a day ago
Classrooms without backbenchers: With new sitting format, schools stand out
"Backbenchers, come sit in the front."If I had a rupee for every time a school teacher said that, I'd have saved enough to pay part of my college fee. Perennial backenchers like me would have memories, both fond and forgetable. But the times, they are a-changin'. Long seen as a comfort zone for some and a punishment for others, backbenches in schools could be on their way to becoming obsolete. That's to demolish the sitting hierarchy and making classrooms more a quiet but growing shift across states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, and West Bengal, schools are rethinking how children sit. And the push isn't coming from top-down academic research or classroom reformers. It began with a scene from a Malayalam children's film, Sthanarthi Sreekuttan.
The movie, which questions the divide between frontbenchers and backbenchers, features a seventh-grade student suggesting a simple but powerful change: rearrange the single scene has now snowballed into a wider conversation about shifting not just the backbencher but also the seating system a cue from the film, Ramavilasom Vocational Higher Secondary School (RVHSS) in Valakom, Kottarakkara, in South Kerala, decided to try out the before we go into how the seating system is changing, let's first look at how it DID THE FRONTBENCHER AND BACKBENCHER SYSTEM START?The traditional row-and-column classroom seating originated from the 19th-century Prussian education system. The Prussian government wanted to standardise education across its growing by military precision, they introduced a rigid classroom not born in the Industrial Revolution, this model aligned perfectly with its factory logic and was formalised in schools across schools began to mimic factory layouts, students sat in straight lines, facing forward, trained to follow instructions rather than question row-wise sitting allowed one teacher to control large classrooms efficiently, monitor behaviour, and deliver one-way India, the frontbencher–backbencher divide took root during the British colonial education in the colonial era was a means to produce compliant clerks, administrators, and interpreters of the empire's will. The row-column layout fit this agenda perfectly: it discouraged collaboration, promoted silence, and ensured that teachers remained the sole ROWS AND COLUMNS TO U-SHAPED SEATING IN CLASSROOMDesks in the Ramavilasom Vocational Higher Secondary School (RVSS) in Kerala were placed along the four walls of the classroom in a U- or V-shape, turning every seat into a "front row"."Minister Ganesh Kumar discussed this with us after watching a preview of Sreekuttan, a year before its release," Sunil P Sekhar, headmaster of RVHSS, told began with just one class. The results were overwhelmingly positive. We introduced it to all lower primary sections."Sekhar said the change allowed teachers to give equal attention to every student and monitor them better. More importantly, it removed the invisible wall that backbenchers often sit behind, both physically and in terms of engagement."It's especially helpful in primary classes, where students are still learning how to learn," he a lower primary teacher with 29 years of experience, called it "the most rewarding shift" she's seen in her teaching career."There's more eye contact, more involvement. The quieter students open up," she BENGAL, TAMIL NADU AND PUNJAB: NO BACKBENCHERSThe idea is now being tried out in Tamil state's School Education Department recently encouraged schools to experiment with a 'Pa'-shaped seating arrangement— named after the Tamil letter — under the belief that "engagement begins with arrangement".An education department official from Tamil Nadu confirmed the shift."We've encouraged schools to try the idea depending on classroom size and student strength. It doesn't need new infrastructure, just a new way of thinking," the official idea travelled to not just neighbouring Tamil Nadu but further West Bengal's Malda, the century-old Barlow Girls' High School in Englishbazar became the first school in the district to adopt the 'No More Backbencher' by Sthanarthi Sreekuttan, and encouraged by state education officials, the school conducted three pilot sessions for Class VII — one each in mathematics, history, and work education."In conventional classrooms, those at the back struggle to see the board or follow the discussion," said headmistress Deepasri Majumdar. "But in this setup, all 55 students were attentive, asked questions, and interacted. That kind of engagement is rare."The school replaced traditional rows with a semi-circular or horseshoe-shaped arrangement, making sure every student could see and face the district's school inspector, Banibrata Das, who was present during the rollout, said the results spoke for themselves."Sreekuttan moved us. It's a simple idea, but the impact is deep," Das sentiment has caught on in parts of Punjab as well. A school that screened the film reportedly introduced the new seating layout based on its states, at least eight schools in Kerala and several others in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Punjab are now tryingout the model in some form or the ARE PEOPLE SAYING ON CHANGED CLASSROOMS?Some people from other states too sought that a similar system be introduced there."No more backbenchers! Inspired by a Malayalam film, Kerala schools are adopting a U-shaped seating model to ensure every child gets equal attention. A simple shift with a powerful impact on inclusion, learning & confidence. Time for all state governments to implement this," wrote VV Lakshmi Narayana, former joint director of the others reacted to the news with humour and nostalgia."Thank goodness I didn't go to school in Kerala- they've abolished backbenchers! That was my permanent seat. Where would I have hidden my quick nap, my doodles, my secret samosa?," wrote industrialist, Harsh others said removing the last bench would not remove backbenchers, which is a mindset.- Ends
