Why Student Standing Desks Are Here to Stay

Why Student Standing Desks Are Here to Stay

Whether you’re a parent, teacher, or administrator, 2020 was a year of unprecedented change.

And while things are slowly inching back to what we hope to call “normal,” in many respects, we will never go back to the way they were.

Fortunately, a lot of the changes are for the better.   

One such change – we’d like to think so, anyway – is that student standing desks are quickly becoming standard equipment in both classrooms and home learning environments across the country.

Within the past year, Stand Up Desk Store has seen a 73% increase in sales of student standing desks. And if that figure isn’t eye-popping enough, consider that this sales growth would have been even higher if not for supply chain issues and materials shortages that affected us and many other manufactures in 2020 and 2021.

As you can probably guess, much of the sales increase can be attributed to remote learning. Specifically, parents needed to create productive, engaging study spaces at home, and our student standing desks offered the perfect platform.

But we’ve also seen a sizeable uptick in commercial orders from K-12 school districts. In other words, when students return this fall, many will be greeted by classrooms outfitted with brand-new student adjustable desks.

So why are classroom standing desks growing in popularity? We have a few opinions on the matter, backed by research.

Student Standing Desk Benefits

“We’ve long believed that students can enjoy the very same standing desk benefits that adults do,” said David Ellis, Stand Up Desk Store Product Manager. “We’re thrilled that parents and educators alike are catching onto this.”

Ellis explained that his team’s belief stems from multiple classroom studies that indicate an increase in focus, a reduction in classroom behaviors, plus mitigation of childhood obesity.

For example, around 2015, Texas A&M’s Health Science Center School of Public Health began studying the effectiveness of student standing desks. Their research led to articles that tout the advantages in student engagement as well as the lowering of body mass index (BMI). Meanwhile, a study conducted in the UK and Australia by England’s Loughborough University suggested that standing desks could help students develop healthy habits that they carry into adulthood.

Following is an excerpt from Texas A&M’s article about student standing desks and BMI:

“Research around the world has shown that standing desks are positive for the teachers in terms of classroom management and student engagement, as well as positive for the children for their health, cognitive functioning, and academic achievement,” said Mark Benden, Ph.D., CPE, an associate professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Texas A&M School of Public Health and an author of the study. “It’s literally a win-win, and now we have hard data that shows it is beneficial for weight control.”

But while – in our opinion – any desk that gives students the option to stand while they learn is a good thing, not all student standing desks are created equal.

Ellis emphasized that Stand Up Desk Store student models have been particularly successful because the product management team didn’t simply shrink an adult-sized desk and call it done.

“We thought carefully about the qualities that make for a great student desk,” Ellis explained. “Not only are our desks sized for young learners, but they’re built to withstand the abuse that children can dish out, they’re mobile, and they offer classroom-friendly features like backpack hooks, pencil trays, and bottle holders. In addition, the adjustable height ensures our desks can continue to fit students as they grow.”

Interested in learning more? Following are highlighted Stand Up Desk Store student desks:

• Pneumatic Adjustable-Height Student Desk
  • Smooth and fast pneumatic height adjustment
  • Built-in bottle holder, pencil tray, and bag hook
  • Lockable casters for mobility

• Single Column Crank Adjustable-Height Student Desk
  • Strong and reliable hand crank height adjustment
  • Built-in bottle holder, pencil tray, and bag hook (36” version)
  • Extra-roomy desktop (40” version)
  • Retractable or removable crank stays out of the way when not needed