Doctors: U-shaped classroom seating can be pain in the neck! Literally
A Karnataka-based child rights activist, Nagasimha Rao, has submitted a formal request to the state education minister Madhu Bangarappa, urging the implementation of a semi-circular seating pattern. Rao emphasised that this seating configuration fosters inclusivity and equal participation among students, besides eliminating back benches.
However, doctors raise concerns about musculoskeletal and orthopaedic health due to such seating arrangements.
"For children aged 10-12 years and beyond, prolonged sitting with bent heads during lessons can lead to muscular issues and neck pain. The concern is more relevant for teenagers aged 10-16, when academic demands intensify, requiring longer periods of seated study,'' said Dr Naveen Tahasildar, consultant spine surgeon at Sparsh Hospital, Infantry Road.
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The seating arrangement could impact teachers as well. "It poses potential physical strain on teachers who need to repeatedly twist their bodies to maintain eye contact with students.
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Additionally, students sitting closer to the teacher hear better than those further away," added Dr Tahasildar.
He, however, pointed out that it may not affect younger children - aged 5-10 years - much as their spines are quite flexible and their muscles are still developing.
A former backbencher, Dr Kaushik Murali, a paediatric ophthalmologist at Sankara Hospital, Bengaluru believes the U-shaped seating arrangement could potentially result in refractive errors being missed.
The traditional seating arrangement has several advantages, he said. "Children sitting at the back who struggle to read the board often get early eye tests. Their self-reporting of difficulty in reading is what often prompts eye examinations. In montessori settings, where pupils sit around tables, refractive errors might go unnoticed as there's less need for distance vision."
Schools that mull introducing this seating arrangement can have children move their heads periodically, suggested Dr Gowri Shankar Swamy, a consultant ortho spine surgeon at DHEE Hospital. "Teachers could also consider making children switch their seats after each period," said Dr Gowri.
The seating system has garnered support from educators and pupils alike, despite its limitations.
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