The Air We Share
The Air We Share - Working Towards Sustainable Learning Environments, is an interdisciplinary pilot project that will investigate the potential benefits of visual sensors in a classroom on the IAQ, comfort, health and wellbeing of the teachers and children.
This project is an opportunity to investigate a change in the way we think about the shared air we breathe in buildings - moving towards sustainable breathing buildings. A paradigm shift in the way occupants think about air quality is required to promote healthier ways of learning. By providing the tools users need to understand air quality levels, this could enable, empower, respond and re-evaluate how they can operate within the building and influence air quality for healthier, sustainable learning.
Outcomes of the research will highlight benefits of the interventions and possible further ventilation enhancement strategies.
The project is based on four central research questions:
- RQ1: Can visual CO2 sensors help the teachers improve the IAQ of their classrooms
- RQ2: Can we ask the teachers to be in charge of managing the ventilation of their classrooms?
- RQ3: Can responding to CO2 monitors in the management of ventilation create opportunities for flexible learning outdoors?
- RQ4: Can CO2 sensors have perceived health benefits for the teachers/children?
The Dynamic Classroom
The Dynamic Classroom is an interdisciplinary pilot project that will investigate how the school classroom learning environment can be improved by reducing the indoor air pollution exposure of school children and staff. The project will be run by an interdisciplinary team from six Universities and one industry partners, with expertise in air quality, atmospheric science, instrument development, building services management, building information systems, modelling, project management, and social science methods.
Over one-year, with two intensive ‘deep-dive’ phases, the team aim to implement and monitor one pilot ‘Dynamic Classroom’, in a pre-existing primary school classroom, where ventilation is controlled via an automated window system connected to air quality and weather sensors both inside and outside the classroom.
The project is based on three central research questions:
- RQ1: Can a simple, automated, ‘dynamic’ approach to building management (e.g. ventilation) and alerting (dashboard), governed by air quality sensor data improve indoor air quality in a typical UK primary school classroom?
- RQ2: What are the primary air pollutants (gases and particles) in and around the test classroom during the average school day, week and year?
- RQ3: Can the dynamic classroom improve teachers’ and other stakeholders’ perceptions of air quality and student learning outcomes?
Act Now
The Act Now project aims to better understand what measures schools can take themselves to improve their own air quality, pulling together existing research and discussing with others working in the field. The Act Now project team aims to create simple guidance, outlining measures that all schools could take. There is a lot of air pollution evidence already in existence and schools wanting to understand what should be done. The research and communications from this project will help turn this evidence into action. This has the potential to be of use to many schools, teachers, and students nationwide.
The project considers four main research areas:
- RQ1: Review existing air pollution research and data
- RQ2: Understanding of solutions
- RQ3: What are the most effective ways to disseminate the information?
- RQ4: What are the barriers to progress?
