Coordination of the school interior at science teaching with some anthropometric parameters of 11-12 year old kids

• Main Authors: Nataša Rizman Herga, Samo Fošnarič
• Format: Article
• Language: deu
• Published: University of Maribor Press 2017-03-01
• Series: Revija za Elementarno Izobraževanje
• Subjects: interiors; school furniture; anthropometry; science; primary school
• Online Access: http://rei.pef.um.si/images/Izdaje_revije/2017/1/REI_10_1_cl_8.pdf

The aim of the research was to identify adequacy of school furniture dimensions with the help of anthropometric measurements experimented on 11 - 12 year-old pupils. These are the pupils who have switched from classroom teaching to the subject teaching and have lessons in specialized classrooms, which are designed for a specific school subject. We were interested in the discrepancies between pupils' anthropometric dimensions and the dimensions of school furniture situated in science classrooms. The research included 192 pupils (N = 192) in the 6th and 7th grade of primary schools in North-Eastern Slovenia. Readings were made on certain pupils' anthropometric dimensions, including stature, popliteal height, buttock-popliteal lenght, elbow height sitting, thigh thickness, subscapular height and hip width. School furniture taken measurements showed that the dimensions of desks designed according to ISO 5970 correspond with size 6 (for height between 173 and 184 cm). Results of the anthropometric measurements are showed that 6th grade pupils are in average 152 cm high, 7th grade pupils 160 cm. The research has showed a great mismatch of school furniture with anthropometric dimensions which can have serious consequences on pupil development.