Green School Buildings: The Many Benefits of Natural Lighting

The use of natural light in green schools benefits students, teachers and administrators. By reducing energy requirements, natural light also offers an environmentally friendly means of bettering the bottom line.

The sun provides higher light levels than traditional lighting while reducing energy costs. Natural light affords excellent illumination of educational materials and this appears to improve test scores. A well known school-building study, completed by the Heschong Mahone Group, identifies test scores 7-26 percent higher for schoolchildren in classrooms with plentiful natural light than for those in classrooms with little or no daylight.

A study from Alberta Education, titled A Study into the Effects of Light on Children of Elementary School Age indicates that natural light does have a positive effect on health and on rates of achievement. Children in classrooms with a natural spectrum of light including trace amounts of UV radiation had 1.75 fewer cavities than children in schools with traditional lighting. Children exposed to high pressure sodium vapor lighting were absent 3.2 days per year more than students in classrooms with full spectrum light.

The Alberta Education study also linked scholastic achievement to natural lighting. Students exposed to high-pressure sodium vapor lighting demonstrated the poorest rate of academic achievement.

A Sacramento California study titled, Light Helps Pupils Learn, is one of the largest ever done on natural light in schools and it suggests children learn faster and do better on standardized tests in classrooms with more daylight. Learning rates were 26 percent higher in reading and 20 percent higher in math in rooms with more daylight.

Windows let in light and when opened they provide natural ventilation. Windows also provide visual access to the outdoors, from morning to night and season to season, this is important to our circadian rhythms and our sleep cycles.

Ideally natural light in a green school lets in light without glare, while preventing overheating and excessive UVs.

Cost efficiency, energy reductions, improved scholastic performance and health benefits make natural lighting a logical choice.

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Green School Buildings Health and Performance Benefits Part 2

Green schools are designed to use water efficiently, provide clean air and be well insulated. Green buildings are also designed to remain dry, comfortable and quiet.

Many green schools have visible features like more windows to let in natural light, but green schools also have less visible features like effective insulation that reduces condensation. By managing excessive moisture green schools have reduced asthma and respiratory disease in schoolchildren.

Vivian Loftness is a professor of architecture at Carnegie Mellon University and a fellow of the American Institute of Architects. She serves on the board of directors of the U.S. Green Building Council. In an article titled "Growing Green Schools," Loftness references a 2002 study of 32 schools in Finland, where researchers identified an average 15 percent reduction in the prevalence of the common cold in school buildings that had no moisture or mold problems as compared with moisture or mold-damaged schools.

Loftness points to research that shows that managing noise in classrooms improves student learning and the development of language skills, as well as protecting teachers' vocal cords. In a 2002 study of 10 preschools, researchers in Stockholm found an 11 percent reduction in vocal strain among teachers in quiet classrooms (with background noise levels of about 55 decibels) as compared with those in noisy classrooms (at a surprisingly common 75 decibels).

Loftness also points out that thermal comfort has a measured impact on student achievement and pest-control measures to help control indoor pollutants have been associated with reduced levels of respiratory disease.

The combination of elements that go into a green school create a healthier environment that promotes learning. The environmental benefits of green buildings are already clear, but increasingly people are seeking the health and performance benefits of green schools.
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Green School Buildings Health and Performance Benefits Part 1

Whether new or retrofits, green schools are on the increase. Green schools offer a wide range of advantages. Perhaps most importantly, they reduce a school's environmental footprint, while improving health and learning.

Through things like good ventilation and reduced noise, green buildings are able to improve test scores while reducing absenteeism, asthma and allergies. A report titled, "Review and Assessment of the Health and Productivity Benefits of Green Schools," concluded that a number of green-school attributes are vital to health and learning.

Green schools are not only healthier for people and the planet, they are good for the bottom line. According to a study titled "Green Building Costs and Financial Benefits," by author Gregory Kats, green buildings cost less than 2 percent more than conventional buildings but provide 20 times the financial benefits. The 2003 study compared 33 green buildings across the US to buildings using conventional designs and found reductions of energy and water consumption of about one third.

Schools are making changes from coast to coast. These changes involve a varying array of initiatives and include everything from energy and water conservation to diffusers that spread natural light evenly throughout a classroom.

Green schools are on the crest of a wave that is revolutionizing building design. Green schools are giving us a glimpse into the future of building construction.
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