and determined that school desks were not at all conducive to average body measurements. The results of their study are shown below; the team measured displacement of actual body measurements compared to what the desk was built to accommodate. A displacement of 0 means that the desk is correctly accommodating the fit of the student in the desk.
School desks, as mentioned above, are often not designed to be ergonomic; in fact, extended amounts of times sitting in school desks can cause back pain, neck pain, and long lasting health effects, especially with the amount of time today’s generation spends sitting down in school. One team of researchers studied the different average measurements of the human body, and determined that school desks were not at all conducive to average body measurements. The results of their study are shown below; the team measured displacement of actual body measurements compared to what the desk was built to accommodate. A displacement of 0 means that the desk is correctly accommodating the fit of the student in the desk.
As you can see, displacement can vary by as much as 34 cm; this huge variance, and the failure of the “one size fits all” principle when applied to school desks, can cause discomfort in students not of an average body size, a surprisingly large portion of students. An adjustable desk would be much more conducive to supporting health and comfort in the school environment.
Works Cited
Crawford, C. (2015, January 27). Prolonged Sitting Linked to Serious Health Risks, Death.
Retrieved August 19, 2016, from http://www.aafp.org/news/health-of-the-public/20150127sitting.html
Trevelyan, Fiona C FC (2011). "Risk factors associated with back pain in New Zealand school
children.". Ergonomics (0014-0139), 54 (3), p. 257.
Feathers, D., Pavlovic-Veselinovic, S., & Hedge, A. (2011). Measures of fit and
discomfort for elementary school children in Serbia (pp. S73-S81, Rep. No. 44).
McCullough, E. (2017, February 9). Screening: Student obesity rate up. Retrieved February 27, 2017, from
http://www.tullahomanews.com/screening-student-obesity-rate-up/
Purwaningrum, L., Funatsu, K., Xiong, J., Rosyidi, C. N., & Muraki, S. (2015).Effect of
Furniture Weight on Carrying, Lifting, and Turning of Chairs and Desks among Elementary School Children (pp. 1-19, Rep.) (K. Dalal, Ed.).
Works Cited
Crawford, C. (2015, January 27). Prolonged Sitting Linked to Serious Health Risks, Death.
Retrieved August 19, 2016, from http://www.aafp.org/news/health-of-the-public/20150127sitting.html
Trevelyan, Fiona C FC (2011). "Risk factors associated with back pain in New Zealand school
children.". Ergonomics (0014-0139), 54 (3), p. 257.
Feathers, D., Pavlovic-Veselinovic, S., & Hedge, A. (2011). Measures of fit and
discomfort for elementary school children in Serbia (pp. S73-S81, Rep. No. 44).
McCullough, E. (2017, February 9). Screening: Student obesity rate up. Retrieved February 27, 2017, from
http://www.tullahomanews.com/screening-student-obesity-rate-up/
Purwaningrum, L., Funatsu, K., Xiong, J., Rosyidi, C. N., & Muraki, S. (2015).Effect of
Furniture Weight on Carrying, Lifting, and Turning of Chairs and Desks among Elementary School Children (pp. 1-19, Rep.) (K. Dalal, Ed.).