Explaining Relationships Among Student Outcomes and the School's Physical Environment

Abstract

This descriptive study investigated the possible effects of selected school design patterns on third-grade students' academic achievement. A reduced regression analysis revealed the effects of school design components (patterns) on ITBS achievement data, after including control variables, for a sample of third-grade students drawn from 24 elementary schools. The sample means on the ITBS per school represented approximately 1,916 third-grade students. The independent variable set for developing a possible explanation of student achievement was the school's physical environment, defined as four sets of design patterns: movement and circulation (e.g., adequate personal space and efficient movement patterns throughout the school), large group meeting places (e.g., social gathering places), day lighting and views (e.g., windows with natural light), and instructional neighborhoods (e.g., large and small group areas that accommodate wet and dry activities). Each of the four full regression models, which included subsets of the design elements, explained between 2% and 7% of additional variance in achievement when compared to the reduced model, which included a measure of school SES. Therefore, each of the four design variables was positively related to student achievement, even after controlling for school SES.

Building Features in Schools That Influence Academic Performance

“…The study of 3rd graders included measures for instructional neighborhoods and large group meeting places. Statistically significant relationships between the design measures and scores on the ITBS were found for all composite measures [47,48].…”

“…Research conducted by Tanner [47,48] and Barrett et al [43,45], using composite measures of different building features identified several interior design elements that have significant effects on student performance. Measures of design elements used in Tanner studies were from a larger instrument designed for assessing physical learning environments by researchers at the SDPL (University of Georgia's School Design and Planning Laboratory's).…”

Gender Microaggressions and Learning Environments: The Role of Physical Space in Teaching Pedagogy and Communication

“…From lighting to air quality to temperature, the ways in which a classroom is physically designed, organized, and managed all impact students' learning. Classrooms with more natural light, for example, tend to have students who perform better academically (Tanner, 2008), while the optimal temperature for learning is between 68 and 74 degrees Fahrenheit (Earthman, 2004). The ways in which the classroom furniture is organized signals appropriate communication with the instructor and peers (Burgess & Kaya, 2007).…”

Evaluating learning environments for interprofessional care

“…Tanner (2008) takes the approach that schools should be considered holistically, not simply the classrooms in which teaching takes place. Places for formal and informal meetings are essential contributors to learning as much as they are social spaces, for learning is a social process.…”