
A common room or student lounge is a type of shared lounge, most often found in halls of residence or dormitories, at universities, colleges,[1] and sometimes military bases, hospitals, rest homes, hostels, and minimum-security prisons.[2] They are often found in secondary schools and sixth form colleges, where they are designed to give students a space for relaxation and study.[3]
Regular features include couches, televisions, coffee tables, and other generic lounge furniture for socializing.[2] Depending on its location and purpose of use, a common room may be known by another name. For instance, in mental hospitals, where access is usually restricted to the daytime hours, this type of room is often called a "day room".[2] In Singapore, the term usually refers to a bedroom without attached bathroom in an HDB apartment unit.[4]

A 2003 study on the success of female physics majors found that the existence of a well-maintained student lounge was a marker of high success rates.[5] Several studies conducted regarding gossip patterns have chosen the student lounge as an excellent choice for an unregulated environment.[6][7][8] It has been noted that distance-learning courses should strive to provide a similar environment for casual conversation.[9][10] The University of Texas held a contest to design its student lounges.[11] The design of some student lounges have even won awards for the architects for their creations.[12]
Gallery
[edit]- Common rooms around the world
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Common room from Karakoram Hostel, I.I.T. Delhi
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Boys Common Room at Kesgrave Hall School, United Kingdom
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Private common room in a residential suite at Pomona College in California
(view as a 360° interactive panorama)
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Senior Common Room". Christ Church, University of Oxford, UK. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
- ^ a b c Davis, Park; Craig, Susannah (2001). The Complete Idiot's Guide to Running a Bed and Breakfast. Penguin. pp. 229–230. ISBN 9780028640006. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- ^ "A Guide to Sixth Form Furniture". Pinnacle Furniture. Archived from the original on 16 March 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- ^ "Definitions of Common Room". Property Guru. Retrieved 31 January 2025.
- ^ Whitten, Barbara L.; Foster, Suzanne R.; Duncombe, Margaret L. (2003). "What Works for Women in Undergraduate Physics?" (PDF). Physics Today. 56 (9): 46. Bibcode:2003PhT....56i..46W. doi:10.1063/1.1620834. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
an important marker of a healthy department culture
- ^ Howard, W; WD Crano (1974). "Effects of Sex, Conversation, Location, and Size of Observer Group on Bystander Intervention in a High Risk Situation". Sociometry. 37 (4): 491–507. doi:10.2307/2786423. JSTOR 2786423.
- ^ Levin, J; A Arluke (February 1985). "An exploratory analysis of sex differences in gossip". Sex Roles. 12 (3–4): 281. doi:10.1007/BF00287594. S2CID 143795978.
- ^ CAMPBELL LEAPERAND, HEITHRE HOLLIDAY (1995) Gossip in same-gender and cross-gender friends' conversations Personal Relationships 2 (3), 237–246.
- ^ Carlson, Randal; Judi Repman (2000). "Chalk Dust from the Virtual Classroom" (PDF). Webnet Journal. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 14, 2007. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
- ^ Yoder, MB (2003). "Seven Steps to Successful Online Learning Communities". Learning & Leading with Technology.
- ^ Design your student lounge, UTSOA, access date June 10, 2008
- ^ Robinson’s Design for MUP/MUD Student Lounge Among AIA Award Winners, TCAUP, access date June 10, 2008
External links
[edit]
Media related to Common rooms at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition of common room at Wiktionary