Archived Information

**BETTER SCHOOL BUILDINGS MAKE BETTER STUDENTS**

A growing body of research has linked student achievement and behavior
to the physical building conditions and overcrowding. Good facilities
appear to be an important precondition for student learning, provided
that other conditions are present that support a strong academic program
in the school.

-   Studies of schools in the District of Columbia, rural and urban
    Virginia, and North Dakota found higher test scores in schools in
    better condition. Students in poor school buildings scored five to
    11 percent lower on standardized tests. One study found that poorer
    achievement was associated with specific building features such as
    substandard science facilities, air conditioning, locker conditions,
    classroom furniture, more graffiti, and noisy external environments
    (See Edwards, 1992; Cash 1993; Hines 1996; and Earthman, 1996).

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Heating and air conditioning systems, facilities like science
    laboratories and equipment, and color and interior painting appear
    to be very important to student achievement. Proper building
    maintenance is also related to better attitudes and fewer
    disciplinary problems (McGuffey, 1982).

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Research also indicates that the quality of air inside public school
    facilities may significantly affect students\' ability to
    concentrate. The evidence suggests that youth, especially those
    under ten years of age, are more vulnerable than adults to the types
    of contaminants (asbestos, radon, and formaldehyde) found in some
    school facilities (Andrews and Neuroth, 1988).

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   A Carnegie Foundation (1988) report on urban schools concluded, "the
    tacit message of the physical indignities in many urban schools is
    not lost on students. It bespeaks neglect, and students\' conduct
    seems simply an extension of the physical environment that surrounds
    them." Poplin and Weeres (1992) reported that, based on an intensive
    study of teachers, administrators, and students in four schools,
    "the depressed physical environment of many schools. . . is believed
    to reflect society\'s lack of priority for these children and their
    education."

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Where the problems with working conditions are serious enough to
    impinge on the work of teachers, they result in higher absenteeism,
    reduced levels of effort, lower effectiveness in the classroom, low
    morale, and reduced job satisfaction. Where working conditions are
    good, they result in enthusiasm, high morale, cooperation, and
    acceptance of responsibility (Corcoran et al., 1988).

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   A study of overcrowded schools in New York City found that students
    in such schools scored significantly lower on both mathematics and
    reading exams than did similar students in underutilized schools. In
    addition, when asked, students and teachers in overcrowded schools
    agreed that overcrowding negatively affected both classroom
    activities and instructional techniques (Rivera-Batiz and Marti,
    1995).

[REFERENCES:]{.underline}

Andrews, James B., and Richard Neuroth (October 1988). \"Environmentally
Related Health Hazards in the Schools.\" Paper presented at the Annual
Meeting of the Association of School Business Officials International in
Detroit, Michigan. ED 300929.

Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. An Imperiled
Generation: Saving Urban Schools. Princeton, New Jersey: Author. ED
293940.

Cash, Carol (1993). A Study of the Relationship Between School Building
Condition and Student Achievement and Behavior. Unpublished doctoral
dissertation. Blacksburg, VA: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State
University.

Corcoran, Thomas B., Lisa J. Walker, and J. Lynne White (1988). Working
in Urban Schools. Washington, DC: Institute for Educational Leadership.

Earthman, Glen (1996). \"Review of Research on the Relationship Between
School Buildings, Student Achievement, and Student Behavior.\" Draft
position paper prepared for the Council of Educational Facility
Planners, International. Scottsdale, AZ.

Edwards, Maureen M. (1992). Building Conditions, Parental Involvement
and Student Achievement in the D.C. Public School System. Unpublished
Master Degree Thesis, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. (ED 264
285).

Hines, Eric (1996). Building Condition and Student Achievement and
Behavior. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Blacksburg, VA: Virginia
Polytechnic Institute and State University.

McGuffey, Carroll (1982). \"Facilities.\" In Herbert Walberg (ed.),
Improving Educational Standards and Productivity. Berkeley: McCutchan
Publishing Corporation.

Poplin, Mary, and Joseph Weeres (1992). Voices from the Inside: A Report
on Schooling from Inside the Classroom. Part One: Naming the Problem.
The Institute for Education in Transformation at the Claremont Graduate
School.

Rivera-Batiz, Francisco L., and Lillian Marti (1995). A School System at
Risk: A Study of the Consequences of Overcrowding in New York City
Public Schools. New York: Institute for Urban and Minority Education,
Teachers College, Columbia University.