Ventilation: The Key to Success in a Summer Classroom

We have all been there: surrounded by a dozen sweaty students in a hot and stuffy room, trying to focus on what the professor says but too distracted by the smell of bad hygiene to focus. As summer school for many has just begun, it is crucial to think about the environment and its impact on the education that students can receive in the classroom. The importance of ventilation in the classroom only started to surface the minds of educators in 2021 when students came back from quarantine. This topic of conversation slowly faded away as vaccines came around, but ventilation when dealing with the rising temperatures, particularly in the summer, should still be suggested in classrooms. 

Since global temperatures  have been on the rise, summers across the world are getting more warm. Looking at ECMWF’s report in 2022, also known as the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, the land temperatures in June of 2022 have risen by more than 1.5 degrees Celsius since pre-industrialized eras. Putting this into context looks like skyrocketing temperatures. Taking the United Kingdom as an example, in 2021 their temperatures averaged at about 18 degrees Celsius, with their highest being 28 degrees. Unfortunately, in the next year UK’s temperatures went over the roof; they reached temperatures as high as 40.3 degrees Celsius. Even across Europe, you can see temperatures that have reached to 40C or even 43C. Who knows what this year would look like. Most importantly, the question to be asked is how will these temperatures affect our students and their ability to learn. According to a study made by Cornell University, the optimum temperature for students to be able to learn is between 21 degrees Celsius and 25. This is because overly warm temperatures can cause a decrease in one’s ability to concentrate, but it can also make students more tired or sleepy. All of these scenarios result in a student not being able to perform as well, making poor decisions, or even having a negative effect on their grades. In 2017, a Harvard analysis from 1999 to 2014 suggested that students were 12 percent more likely to fail their test if it was 32 degrees Celsius outside compared to when it would normally be 22 degrees. 

An obvious solution to all of these problems seems to be air conditioning or ventilation. Although that seems easy and many schools are equipped with it, a 2020 government report found that almost 36,000 from 41 percent of all public school districts have inadequate ventilation or air conditioning systems. It is also an overexpectation to ask that all schools have air conditioning as it may not be in the budget of the school district as they are very expensive. What is cost free though is opening windows or doors to allow for air to flow in and out of the classroom, making sure that students get enough breaks to go outside, or, if situation allows, allow students to bring in fans from home to keep themselves cool. But more importantly, drinking water is crucial on a hot day; it is not just important for hydration but also to make sure that your body doesn’t overheat. 

Overall, the benefits of small actions, like opening windows and doors or allowing for breathing breaks, are far greater than having students in a stuffy classroom where they can’t study. As it is the beginning of July and summer school has started for many places around the world, it is important to keep ventilation on the tops of one’s head as well as their studies.