ABSTRACT
The learning environment is both a physical environment and an intellectual one. Most people take seating plans, blackboards, audiovisual equipment, acoustics, lighting, and privacy for granted. All of these are malleable factors in the service of learning. A seating pattern communicates the location of authority in the classroom, as does the access to chalk or dry markers for writing on the board. Instructor centered classrooms need an environment that focuses the physical environment on the teacher and the teacher’s communication tools. Student centered classrooms require flexible seating plans, easy access to chalk and electronic supports, and even different lighting.
