Students spend a majority of their learning time in a classroom. That being said, it is only natural to expect that this space should promote learning. A physical environment includes many different elements – seating, visuals, sound and so on. The influence of a classroom’s physical environment on student learning has been demonstrated in research multiple times. In fact, researchers have concluded the physical learning environment “has the greatest influence on students learning and academic performance” (Asiyai, 2014, 725). A recent study that followed 34 classrooms in seven UK schools concluded the ‘built environment’ of a classroom can affect a student’s ‘learning progression’ by 25% over one year (Barrett, Zhang, Moffat, Kobbacy, 2013). Physical space is something we can manipulate to meet student needs, and should be thought of as “an instrument for innovation and collaboration” (Doorley and Witthoft, 2012).

But you might ask how does this happen? A lot of it has to do with students’ perception of their classroom’s physical learning environment (Asiyai, 2014). Students’ view of the condition of their classroom’s physical environment affects their academic progression as positive perceptions increase student motivation. Asiyai (2014) found rises in motivation for not just learning, but also active participation including personal behavior and attendance. For example when students from both urban and rural areas were questioned, 87.9% of students said “my motivation to attend school will improve if my classroom physical condition is better,” and 92.53% said “I will learn more and achieve high grades if my classroom is in good physical condition” (Asiyai, 2014, p.723).