The Observation of Children`s Holding Position to Redesign Elementary School Chair for Easy Carrying and Moving = The Observation of Children`s Holding Position to Redesign Elementary School Chair for Easy Carrying and Moving

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Objectives. Carrying and moving chairs enable and improve learning activities at school, which leads to better quality of education. At elementary schools in Indonesia and other developing countries, only one size of chair has been used for all ages and grades, therefore, making it heavy for younger children. The objective of the present study was to observe the motion of carrying and moving an elementary school chair by children. Methods. A total of 41 children consisting of 16 Indonesian and 25 Japanese children (17 boys and 24 girls) aged 6, 7, 8 and 9 participated in this study. We used three elementary school chairs (1 Indonesian and 2 Japanese chairs). The participants carried and moved the chairs 3 m with an ordinary speed, and were allowed to hold any part of the chair that was convenient for them. We recorded their motion when carrying and moving the chair. Results. The chair was carried at the side or in front of the child`s body, and the chair being in a lateral position is the most popular method of carrying and moving (75%).