STUDENT AND TEACHER PERCEPTIONS OF STABILITY BALLS AS ...€¦ · Literature Review One reason...

THEJOURNALOFTEACHERACTIONRESEARCH 90

JournalofTeacherActionResearch- Volume4,Issue3,2018,<practicalteacherresearch.com>,ISSN#2332-2233©JTAR.AllRights

STUDENTANDTEACHERPERCEPTIONSOFSTABILITYBALLSASALTERNATIVESEATINGINAFIRSTGRADECLASSROOM

NicoleSchoolcraft

AbileneChristianUniversity

AbstractInrecentyears,manyteachershavechosentoreplacedeskchairswithstabilityballsintheir

classroomsinordertoimprovestudentattentiveness.Thepurposeofthisstudywastogainadeeper

understandingofwhatfirstgradestudentsandtheirclassroomteacherthoughtaboutusingstabilityballs

insteadofdeskchairs.Theauthorcollecteddatathroughstudentandteacherinterviews,observations,anda

studentsurvey.Afteranalyzingthedatabyusingtheconstantcomparativemethod,theauthorfoundthree

majorthemes.Thefirstwasthatsomestudentsbelievedmovingwhilebeingseatedwashelpful,whileothers

foundmovementdistracting.Second,theauthorfoundthatstudentattentivenesswasrelatedtomovement

andproductivity.Third,studentsvaluedtheirabilitytochoosetheirseating.Thisstudymayprovideuseful

informationtoothereducatorswhoaredecidingiftheywouldliketotryalternativeorflexibleseatingintheir

classroom.

Keywords:teacheractionresearch,alternativeseating,flexibleseating,movement,studentchoice

Introduction

“Sitstill.Whyareyougettingup?Stopbouncingyourleg.Don’tleanbackinyourchair.Sit

upstraight.Quitkickingthedesk.Putbothfeetonthefloor.”Iimaginethatmosteducators

arefamiliarwiththesephrases.Somewouldprobablyadmittousingoneormoreofthese

phrasesdaily.Teachershavediligentlysearchedforwaystoincreasestudentengagement

anddecreasedisciplineproblemsintheclassroominordertomaximizelearning.While

teachingstyles,lessons,andactivitiesimpactstudentattentiveness,sodoesclassroom

environment.Thestudents’interactionwiththeclassroomenvironmentcaneitherpromote

orprohibiton-taskbehavior(Bronfenbrenner,1979).Partoftheclassroomenvironment

includesstudentseating.Inthepast,seatinghastypicallyincludedplasticorwoodendesk

chairs.Howeverinrecentyears,teachershavebegunusingstabilityballsinsteadofdesk



chairswithhopesthattheywillincreasestudentattentivenesswhilestudentsworkattheir

desks.

Thepurposeofthisstudywastogainabetterunderstandingofstudentandteacher

perceptionsofstabilityballsasalternativeseating.Ialsowantedtounderstandthe

students’andclassroomteacher’sperceptionsofstudentattentivenesswhenstudentshad

theoptiontositonstabilityballratherthanadeskchair.Myresearchquestionsincluded

thefollowing:

• Whatarethestudents’andtheteachers’perceptionsoftheuseofstabilityballsas

alternativeseatinginafirstgradeclassroom?

o Subquestion:Whatarethestudents’andtheteacher’sperceptionsof

their/studentattentivenessregardingtheuseofstabilityballs?

Duringthisstudy,Iwasagraduatestudentcompletingayearlongclinicalteaching

placementinafirstgradeclassroomatRiversideElementary(allnameshavebeenreplaced

withpseudonyms).RiversidewasaTitleIschoolthatservedapproximately500studentsin

gradesK-5.

Mycooperatingteacherappliedforandreceivedagranttoreplacethedeskchairsinher

classroomwithstabilityballsinSeptember.Weintroducedandbeganusingthestability

ballsinNovember—abouttwomonthspriortothestartofmyresearch.Everystudenthad

theoptiontochoosebetweenusingaregulardeskchairandsittingonastabilityballwhen

theyworkedattheirdeskseachday.Weestablishedclearexpectationsfortheuseofthe

stabilityballsthroughminilessonsandexplicitmodeling.Someoftheseexpectations

includedthefollowing:notbouncingtoohigh,sittingwithbothfeetonthefloor,not

drawingormarkingontheball.Wedidnotstartusingall21stabilityballsatthesametime.

Westartedbypassingafewstabilityballsfromstudenttostudentduringtheday,and

slowlyaddedmoreafterallstudentshadabouttwoweekstopracticeusingthem.Ifa

studentdidnotfollowtheseexpectations,heorshewouldlosetheprivilegeofsittingon

thestabilityballfortheremainderoftheday,butwouldbeallowedtousetheballthenext

day.

LiteratureReview

Onereasonteachersusestabilityballsintheclassroomisbecausetheyallowstudentsto

movewhileseatedattheirdesks(Wyatt,2009).Theincreasedmovementisthoughtto

increasestudentalertness,whichmayfacilitateincreasedstudentlearning(Mead,Scibora,

Gardner,&Dunn,2016).BurgoyneandKetcham(2015)statedthefollowing:

Researchershypothesizethatbybombardingthevestibularandproprioceptive

systemswithincreasedinput,sensoryprocessingcanbeimprovedtohelpstudents

achieveanappropriateresponsetoclassroomdemandsbyfocusingonrelevant

stimuli.Whenthesensorysystemhasanoverloadofinformation,itisbetterableto



selectrelevantinputoutoftheextraneousinformationinordertoproduce

appropriateresponsestoagivensituation.(p.47)

Thevestibularsystemislocatedintheinnerearandcontrolsbalanceandmovement

(Jensen,2005),whiletheproprioceptivesystemisresponsibleforaperson’sawarenessof

theirbodyandcoordinationoflimbs(Burgoyne&Ketchum,2015).Thesesystemswork

closelytogethertoprovidesensoryinformationtothebrainaboutbalance,movementand

bodyposition(Burgoyne&Ketchum,2015).Childrenbegintofidgetbecausetheirbodies

areseekingsensoryinputandmovement(Hanscom,2014).SimilarlyJenson(2005)stated,

“Physicalmovementsuchasstanding,stretching,walking,ormarchingcanincreasebrain

aminelevels,whichcanhelpimproveattentionalfocus”(p.51).

Fedewa&Erwin(2011)foundthatthestabilityballswereeffectiveinincreasingon-task

behavioranddecreasinglevelsofhyperactivitybecausestudentswereabletobouncewhile

working.Botheducationalresearchandbrainresearchaffirmsthatmovementislinkedto

learningandattentiveness.Thisisbecausethecerebellumprocessesbothlearningand

movement(Jenson,2005).Therearemanywaystogetstudentsmovingduringtheday,but

sometimesseatworkisnecessary.Havingstabilityballsasalternativeseatingallowsfor

moremovementevenwhenstudentsareworkingattheirdesks(Burgoyne&Ketchum,

2015).

Manyresearchershaveinvestigatedtheeffectsofstabilityballsonbehaviorforstudents

withspecialneedsandstudentswithbehavioralconcerns.Studieshavefocusedonstudents

withAttentionDeficitHyperactivityDisorder(ADHD)concerns(FedewaandErwin,2011),

AutismSpectrumDisorder(Schilling&Schwartz,2004),inattention,hyperactivity,

oppositionaldefiantbehaviors,anxious/depressivesymptomatology(Gaston,Moore,&

Butler,2016),anddyslexia(Goodmonetal.,2014).Theseresearchersconcludedthatthe

useofstabilityballsdecreasedlevelsofhyperactivityanddisciplinereferralsandincreased

attentionandengagement.Whilethesestudiesareusefulandinformativeforteacherswho

teachexceptionalstudents,theylackinformationabouttheimpactofstabilityballsas

seatingforgeneraleducationstudents.

Amainfocusofcurrentresearcharticlesaboutstabilityballsasclassroomseatingistheir

impactonstudentengagementandon-taskbehaviors.AccordingtoFedewa,Davis,andAhn

(2015),theuseofstabilityballswasrelatedtoadecreaseindisruptivebehaviorsin

treatmentclassrooms,andsimilarlevelsofon-taskbehaviorandachievementincontroland

treatmentclassrooms.SchillingandSchwartz,(2004)foundthattheuseofstabilityballs

increasedengagementandin-seatbehaviorforstudentswithAutismSpectrumDisorder.

AccordingtoFedewaandErwin(2011),alloftheir76fourth-andfifth-gradeparticipants

showedsignsofincreasedattentionandimprovedhyperactivitywhenseatedonastability

ball.BurgoyneandKetchum(2015)alsofoundthatwhenstudentswereseatedonstability



balls85%ofobservationsindicatedontaskbehavior,asopposedto50%ofobservations

whenstudentswereseatedonadeskchair.

Whenstudyingtheuseofstabilityballsintheclassroom,someresearchershave

investigatedpossibleacademicbenefitsassociatedwiththistypeofalternativeseating.

Fedewaetal.(2015)foundthatstabilityballusedidnotsignificantlyimpactstudent

achievementlevelsonstandardizedmathandliteracytests.Meadetal.(2016)studiedhow

theuseofstabilityballsasseating,comparedtootherformsofexercise,impactedstudent

achievementonastandardizedmathtest.Theyfoundthattherewasapositiveimpacton

studentmathscoreswhentheywereseatedonthestabilityballs(Meadetal.,2016).

Goodmonetal.(2014)notedthatstabilityballsdidnothaveanimpactonthereading

comprehensionofstudentswithdyslexia.Thesemixedresultsindicateaneedforfurther

researchontheacademicimpactsofstabilityballsusedinplaceofdeskchairs.

Anotherimportantfactortoconsiderwhenlookingatstabilityballsasalternativeseatingis

studentandteacherpreference.Studieshaveshownthepositiveimpactofusingstability

ballsinsteadofdeskchairs,butwhatdostudentsandteachersreallythinkaboutthisform

ofalternativeseating?AccordingtoFedewaandErwin(2011),SchillingandSchwartz(2004),

andGastonetal.(2016)socialvaliditysurveyscompletedbyteachersindicatedthatthey

preferredtousethestabilityballsintheirclassrooms.Goodmon, Leverett,Royer,Hillard,Tedder,andRakes(2014)andGastonetal.(2016)mentionedthatthestudentsintheir

studiespreferredtositonastabilityball.Thesestudiesprovideasmallindicationthat

studentsandteachersmayprefertousestabilityballsratherthantraditionalchairs.Thereis

alackofresearch;however,dealingspecificallywithstudentandteacherperceptionsof

stabilityballsasalternativeseating.

Notonlyaretherestudiesthatfocusonacademicachievementandstudentbehavior,but

someofthesestudiesalsoincludediscussionsofstudenthealth.Childhoodobesityandthe

impactofasedentarylifestylehavebecomemajorconcernsintheUnitedStates.According

toAminian,Hinckson,andStewart(2015)andWendel,Benden,Hongwei,andJeffrey(2016)

decreasingtheamountoftimeastudentsitsstillcanpositivelyimpacttheirhealth.Wendel

etal.(2016)foundthatbytradingtraditionaldesksforstandingdeskshadasignificant

impactonstudent’sBodyMassIndex.Aminianetal.(2015)studiedaclassroomthatused

standingdesksaswellasstabilityballsandfoundthatteachersbelievedtheenvironment

resultedin,“increasedspace,socialinteractions,happierchildren,andbetter,quickerand

easiersupervision”(p.643).Onestudyonthephysicalimpactoftheuseofstabilityballsas

seatingyieldedneutralresults.AccordingtoErwin,Fedewa,Soyeon,andThornton(2016),

stabilityballsdonotnecessarilyincreasephysicalactivitylevels,buttheydonothavea

negativeimpactonclassroomlearningandenvironment.Theseresultsindicateaneedfor

furtherresearchontherelationshipbetweenclassroomenvironmentsandstudenthealth.



Theresultsofpreviousstudiesindicatedthatstabilityballsmaybehelpfultoolstokeep

studentintheirseatsandfocused.Mystudyisimportantbecausemuchoftheresearchthat

hasbeendoneonthistopichasfocusedonthebenefitsforstudentswithspecialneedsor

withhyperactivityconcerns.Mystudyprovidesinsightintohowtheuseofstabilityballs,as

alternativeseating,couldbebeneficialinageneraleducationclassroom.Itisdifficultfor

youngstudentstoremainstillwhileattheirdesks,whichcancreatedistractionsorbehavior

problems.Whenstudentsaregiventheoptiontositonstabilityballstheymaybemore

engagedandmorelikelytoremainon-task.Otherstudentsmayprefertositinachair,but

givingthemtheoptiontochoosebetweenachairandastabilityballmayincrease

attentiveness.AccordingtoWyatt,(2009),theuseofstabilityballsisbecomingatrendin

elementaryclassroomsbecauseteachersareseeingincreasedengagementandontask

behaviors.Mystudycontributestoknowledgeintheeducationalcommunitybecauseit

focusedontheresponsesandobservedbehaviorsofanentirefirstgradegeneraleducation

class.Thisstudyprovidesbetterunderstandingofstudentandteacheropinionstowardthe

useofstabilityballsasalternativeseating.

Methodology

Thefollowingdescribesanactionresearchstudyconductedinthecontextofafirstgrade

classroom.Istudiedtheperceptionsofstudentsandtheclassroomteacherinrelationto

generalthoughtsaboutthestabilityballsaswellastheirthoughtsregardingstudent

attentivenesswhenusingthestabilityballs.Studentswerecomfortablewithmyroleasa

teacherandresearcherintheclassroombecausethisstudywasconductedduringaportion

ofmyyearlongclinicalteachingplacement.

ParticipantSelection.Theparticipantsofthisstudyincludedasingleclassoffirstgradestudents.Thereweretwenty-onepossibleparticipants.Therewereeightgirlsand13boys.

Theclassdemographicsincludedthefollowing:14whitestudents,fivestudentsofmixed

race,oneAfricanAmericanstudent,andoneHispanicstudent.Therewerethreeboysand

threegirlsidentifiedasgiftedandtalentedstudents.Whenthestudybegan,mycooperating

teacherhadjustcompletedherMaster’sinGiftedEducation.

Everystudentwhoreceivedconsentandassentedtothestudyparticipatedinthesurvey

andobservations.Iusedpurposivesampling(Patton,1990)toselectstudentsfromtheclass

toparticipateinashortinterview.Ninemaleandfemalestudentswerechosenforan

interviewbasedonmyobservationsoftheiron-taskbehaviorsattheirdesks.Iinterviewed

threestudentswhowerealwaysontask,threestudentswhowereontaskmostofthetime,

andthreestudentswhowererarelyontask.Theclassroomteacherwasalsoaparticipantin

thisstudy.Iconductedaninterviewwithmycooperatingteachertolearnmoreabouther

perceptionsofthestabilityballs.Isenthomeaninformationalletterandaconsentformto

theparentorguardianofeverystudentintheclass.Thestudentswhoreceivedparental



permissiontoparticipateinthestudycompletedanassentformwhileatschool.The

cooperatingteacheralsoreceivedaninformationalletterandconsentform.Iprovideda

copyofconsentlettersforparticipantstokeep.

DataCollection.ForthisstudyIcollectedthreetypesofdata:observations,interviews,andaclasssurvey.Iobservedstudentbehaviorwhentheywereworkingattheirdesks.Iwrote

fieldnotesthreetimesaweekfortwoweeksaboutstudentbehaviorsIobserved.Irecorded

observationsabouttheon-taskandoff-taskbehaviorsIobservedwhilestudentswere

workingattheirdesks.

Iconductednineindividualsemi-structuredstudentinterviewsthatlastedapproximately5-

10minuteseach.Intheseinterviews,Iaskedquestionsregardingstudentopinionsabout

usingstabilityballsinsteadofdeskchairs.Iwantedtoknowiftheythoughtthestabilityballs

werehelpfultoolsthathelpedthemstayfocused.Ialsoconductedaninterviewwithmy

cooperatingteacherthatlastedapproximately25minutes.Duringthisinterview,Iasked

aboutwhyshebeganusingthestabilityballsandwhatperceivedbenefitsordrawbacksshe

hadobservedsinceintroducingthisformofalternativeseating.Ialsowantedtoknowmore

aboutherthoughtsregardingtheeffectivenessofthestabilityballsinrelationtostudent

behaviorandattentiveness.

Theentireclasstookasurveyabouttheirperceptionsofthestabilityballs;however,Ionly

useddatafromstudents’surveys,whichassentedandreceivedconsenttoparticipateinthe

study.Didtheylikeusingthestabilityballs?Didbeingabletomovehelpthestudentsfeel

morefocused?Allstudentscompletedthissurveyduringclass.Iusedsurveydatain

additiontotheinterviewdatatogainamorecompletepictureofhowtheclassfeltabout

thestabilityballs.

DataAnalysis.Ianalyzeddatathroughtheuseoftheconstantcomparativemethodwith

initialcodingfollowedbytheidentificationofmajorcategorieswithsupportingcodes

(Hubbard&Power,2003).First,Imanuallyanalyzedabouttwentypercentofthecollected

dataandcreatedapproximately20codes.FromtheselevelIcodes,Ithenorganizedmy

databycreatinglevelIIcodesbasedonmajorthemes(Tracy,2013).Ialsocreateda

codebook(FoundinAppendixB)thatlistedlevelIandlevelIIcodes,definitions,and

examples.IwrotememosbasedonthelevelIIcodes,whichallowedmetogainabetter

understandingoftheirmeaningsandconnectionstotheothercodes(Tracy,2013).

ResultsandDiscussion

Basedonmydataanalysis,themajorthemesIwilldescribearemovement,student

attentiveness,andtheimportanceofchoice.InthedescriptionsofmyfindingsIwillalso



includeexamplesofthemesfrominterviews,observations,andsurveys.(Acompletelistof

studentresponsestothesurveyquestionscanbefoundinAppendixB).Iincludeda

photographinofoneofthestabilityballsweusedinourclassroominFigure1.

Figure1.Photographofastudent’sstabilityball.

Movement.AsIrecordedandreflectedonmyobservations,Iknewthatbouncing,rolling,

sitting,andstandingwouldberecurringdescriptionsofthemovementthemeinmystudy.I

tooknotesonthedifferentmovementsstudentsmadewhilesittingontheballsduringmy

observations.Somestudentsusingthestabilityballbouncedquickly,somebounced

occasionally,somerolledbackandforth,andotherssatstillontheball.Duringallofmy

observations,therewereclearsignsofmovementfromthemajorityofstudents.

Whenaskedifmovingwhileattheirdeskshelpsthemlearnontheclasssurvey,7students

answeredyes,8studentsansweredsometimes,and4studentsansweredno.Onthesurvey

freeresponsequestionaboutwhatstudentslikeaboutthestabilityballs,eightstudents

mentionedmovingontheballorbouncing.Someoftheresponsesincludedthefollowing:

“They’rebouncy.Thatyoucanmove.Thatyoucanbounce”.AsshowninFigure2,Joey

wrotethathelikes“howtheybounce”.Sevenofthestudents’surveysweresimilartoJoey’s

becausetheylikedhowtheballsallowedthemtobounce,andtherewasnothingthey

dislikedaboutthestabilityballs.



Figure2.Aportionofastudentsurvey.

However,Ialsofoundthatnoteverystudentthinksthatmovementishelpful.OnestudentI

interviewedthoughtthattheballsweregoodforexercise,butnotclassroomseating.Aaron

said,“Theykindofgiveyouadistractioncauseyoucanaccidentallybumpintostuff.”He

thentalkedabouthowhefeltlikethestabilityballswerehelpfulforexercise,butnotreally

helpfulforstayingfocused.WhenIaskedAaronifhethoughtthestabilityballshelpedhim

dohisworkinschoolhesaid,“Wellit’sagoodformofexercise,butno.Ithinktheyhelpme

alittlebit...becauseit’sgoodexercise.”InmyobservationsAaronwasoftenlookingaround

theroomorplayingwithitemsinhisdeskinsteadofworking.Itisinterestingtonotethat

whileAaronfindsthestabilityballstobedistracting,heseldomchoosestositinhischair.

Outofmysixobservations,Aarononlychosetousehischairontwoofthedays.

Onthestudentsurveystherewerethreestudentswhowrotethattheydidnotlikethe

stabilityballsbecausetheyarebouncy.Aaron,Jacob,andHarrisonallindicatedontheir

surveys,asseeninFigures3,4,and5,thattheydidnotlikebouncingormovingonthe

stabilityballs.Duringmyobservations,thesestudentschosetositonachairmoreoften

thantheyhadpriortothebeginningofmystudy.Harrisonistheonlystudentintheclass

whoconsistentlychosetositonhischairmorethanonceperweek.Whileallthestudents

didnotseemtoagreeonwhetherornottheballshelpedthem,theyagreedthatthe

stabilityballswerefun.WhenaskedaboutwhathelikedaboutthestabilityballsAaronsaid,

“Wellthey’refuntositon...causeyoucanbounceonthem.”

Figure3.Portionofstudentsurvey.“They’rebouncy.”



Figure4.Portionofstudentsurvey.“Idonotlikebouncing.”

Figure5.Portionofstudentsurvey.“Idon’tlikewhenthestabilityballmoves.”

Duringafewofthestudentinterviews,studentsmentionedthatthestabilityballhelpstheir

posture.Afteraskinghowtheballhelpsherstayfocusedwhenshe’sbouncing,Briellesaid,

“Itmakesmybacklikestraight,andIcanworkwithfreshair.”Somestudentsstillslouchor

leanoverontheirdesks,butthestabilityballsdohelpsomestudentshavebetterposture

becausetheballsdonothavebacks.ThiswasanotherreasonthatAarondidnotlikeusing

thestabilityball.Hesaid,“Ihonestlydon’tlikethemverymuchcauseifyouleanbackyou

fallrightoverandinachainyoucanjustleanbackandyoudon’tfallover.”Nothavinga

backonthestabilityballforcesmoststudentstositupstraight,whichmaykeepthemmore

alert.Petersaid,“Well,youcanbouncealittlebitonthem,andtheyhelpyoustayfocused,

andyousitupstraight,andthatmakesyoufocusmorethansittingcrouched.”ForBrielle

andPeter,posturewasrelatedtoattentiveness.Whenthey’resittingupstraighttheyare

focusedandalert,butiftheyareslouchedover,theymaynotbepayingattention.

Movementissomethingmoststudentsandtheteacherlikeaboutthestabilityballs.

Movementisalsoseenassomethingthatcanimpactstudentattentiveness.Accordingto

Madison,“...sometimestheyhelpmeconcentrate...whenmymindgetsallconfused,

sometimesIneedto...likesometimesIdoverb.”Whileitmaybedistractingtosome

students,themovementisverybeneficialtootherstudents.Sadiestated,“They(stability

balls)helpyoulearn.AndthisishowIthinktheyhelpyoulearn,becauseyougettobounce

andthatkindahelpsyourbrainkeepthinking...”Movementhasbeenshowninprevious

researchtobehelpfulwhenlearning(Meadetal.,2016)andinfacilitatingontaskbehavior

(Burgoyne&Ketchum,2015),andthisdataaboutmovementfurtheremphasizeswhymost

studentslikeusingthestabilityballsinsteadofdeskchairs.



StudentAttentiveness.Oneofmyresearchquestionswasthefollowing:Whatarethe

students’andtheteacher’sperceptionsoftheir/studentattentivenessregardingtheuseof

stabilityballs?Ifoundthatmycooperatingteacherbelievesthestabilityballsdohelpwith

studentattentiveness.Ialsofoundthatmoststudentsthinkusingthestabilityballsas

seatinghelpsthempayattentioninclass.Accordingtotheclasssurvey,84%oftheclass

thoughtthatthestabilityballshelpedthemfocusatleastsomeofthetime.Asshownin

Figure6,Traviswroteonhissurveythathelikesthestabilityballsbecause,“theyhelpme

befocused.”Accordingtohissurvey,hebelievedthatmovingathisdesksometimeshelps

himlearn,andhelikedthatthestabilityballhelpshimstayfocused.

Figure6.Aportionofastudentsurvey.

Inthestudentinterviews,wediscussedwhetherornottheyfeltthatthestabilityballs

helpedthempayattention.Eightoutofthe9studentsfeltthattheballatleastsometimes

helpedthemfocus.Danielsaid,“ItjusthelpsmeconcentratemorecausewhenIleanup

againstmydesk,ithelpsmeconcentratemore.”Whendiscussinghowtheballhelped

studentspayattention,thestudentsalwaysattributedittotheirpostureorabilitytomove.

Briellesaid,“TheyhelpmestayfocusedwhenI’mreallyanxiouscauseIwanttogetdone

reallyfast,andIlikehowitkeepsmefocused”.WhenIaskedherhowthiswouldbe

differentifshejusthadachairshesaid,“Causeit’s(thechair)ishardandyoucan’tlike

moveandit’slikestiff.”

Inherinterview,mycooperatingteacherreflectedonherinitialgoaltoincreasestudent

engagementandproductivity.Shesaidshewassurprisedwhentheballsdidnothavemuch

ofanimpactonstudentengagement.Shesaid,“SoI’dsaythey’re[stabilityballs]more

beneficialforproductivitythantheywereengagementeventhoughIwouldhaveoriginally



thoughtitwould’vebeenboth.”Sheanticipatedthatwhenstudentswereseatedonthe

ball,theywouldbemoreengagedinwhatevertheywereworkingon,butrealizedthat

engagementrelatesmoretothesubjectandactivity.Studentswillnotautomaticallybe

engagedinthepaperoractivityjustbecausetheyareseatedonthestabilityball.Whilethe

stabilityballsseemedtohelpsomestudentsfocusonthetaskathand,therewasno

guaranteethatallstudentswouldbeattentiveiftheywerealsousingthestabilityball.Ifa

studentisnotinterestedandinvestedinhisorherworkoractivity,thereisnoseatingthat

couldcompelhimorhertostayfocused.

MycooperatingteacherandIthendiscussedhowtherewasanotableincreasein

productivityofstudentsinwriter’sworkshop.Becauseofhowwestructuredourschedule

andlessons,studentsdidnottypicallyspendverylongworkingattheirdesksotherthan

duringwriter’sworkshop.Wetriedtogivethemanywherefrom15-30minutesof

uninterruptedwritingtimeeveryday.Becauseofthisstructure,studentsspentthemost

timeontheirstabilityballduringwriter’sworkshop.Accordingtomycooperatingteacher,

“...thingslikepublishing,noteverybodywould’vepublishedandbeenontime,thistimewe

onlyhadtwowhoweren’tdoneontime.Thatshowedmethatourproductivityhas

increased”.Whetherthisincreasedproductivitywasrelatedtothestabilityballs,ornatural

studentgrowthisnotdistinguishable,butmycooperatingteacherbelievesthatitwasboth.

Inordertobeproductive,studentsmustbeattendingtotheirwork.Therefore,because

morestudentspublishedtheirwritingontime,studentattentivenesshasincreased.

TheImportanceofChoice.Thiswasanunexpectedcode,butIbelieveitisthemost

importanttomystudy.Ifoundthataboveallotherthings;thiswaswhythestabilityballs

areimportant.Mycooperatingteachersaid,“Ilikethatthey(students)getachoiceevery

morningiftheywanttositonthechairorontheballjustaddingonemorethingthatgives

themownershipovertheirownlearningthroughouttheday.Ithinkit’sbeneficial.”This

majorthemewasconnectedthroughallaspectsofmyresearch.Studentschoseaballorachair.Studentschosehowtomoveontheballoriftheywantedtositstillontheball.

Studentschosehowhardtheywouldworkwhilebeingseatedontheball.

EverystudentIinterviewed,andIwouldimaginealloftheotherstudentsintheclass,would

agreethatchoiceisveryimportantintheclassroom.AccordingtoKimberly,“...sometimes

peopledon’treallywanttositontheballsandiftheydon’thaveachoice,theyhavetosit

onit.Ifpeoplewanttositontheball,buttheyhaveachairtheymaywanttohaveachoice

toswitchit”.WhenIaskedBriellewhatshelikedaboutthestabilityballsshesaid,“That

sometimesyoucanswitchoutyourballforachairandyoucanjust...Ilikewhereyoucan

useachairandyoucanhavetoswitchforachair.Iaskedherwhyshelikedthattheycould

switchaballforachairandshesaid,“BecauseifyoustartfeelinglikeIdon'twanttheball



today,Icanswitchitoutforachair.Ilikethatmycooperatingteacherdidn'tgetridofthem

(thechairs).EventhoughIdon'tswitchit(theball)out,it’sstillagoodidea.”

Figure7.Aportionofastudent’ssurvey.

ThesurveyinFigure7showsthatSadiewantedachoice.Shewantedtobeabletochoose

betweenaballorachair.Ididnotthinktoincludeabothoptiononthissurvey,butI

wonderhowitwouldhaveimpactedthedatainmystudy.Fourstudentswhotookthe

surveywouldpreferachair,onestudentwouldpreferboth,and14studentswouldprefer

tousethestabilityball.InSadie’sinterviewIaskedifshehadtouseastabilityballorachair

fortherestoftheyear,sheresponded,“Ifitwasthefirstdayofschool,Iwoulduseboth.

Butifyoucouldonlyuseone,IwouldratherdotheballbecauseI’veonlydonethechairin

thebeginningofschool...”WhenIaskedKimberlythesamequestionshesaid,“Mmmboth

atadifferenttime...likemaybeIwouldchooseaballforafewdaysandthenthechairfora

fewdays.”

Theseresponsesaboutthestabilityballsandchoicesareimportantbecausetheyimplythat

studentsmayneedevenmorechoices.DuringafewoftheinterviewsIaskedstudents

aboutsomeadditionaloptionstheymightlikeintheclassroom.Someoftheirresponses

includedthefollowing:clothseats,cushions,rollingdeskchairs,stabilityballswithprinted

patternsordifferentcolors,stabilityballsthathavebacks,andstabilityballsthatwillnotroll

away.Jennysaid,“Ilikeyouhavethechoicesofsittingonstabilityballsorchairs.”Students

didnotseemtoreallybeconcernedwithwhattypeofseatingwasoffered,aslongasthere

wasmorethanoneoption.

Implications

Teachersandtheeducationcommunityoftendiscusstheimportanceofchoiceinstudent

learning,buttheconversationisnowbeginningtoshiftalsotowardstudentchoicein

classroomseating.Thisisopeningupawholenewrealmofstudentownershipandmeeting



theneedsofallstudentsintheclassroom.Iknowthatallstudentsneeddifferentthings

whenitcomestoinstruction,andIwouldalsoarguethatthisalsoappliestoseatinginthe

classroom.

Inordertolearn,studentsneedtobecomfortable,focused,andwillingtowork.When

teachersgivestudentstheoptiontochoosewheretheywilllearnandworkbest,we

empowerthemandteachthemhowtomakedecisionsthatwillmeettheirownneeds.The

optionofsittingonastabilityballimpactedstudentlearningbymakingtheclassroommore

student-centered.Whilestudentengagementseemstodependonsubjectmatterand

studentinterestinindividualactivities,attentivenessandproductivitymaybeimpactedby

theuseofstabilityballsintheclassroom.

Movementandstudentattentivenesswereverycloselyrelatedinmystudy.Accordingto

thestudents,mostofthemfeltthattheballhelpedthemfocusbecauseitallowedfor

movement.Studentsrecognizedthathavingtositstillinachairsometimesnegatively

impactedtheirpostureandconstrictedpossiblemovement.Studentslikethatthestability

ballsallowthemtobouncewhiletheywork.Whiletheymaynothaverealizedthe

neurologicalimplicationsofthismovement,theydidunderstandthatmovementcould

positivelyimpacttheirfocusandtheirlearning.

Mymostsignificantfindingwastheimportanceofchoicewhenitcomestoclassroom

seating.Whetherornotthestudentslikedthestabilityballorthechairbetterwasn’tassignificantashowmuchstudentsandtheteachervaluedhavingachoice.Teacherswantto

empowerstudents,givethemwhattheyneed,andhelpthemlearn.Onewaywecandothis

isbyconsideringtheuseofseatingotherthanthestandarddeskchair.

Mycooperatingteachersuggestedinherinterviewthatteacherstryalternativeseating.This

doesn'thavetobeamajorchangeorevensomethingthathappensallinoneday.Teachers

canstartbyintroducingonestabilityballoranotherformofseatingatatimetotheir

classroom.Onceateacherfeelsmorecomfortable,heorshecanintroducemoreoptions

forseating.Otherteachersmaywanttoimplementflexibleseating,whichiswhenthereare

severalseatingoptionsandstudentsmaychoosedailywheretheywouldliketobe.There

arenohardandfastrulestoalternativeandflexibleseating,rathertheteachergetstotry

differentthingsthatmightworkforhisorherstudents.



Whenconsideringalternativeorflexibleseatingoptions,teachersshouldconsidersearching

forgrantmoneythroughvariouswebsitesorthroughschooldistricts.Therearealso

websitesteacherscanusetogetdonationsfromthepublic.Teacherscansubmitastory

aboutwhattheywouldliketobuywhytheyneedmoney.Thesewebsiteswillthenallow

peopletomakedonationstowardyourspecifiedneed,andwhenyourprojectisfully

funded,theywillshiptherequestedsuppliestoyourschool.Donotletthethoughtof

expensesshyyouawayfromconsideringalternativeseating.

Whilethisstudyonalternativeseatingwasimportantandveryinformative,Iamleftwith

questionsabouthowstudentswouldrespondtoalternativeandflexibleseating

arrangements.Ilovethatthestudentshadchoicebetweenachairandastabilityball,but

whatwouldhappenifevenmoreseatingoptionswereintroduced?Isthereacorrelation

betweenflexibleseatingoralternativeseatingandacademicperformance?Howdomultiple

seatingoptionsimpactstudentattentivenessandproductivity?

ThisresearchwillimpactmyfuturepracticesbecauseIknowhowimportantitisfor

studentstohavedifferentseatingoptions.Iknowthatsomestudentsneedseatingthatwill

allowmovementwhiletheyareseated.Otherstudentsneedtobestill,andmayprefer

cushions,couches,orsittingonthefloor.Knowingthatstudentsneedchoices,Iwillbeable

tobeginsearchingfordifferentseatingoptionsformyclassroom.

Conclusion

Usingstabilityballsasalternativeseatingwasagreatwaytointroducemorestudentchoice

intheclassroom.Whilemoststudentsthoughtitwasfuntobouncewhiletheyworkedor

feltlikeithelpedthemfocus,thiswasnotthecasewithallstudents.Aboveall,choicewas

showntobeveryimportanttobothstudentsandtheclassroomteacher.Iamexcitedtosee

hownewtrendsinclassroomseatingimpactclassroomenvironmentsandstudent

workspaces.

Irealizethatflexibleseatingmaynotberealisticforeveryteacher,butIthinkitshouldat

leastbeconsidered.Whenstudentscanpickifthey’restanding,orsittinginachair,ona

ball,onthefloor,theyaremorelikelytogetwhattheyneed.Ifimplementedwell,Ithink

flexibleseatingorhavingmanydifferentseatingoptionscouldimprovebehavior

managementandhelpstudentsstayfocusedforlongerperiodsoftime.



AbouttheAuthor

NicoleSchoolcraftisafirstgradeteacherinFortWorth,Texas.Shegraduatedwithher

bachelor’sandmaster’sdegreesfromAbileneChristianUniversity.Email:[email protected]



References

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substituteforchairsinelementaryschoolchildren.JournalofEducationandTrainingStudies,3,42– 48.

Erwin,H.E.,Fedewa,A.,Soyeon,A.,&Thornton,M.(2016).Elementarystudents'physicalactivitylevelsand

behaviorwhenusingstabilityballs.AmericanJournalofOccupationalTherapy,70(2),1-7.

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achievement,anddisciplinedeferrals:Arandomizedcontrolledtrial.AmericanJournalof OccupationalTherapy,69(2),1–9.

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anxious/depressivesymptomatologyamonggrade2students:Aprospectivecase-controlfield

experiment.InternationalJournalofEducationalResearch,77,136–142.

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AppendixA:StudentSurvey

StudentSurvey

1.Doyouliketousethestabilityballs?

yes sometimes no

2.Dothestabilityballshelpyoustayfocused?

yes sometimes no

3.Howoftendoyouchoosetositonthestabilityball?

always sometimes never

4.Wouldyourathersitinachairoronastabilityball?

chair Stabilityball



5.Doyouthinkmovingwhileyouareatyourdeskhelpsyoulearn?

yes sometimes no

1. Whatdoyoulikeaboutusingthestabilityballs?

2. Isthereanythingaboutusingstabilityballsthatyoudon’tlike?



AppendixB:SurveyDataandCodebook

Question Yes Sometimes No/Never

1. Do you like to use the stability balls? 10 8 1

2. Do the stability balls help you stay focused? 11 5 3

3. How often do you choose to sit on the stability ball? 11 8 0

4. Would you rather sit in a chair or on a stability ball? Ball: 15 Chair: 4 5. Do you think moving while you are at your desk helps

you learn? 7 8 4

1. Whatdoyoulikeaboutusingthestabilityballs?(Eachsentenceisadifferentstudent’sresponse.)

Icanmove.Ithelpsmelearnreading.They’retealandtealismyfavoritecolorandtheybounce.Helpmebe

focused.They’recomfortable.Bounce.They’rebouncy.Helpsmytailbone.Theballsyoucanbounceonthem.I

likehowtheybounceup.Youcanbounce.Thatyoucanbounce.Thatyoucanmove.They’refuntobounceon,

butsomeoftheballsarenotbouncy.

2. Isthereanythingaboutusingstabilityballsthatyoudon’tlike?(Eachsentenceisadifferentstudent’s

response.)

They’rebouncy.Nothing.No.Ilosethem.Fallingdown.Idon’tlikewhenthestabilityballmoves.Idonotlike

bouncing.



CodebookCodeName Level Definition ExampleAT-alwaysontask 1 Behaviorsthatshowa

studentisalwaysontask

“Writingthewholetime,

workedquietly,worked

thewholetime”

MT-ontaskmostofthe

time

1 Behaviorsthatindicatea

studentisontaskmostof

thetime

“talkingtoneighbor,

lookingaroundtheroom,

wrotemostofthetime”

RT-rarelyontask 1 Behaviorsthatindicatea

studentisrarelyontask

“gettingupoften,talking

toneighbor,playingwith

suppliesondesk”

Sittingstill 1 Anymentionofsittingstill “Igettiredofbouncing

aroundandIwouldjust

liketositstill.”

Moneyandgrants 1 Mentionofmoneyor

grants

“IfIhadn’tgottenthem

throughagrandthenI

could’vedonethingslike

donorschoose...”

Orderdelay 1 Mentionofthedelayed

deliveryofthestability

balls

“IpurchaseditandI

waitedandwaitedandit

saiditwasgoingtotake

liketwomonthstoget

here.”

Balldesign 1 Mentionofthestability

balldesignorhowthe

designcouldbeimproved

“Ilikethattheyhavefeet

onthebottom.”

Research 1 Mentionofmymentor

teacher’sresearch

“Therewasn’talotof

researchabouttheuseof

itwithgiftedstudents,but

thereisalotofresearch

withstudentswith

AttentionDeficit

Disorder...”

Donorschoose 1 Discussionofthedonors

choosewebsite

“...it’sattachedtoyour

schoolit’salegitimate

thing,butbasicallyyouget

onthereandyousaywhat

you’rewanting...andthen

peoplecangetonthere

andtheycandonate

moneytoyou...”

Correctballuse 1 Discussionofhowto

correctlysitonanduse

thestabilityball

“...it’snotatoyitisour

chairandthatit’snota

soccerballorabowling

balloranykindofballlike

that...”

Meetingstudentneeds 1 Mentionofhowteachers

canmeetstudents’needs

“Ithinkthatstudentsand

howstudentslearnare

changingandIthinkthat

thisisonewaythat

teachersaretryingto



figureoutawaytokeep

upwithwhatstudents

need...”

Distraction 1 Discussionofhowthe

stabilityballcanbea

distraction

“Sometimestheycan

actuallydistractyoufrom

working.”

Exercise 1 Mentionsofthestability

ballbeingusedfor

exercise

“Ithinktheyhelpmea

littlebit...becauseit’sa

goodformofexercise.”

Safety 1 Mentionofsafetyor

somethingnotsafein

relationtosittingonthe

ball

“Becauseifyouleanback

yourstabilityballyoucan

falloverandgetvery

injured.”

Posture 1 Mentionofsittingposture “Andalsoforgood

posture,it’shelpfulfor

yourback.”

Fun 1 Mentionofthestability

ballbeingfun

“Causechairs,they’re

kindaboring,andballsare

fun.”

Ontherug 1 Mentionsofwantingto

usetheballontherug

“WhatIwanttochange

aboutthestabilityballsis

thatwecansitonthemon

therug.”

Behaviormanagement 1 Discussionofbehavior

managementinrelationto

thestabilityballs,

includingthementionof

rules,orconsequences

“Sotheykindofgeta

warningandsoifthey’re

stillnotsittingonit

correctlytheyneedto

switchbackfortheir

chair.”

Movement 2 Anythingthatmentions

movementwhileseated

ontheball

“AndthisishowIthink

theyhelpyoulearn

becauseyougettoounce

andthatkindahelpsyour

brainkeepthinking...”

Choice 2 Anythingthatindicates

studentchoicerelatedto

classroomseating

“Ilikehowyouhave

choicesofsittingon

stabilityballsorchairs.”

Attentiveness 2 Anymentionofstudent

attentiveness,focus,

payingattention,oron

taskbehaviors

“Theyhelpmestay

focusedwhenI’mreally

anxiouscauseIwantto

getdonereallyfastandI

likehowitkeepsme

focused.”

STUDENT AND TEACHER PERCEPTIONS OF STABILITY BALLS AS ...€¦ · Literature Review One reason...

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