Developing Biophilic Furniture Design in a Classroom Setting

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Several studies were already conducted relevant to the maximization of the learning outcome of the students as a result of a conducive classroom learning environment, a classroom whose design of furniture is biophilically-inspired. in this study, the researchers attempted to offer new furniture with biophilic designs. This research is funneled by the best-related literature that served as the foundation for the formulation of the proposed biophilic furniture designs categorized as Natural Analogs and Nature of the Space.

METHODS

Descriptive evaluative and comparative are the methods used in this study. The respondents of this study were the 47 Grade 11 and Grade 12 students who were randomly selected from Arts and Design Tack and Technical and Vocational Livelihood Track –Horticulture and their advisers. The instrument consisted of three parts. The first part contained questions about the prior knowledge of the respondents on biophilic designs and assessment on student's encountered problem in terms of the current furniture in the classroom; the second part presented the furniture designs incorporated with biophilia assessed through respondents' rate; the on the third part, it included questions validating the conditions of an "attention restoration theory" to consider a furniture as biophilic.

RESULTS

Findings express that all respondents have no idea of the word "biophilia". Majority of the respondents experienced problems related to the current furniture design in the classroom and encountered discomfort that led them to attest that it affected their academic performance. The researcher presented the three biophilic furniture designs and the original design of armchairs and table, and they were rated by the respondents, with the original design being least favored—an indication of an unhealthy learning environment. On the other hand, the most favored furniture design was Natural Analogs in tables and Nature in the Space in armchairs, making it the best-suited for furniture designs.

DISCUSSIONS

The result demonstrates the need for immediate remediation in the furniture design to address the problems at stake and also to incorporate it with biophilic furniture design that has a positive review from its respondents. Though this study was not aiming to solve any health issues, the improvement of any health condition in a built environment is guessed and presumed by the researchers to suggest for an additional study for implementing it to prove the assumptions.