Classmate Friendships

When we attended high school, it was customary for students to sit alphabetically at the same desks everyday. I was wondering recently if there is any relationship between where we sat in school, who our long term friends turned out to be, and how those around us affected our life.

For example, being a “B” last name, my row of desks generally had maybe the “A-J” names, depending on which students were in that particular class. The next row beside mine might have been between “J” and “O”, so I was exposed to about the first half of the alphabet on a daily basis and not necessarily to those at the end.

In addition, being at the beginning of the alphabet, I only had neighbors on one side of my row of desks, while those in the middle had two sides. What chance did a shy person have in developing friendships with exposure to half the classmates that most had proximity to?

This thought may only apply to students who did not grow up in one area, and were around each other for more than four years. There is also an exception for friendships created with neighbors, new or old, or with those whose parents were friends.

So my questions are:

1. Do you think whom you sat near affected you?

2. Did one person near you make a noticeable impact on your life?

3. Do you feel being allowed to sit with your friends would have been better?

4. Did someone near you influence your behavior?

5. Did sitting alphabetically improve your social skills?