Revealing young children and teachers behaviour through active participation in deciding classroom layout

Abstract

Including children in planning and decision making can promote a higher level of learning experience to them. A project involving forty-two pre-schoolers’ from 3 different classrooms on re-designing their classroom was conducted to investigate children and teacher’s behaviour during the participatory activity. Throughout the process, each child was given the authority to initiate ideas and make decisions together with the classroom teacher. Children are found to express their preferences, raise issues, give ideas, negotiate, express dissatisfaction, claiming for explanations and accepting others views. Teachers are seen to give encouragement and positive feedback and to express dissatisfaction on certain events.