新的学期开始了。又一波大学新生走进象牙塔开始新的校园生活。走进教室去上课的时候，你一般会选择哪里的座位呢？前排？后排？还是中间？最新研究显示，你在教室所选择的座位或许有助于预测你的考试成绩。为了有个好成绩，选座也要谨慎啊！

Choice of seating in the lecture hall can affect a college student’s performance, a study suggests.

研究显示，教室座位的选择可能会影响大学生的学业成绩。

Lectures are a staple of higher education, and understanding how students interact and learn within the lecture theatre environment is central to successful learning.

高等教育的主要授课内容都是在课堂中进行的，理解学生们在阶梯教室的课堂环境中如何互动和学习对取得好的学习效果很关键。

Researchers from Sheffield Hallam University in the UK examined students’ reasons for choosing particular seats in a lecture hall, and investigated how seating positions correlate with student performance.

英国谢菲尔德哈勒姆大学的研究人员分析了学生们在课堂中选择特定座位的原因，并调查了他们所选择的座位和学业成绩之间的关系。

“Interaction is a key part of learning and knowing who the students are interacting with can be a great benefit when designing activities,” said David P Smith of Sheffield Hallam University.

英国谢菲尔德哈勒姆大学的戴维·史密斯说：“互动是学习的关键部分，而在设置课堂活动的时候，知道学生在与什么人互动会大有帮助。”

Many students preferred being able to sit with their friends, while others were more concerned with either attracting or avoiding the lecturer’s attention.

许多学生喜欢和朋友坐在一起，而另外一些学生则希望引起或避开授课老师的注意。

 Some students chose seats that allowed them to see and hear clearly, while others picked easily vacatable seats that made them feel less anxious, researchers said.

有些学生选择那些能让他们可以清楚地看到和听到老师讲课的座位，而其他学生则偏爱那些让他们觉得不那么焦虑的座位，因为他们可以方便地起身离开教室。

Friendship groups who sat together tended to achieve similar grades, and students who sat alone at the edges tended to do worse than average.

坐在一起的一群朋友倾向于获得相似的成绩。而独自坐在教室角落的学生的成绩往往低于平均水平。

Lecturers may be able to use these findings to provide assistance to anxious students, and to support the learning of all students by encouraging interactions between the different groups.

老师们可以利用这项研究结果帮助焦虑的学生，并通过鼓励不同学生群体之间的互动，来帮助所有学生的学习。

那么，你最喜欢坐在教室的哪个位置呢？其实座位的挑选不仅能影响你的学业成绩，还能反映出你的个性特征。

 前排

Appraising classroom rows based on academic success, some professors have observed that the front row remains prime sitting position typically held by outgoing scholarly students. “I notice the more prepared and personable students sit in front rows,” said Dr. Chris Hammons, interim dean of the College of Arts and Humanities and chair of the department of government (London). “Students in the front almost always score higher on exams.”

一些教授基于学业成就对学生在教室中的座位进行评价，他们注意到，开朗活泼且博学的学生最爱坐前排。艺术与人文学院的临时院长、伦敦教育部门的主席克里斯-哈蒙斯博士说：“我注意到，准备越充分，越品貌兼优的学生越爱坐在前排。坐在前排的学生通常考试成绩更好。”

Perhaps more importantly, the front row may be the ideal location for shy, timid students who have trouble paying attention. Also, sitting closer to the front of the room does have an effect on student-teacher rapport, which is linked to greater academic performance.

或许更重要的是，前排座位也是害羞胆怯学生的理想之选，因为他们总是不能集中注意力。而且，坐在教室前排还能促进师生关系和谐，从而带来更好的学业表现。

According to a study published in 2013, GPAs decreased by 0.1 point on a four-point scale for every row further back students sit.

根据2013年发表的一项研究，学生每靠后坐一排，GPA成绩就下降0.1分（总分为4分）。

中间

Still, some students prefer the middle rows. This location in the classroom can make paying attention difficult depending on the student. In fact, Dr. Robert Wallace, a member of the National Education Association, considers choosing to sit in the middle of the classroom one of the worst decisions a student can make. “In a classroom setting, a speaker’s eyes tend to go to the front of the room and the back,” he wrote in an article for Creators.com. “They don’t look at the centre of a room as often or with the same amount of attention.”

有些学生选择坐在教室中间的座位，这种座位会使一些学生更难集中注意力。事实上，全美教育协会成员罗伯特-华莱士教授认为，中间排的座位是最差的选择之一。他在发表于创作者网站的一篇文章中说：“在教室里，老师的目光总是落在前排或者后排。他们不怎么看中间排的学生，或者给予的关注没那么多。”

 后排

If neither the front nor middle is suitable for a student, there can only be one other solution: the back.

如果前排和中间排都不合适，他们就只能坐在后排了。

For the broker on the value of classroom seating, the back row would have the lowest value. This fringe vicinity of the physical classroom often plays host to the biggest distractions.

如果要评估教室座位的价值，后排价值最低。后排是教室的边缘地带，学生最容易分心。

Many distractions occur at the back of the classroom. That’s where students would chat, play video games and do some other stuff which the teacher must not know about. With the advent of Facebook and the likes, the situation would be worse by now.

教室后排的学生最容易走神。后排的学生常常在聊天、玩电子游戏或者在忙一些老师们肯定不知道的什么事儿。在脸书等等社交媒体出现后，现在情况肯定是更糟糕了。

同一排选择什么座位？

Row placement is not the only critical decision students face when choosing a seat. The position of the seat within the row is equally important. Like being on an airplane or at church, the aisle usually gets taken first as it provides the most legroom and easiest escape route when students decide to duck out of class.

选座位的时候不仅要考虑选择哪一排，同一排不同座位的挑选也同样重要。就像在飞机上或教堂里，靠近过道的座位总是先被占，因为那里伸腿空间更大，而且坐在靠过道的座位时，学生也最容易从教室溜走。

Students who are late the first day usually end up with middle seats, so punctuality is a good strategy for those seeking the aisle.

第一天上课就迟到的学生一般只能坐在中间的座位，所以如果想坐在边上，你得早点到教室。

 除了常见的座位排列，下面的几种座位安排方式对某些课堂形式也很有好处。

Circle arrangement

座位排成一圈

When a teacher is conducting discussions, a circular arrangement can be apt to facilitate the flow of ideas, thoughts and expressions. Students have a clear view of the person expressing their opinions; educators find it easy to control the discussion and can also motivate passive students to pitch in.

老师组织学生进行讨论时，座位排成一圈有助于学生们灵感迸发，积极表达。学生们都能看清楚谁在发言，老师们也能很容易掌控整个讨论，还能激励一些不那么积极主动的学生参与进来。

Semi circular arrangement

座位排成半圆形

A semi-circular arrangement can be effective when audio-visual aids, interactive boards, etc. are being used. This ensures clear visibility for every student. Teachers can maintain eye contact with all students and also check to see that they are being attentive. This arrangement can assist in controlling the class as students are in the open and their actions can more easily be observed.

在使用视听设备和互动板等教学用具时，座位排成半圆形效果很好。这能确保每位同学都看得清楚。老师能与所有同学保持目光接触，看他们是否在认真听讲。学生们在户外上课时，这种座位排列有助于控制课堂，学生的一举一动能更容易被观察到。

Round table arrangement

圆桌座位

Planning to give the students some group work? A round table arrangement is probably your best option. It encourages students to sit in friendly groups, facilitates free discussion and allows educators to monitor student work. However, the disadvantage is that there is high probability of students misbehaving when the teacher is not looking.

想让学生们完成小组作业？圆桌座位或许是最好的选择。这能鼓励学生们友好地坐在一起，有助于促进自由讨论，也让老师能更好地监督学生的任务完成情况。但缺点是，老师没注意到时，学生更容易搞小动作。