TY - JOUR
T1 - Identifying the K-12 classrooms' indoor air quality factors that affect student academic performance
AU - Kabirikopaei, Adel
AU - Lau, Josephine
AU - Nord, Jayden
AU - Bovaird, Jim
N1 - Funding Information:
The project was financed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) [Grant Number: R835633 ]. For more information, please visit ( https://engineering.unl.edu/healthy-schools/ ). The authors want to give their deepest appreciation to Project Advisory Committee members, especially Dr. Pawel Wargocki and to the students involved for their excellent work on data collection, especially Dr. Shihan Deng and Mr. Michael Kuhlenengel. The authors wish to thank Kelly Johnson and Nicole Zickefoose for proofreading the manuscript. The authors wish to thank Drs. Lily Wang and Clarence Waters for their excellent work on project management and community outreach. The authors also thank the school districts, schools, teachers, administrative staff, custodians, and students who made this study possible.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021
PY - 2021/9/10
Y1 - 2021/9/10
N2 - The objective of this study was to investigate associations between indoor air quality (IAQ) in K-12 classrooms and student academic performance. During the academic years 2015–2017, various IAQ factors in 220 classrooms in the US were measured seasonally, excluding summer. Measurements were taken during occupied and unoccupied times in several classrooms within each school. Occupied measurements included indoor carbon dioxide (CO2) and formaldehyde concentrations, and fine and coarse particle counts. Unoccupied measurements consisted of ozone (O3), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) concentrations. Ventilation rates of classrooms were estimated using measured CO2 concentrations. In addition to IAQ data, classroom aggregated student achievement scores and demographic information were collected from participating school districts. Demographic data included percentage rates of free and reduced lunch recipients (PFRL), high-performance students (PGIF), and special education students (PSPED). A multivariate linear regression analysis was used to investigate the associations between IAQ factors and student scores using demographic data as controls. The results revealed associations between student scores and ventilation system type, ventilation rates, fine particle counts, and O3 and CO concentrations. This research provides valuable information to school districts and design engineers, enabling them to design school environments for improved student performance.
AB - The objective of this study was to investigate associations between indoor air quality (IAQ) in K-12 classrooms and student academic performance. During the academic years 2015–2017, various IAQ factors in 220 classrooms in the US were measured seasonally, excluding summer. Measurements were taken during occupied and unoccupied times in several classrooms within each school. Occupied measurements included indoor carbon dioxide (CO2) and formaldehyde concentrations, and fine and coarse particle counts. Unoccupied measurements consisted of ozone (O3), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) concentrations. Ventilation rates of classrooms were estimated using measured CO2 concentrations. In addition to IAQ data, classroom aggregated student achievement scores and demographic information were collected from participating school districts. Demographic data included percentage rates of free and reduced lunch recipients (PFRL), high-performance students (PGIF), and special education students (PSPED). A multivariate linear regression analysis was used to investigate the associations between IAQ factors and student scores using demographic data as controls. The results revealed associations between student scores and ventilation system type, ventilation rates, fine particle counts, and O3 and CO concentrations. This research provides valuable information to school districts and design engineers, enabling them to design school environments for improved student performance.
KW - Academic performance
KW - Classrooms
KW - Indoor air quality (IAQ)
KW - Student demographics
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U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147498
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147498
M3 - Article
C2 - 33975113
AN - SCOPUS:85105520173
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 786
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
M1 - 147498
ER -