Written by: Khaloula
Edited by: Emilio
In ISM’s more than a hundred years of establishment various changes have occurred on school grounds. Whether those changes consisted of new courses, new restaurants, or even new logos and colors, change is often expected and eventually welcomed by the community. However, such acceptance usually follows the various opinions of the people. In more recent times, the biggest change to have occurred would be the furniture shift in school classrooms, which, similar to past changes, has harbored the mixed opinions of many.
The brand-new furniture style adopted in every single ISM classroom and office displays colorful & informal features designed to promote collaboration, cohesiveness, and comfort. The softened, arched chairs provide a more comfortable, almost youthful feel to the classrooms, possessing a striking similarity to elementary and middle school setups and color schemes. The curved tables, designed to form semi-circles, make interaction and table discussions easier and less awkward to execute, with the terminated need to shift the body towards the speaker to listen or thoughtfully engage. Jamir, a high school senior, describes these tables to be “convenient but awkwardly shaped,” an opinion shared by many students.
These tables have become the most famous and regarded feature of the new ISM classroom, which Marijn, a high school senior, sees as her “favorite piece of new furniture.” They harbor favorable features such as legs able to be manually adjusted to go up or down and their smooth, whiteboard table tops. These allow for classes like science and math, to make lessons needing written practices much more convenient to participate in, providing efficiency, as you can now write on the whiteboard areas. Jamir also remarked that taking notes on such tables was much easier and more enjoyable of a feat than utilizing a notebook. Although such students didn’t view the change to have been “100% necessary”, it does provide a fun, new look and feel for the students and teachers.
However, some prefer past furniture with an anonymous high schooler stating they preferred the old ISM furniture, due to how it “looked more organized and structured.” Such old furniture featured rectangular tables and less movable chairs, all properly structured in rows and columns. This perceived flaw can be attributed to the more youthful, childish vibe and aesthetic the furniture seems to evoke. Furthermore, Monica, a high school junior, claimed the furniture made her “nostalgic” of her “childhood years”. Possibly, the preference for the past furniture can be drawn from a desire for a more professional, basic classroom design often globally utilized and accustomed to. The curvy tables also pose more difficulty for organization, as these need to be placed in a certain way and meticulously moved to portray a more coordinated look, becoming a pet peeve for some.
On the professional perspective, Mr. Hillman, the IB coordinator, teacher, & one of the esteemed KASAMA teacher heads, describes the furniture shift to be, “comfortable, aesthetically pleasing, possessing consistency, & with improved functionality”. As a TOK teacher, he often explores concepts and themes with students. He fondly describes the whiteboard table tops to provide convenience for the exploration of ideas, as such TOK concepts are nicely delved into with the tabletop vandalism these desks can now allow. He also believes the furniture now looks “better & more pleasant on the eye” due to the consistency of its utilization throughout the various ISM campuses.
Mr. Hillman also remarks that “in the corridors there’s now places where students can work easier.” In the subject hallways, an array of students can often be seen working on last minute assignments, studying for soon occurring tests, or viewing videos with a good quality meal. In terms of catering to such activities, the past design containing an uneven ratio of chairs and benches to tables provided inconvenience or difficulty for such high schoolers lounging in the area. The current hallway model, now possessing a slew of new tables and chairs, provides that improved space for the average student, no matter what work one desires to finish, or dish one plans to devour.
No matter how much labor it takes to erase a tabletop’s whiteboard marker stain, how high an adjustable table can go, or at what angle one’s head must turn to, to hear who’s talking (or who’s chewing gum– so you can shyly ask for a piece), education is education. School is school. The concepts and phrases hailing from a teacher’s mouth or a speaker’s vibrations won’t be better received by an attentive student, all because of how wonky their table is. This shift in interior decoration, although a surprising difference, aims to aid students. The structure of the old pieces provided predictability and structure, while the new pieces provide comfort and convenience, and although such a change won’t move mountains, it most certainly provides something new for ISM!
