Papakowhai School

A.C. Mandal – researcher - suggests that ‘balanced seating’ is a sitting posture that approaches the natural resting position and allows the spine to carry the body weight in a more comfortable way. Furniture designed to cater for this ideal posture is a key factor in promoting higher performance levels in any productive environment. Schools, as productive environments, have realised the importance of seating posture in keeping students on-task, and have been focusing in recent years on procuring matching furniture solutions.

Papakowhai Primary School’s teacher, Gael Brown provides an insight to the role school furniture plays in increasing students’ concentration level. In her interview with Furnware she outlines the changes she has witnessed in her students’ performance as a direct result of balanced seating posture the Bodyfurn System has provided to her class.   

The Right Height

Pleased with the school’s decision to outfit the majority of classrooms with the Bodyfurn System, Gael appreciates the different heights the furniture offers for her students; “with this system each child is given the opportunity to be seated at a desk and chair suited to their height, which allows them to be more centred with their feet flat on the floor.”

The chairs and desks’ height coordination has also helped Gael’s students achieve the correct posture at their desks; “Because the students are at the correct height their hands are at the right position to begin writing and remain focused” Gael adds.

Realising the benefits themselves, students in Gael’s class are very conscious of the different heights of their chair and desk and the assigned colour coding, which enables them to size themselves when moving the furniture around.   

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