Superheated classrooms are compromising our children’s and their teachers’ health

HAVEYOU EVER CONSIDERED how unbearable it must be for our children and their teachers in their overheated primary and secondary school classrooms here in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and throughout the Caribbean?

A follow-up consideration should be, how does a superheated classroom, which is significantly hotter than the same classroom we occupied many moons ago, impact a student’s ability to concentrate and, by extension, to learn? Of parallel importance, how is their teachers’ ability to impart knowledge likely to be compromised when the classroom temperature is consistently hovering around, or above, 90°F (32.2°C)?

The impact of overheated classrooms on learning, test performance, and teaching Research has shown that excessive classroom temperatures significantly compromise a student’s ability to concentrate, their test performance, and clouds their thinking.

Studies also confirm that high classroom temperatures compromise a teacher’s ability to impart instructions.

While excessive classroom heat negatively affects children’s academic performances across all subject areas, the impact is greatest on math and math-like subjects.

An excessively hot classroom often results in the students and their teachers becoming:

Irritable
Fatigued
Unmotivated
Distracted
Discouraged While an ultra-hot classroom results in children

being:

Cognitively compromised.
Slower when performing tests and when completing assignments.
More disruptive and aggressive.

This is not a tenable situation and needs to be addressed with ardour, expediently, apolitically, compassionately, pragmatically, and collectively by a wide cross-section of society, especially those with genuine concerns for the biopsychosocial welfare of our children and their teachers.

The ideal classroom temperature for learning and teaching is 74°F (23.3°C). A temperature that is seldom experienced naturally in the Caribbean.

A study by the American Economic Association revealed that for every 1°F rise in classroom temperature, there is a corresponding 1% fall in marks. Conceptualise what is happening to the marks in a classroom whose temperature is 16-22°F higher than 74°F.

No one is immune to heat-related illnesses, however, some are at higher risk, for example: Children

Young children
Those returning to their classroom after PE (physical education)
Asthmatics
Overweight
Sickle cell disease
Gastroenteritis
Febrile illness
Other.

Teachers

Pregnant
Breastfeeding
Overweight
Those with major illnesses (e.g. heart disease, hyperthyroidism, kidney disease, diabetes)
Those on certain medications (e.g. diuretics, benzodiazepines, laxatives, neuroleptics, L. thyroxine)
Other.

School factors contributing to heat-related illnesses:

Poor ventilation and airflow
Classrooms (including classrooms’ roofs) exposed to direct sunlight
Large gatherings – e.g. school assemblies.

Heat-related illnesses that can affect students and teachers:

Heat rash
Muscle cramps or spasms
Heat syncope (fainting)
Extreme heat exhaustion
Heatstroke.

Mitigating the impact of high classroom temperatures

Facilitate easy access to drinking cool water.
Avoid caffeinated beverages.
Have short cool-down breaks between subjects.
Install blinds on sundrenched windows.
Implement a dynamic classroom arrangement that changes over the course of the day, so that no one inside is exposed to direct sunlight.
Consider outdoor teaching – in a shaded area.
Uniforms and physical education attire should be light-coloured cotton.
Physical education and other outdoor activities are scheduled to avoid the hotter times of the day between 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Educate the students on the importance of consuming lots of fluids.
Teachers should be trained in basic first aid.
Aim for classroom temperatures that are consistently less than 90°F/ 32°C. Fans help, however, if the temperature exceeds 95°F/ 35°C they are ineffective.
Look into installing (alternative-energy-powered) air-conditioning units.

Paint the rooftops of schools with sun-reflective paint. This reduces the rooftop temperature by 50°F (28°C) on average, translating into a much less hostile classroom environment for students and teachers.
Schools should close on excessively hot days (temperatures >100°F/ 37.8°C).
School assemblies should be rescheduled if the assembly room is excessively hot.

Students and teachers should seek medical attention if:

They faint
Are agitated, confused
Unable to consume fluids
Not sweating
Skin dry or clammy
Temperature is 102.2°F/ 39°C or higher
Pulse is fast or weak
Vomiting
Having diarrhoea
Experiencing severe muscle cramps or spasms
Urine is dark or very concentrated.

Entities with the responsibility for facilitating a more enabling classroom environment:

Ministry of Education
Ministry of Health
Ministry of Transport and Works

National teachers’ unions
Teachers and administrative staff of each school, respectively
Parents/ teachers associations
Alumni of the schools
Service clubs
Charitable organizations
UNICEF
Others

Author: Dr. C. Malcolm Grant – Family Physician, c/o Family Care Clinic, ArnosVale. Former tutor, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of theWest Indies, Cave Hill, Barbados. For appointments: clinic@familycaresvg. com, 1(784)570-9300, (Office), 1(784)455-0376 (WhatsApp) Disclaimer:The information provided in the above article is for educational purposes only and does not substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if you are seeking medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment. Dr. C. Malcolm Grant, Family Care Clinic or The Searchlight Newspaper or their associates, respectively, are not liable for risks or issues associated with using or acting upon the information provided above.