William H. Farquhar Middle School, Olney, MD. Photo credit: Patrick Ross
School Health Research Library
We have curated a library of peer-reviewed scientific studies from around the world published since 2016, focusing on the school built environment and occupant health and performance. This research builds on the 2017 Schools for Health: Foundations for Student Success report released by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health that synthesizes foundational research about school indoor environmental quality impacts on students and staff.
To help translate this research into action in schools, we have compiled School Health Research Highlights to help school staff and leaders access key findings and actionable strategies on priority topics.
Displaying 301 - 310 of 355 | Export entire research library
Indoor exposure levels and risk assessment of volatile organic compounds in residences, schools, and offices in China from 2000 to 2021: A systematic review
Liu, Ningrui
The results show that indoor pollution of benzene, toluene, and xylenes has been more serious in China than in other countries. Spatiotemporal distribution shows lower indoor VOC levels in east and south-east regions and a declining trend from 2000…
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Evaluation of VOC concentrations in indoor and outdoor microenvironments at near-road schools
Raysoni, Amit U
Differences in the concentration profiles of the BTEX species between the high and low traffic density schools confirmed the pre-defined exposure patterns. Toluene was the predominant compound within the BTEX group and the 96-hr average outdoor…
Keywords: Air quality monitoring, Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), Btex, School, Passive samplers
Association between indoor microbiome exposure and sick building syndrome (SBS) in junior high schools of Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Fu, Xi
In total, 326 bacterial and 255 fungal genera were detected in dust with large compositional variation among classrooms. Also, half of these samples showed low compositional similarity to microbiome data deposited in the public database. The number…
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Indoor exposure levels of bacteria and fungi in residences, schools, and offices in China: A systematic review
Guo, Kangqi
Results show that the concentration of indoor bacteria varies from 72.5 to 7500 CFU/m3, with a median value of 1000 CFU/m3, and the concentration of fungi varies from 12 to 9730 CFU/m3, with a median value of 526CFU/m3. The concentration level of…
Keywords: Air quality, Bacteria, China, Fungi, Indoor, Systematic review
Factors affecting variability in gaseous and particle microenvironmental air pollutant concentrations in Hong Kong primary and secondary schools
Che, Wenwei
Ten factors were significantly associated with indoor microenvironmental concentrations, together accounting for 74%, 61%, 46%, and 38% of variations observed for PM 2.5, PM10, O3, and NO2 microenvironmental concentrations, respectively. Outdoor…
Keywords: Fine particulate matter (PM 2.5), Indoor air quality, Nitrogen dioxide (NO2), Ozone (O3), Respirable particulate matter (PM 10), School exposure
Airborne particles in indoor environment of homes, schools, offices and aged care facilities: The main routes of exposure
Morawska
the main origins of particle metrics differ from one type of indoor environment to another. For homes, outdoor air is the main origin of PM 10 and PM 2.5 but PN originate from indoor sources; for schools and day cares, outdoor air is the source of…
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Outdoor Air Emissions, Land Use, and Land Cover around Schools on Tribal Lands
Barros, Nirmalla
Closest emission sources were oil, gas, airport, and manufacturing facilities. Maximum annual outdoor air concentrations were measured for toluene at two schools (29 ppb and 15 ppb, 2011), located four miles from a solid waste landfill and eight…
Keywords: Children, School, American indian/alaska native, Air pollution, Land use, Land cover
The associations of indoor environment and psychosocial factors on the subjective evaluation of Indoor Air Quality among lower secondary school students: a multilevel analysis
Finell, E
On the student level, school-related stress, poor teacher–student relationship, and whether the student did not easily receive help from school personnel, were significantly associated with poor subjective IAQ. On the school level, observed indoor…
Keywords: Sychosocial environment, Stress, Multilevel analysis, Lower secondary schools, Indoor air problems
A review of semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) in the indoor environment: occurrence in consumer products, indoor air and dust
Lucattini, Luisa
Concentrations of SVOCs in consumer products, indoor dust and air are reported (e.g. PFASs max: 13.9 mg/g in textiles, 5.8mg/kg in building materials, 121 ng/g in house dust and 6.4 ng/m3 in indoor air). Most of the studies show common aims, such as…
Keywords: Consumer products, Indoor air, Indoor dust, SVOCs
Children environmental exposure to particulate matter and polycyclicaromatic hydrocarbons and biomonitoring in school environments: A review on indoor and outdoor exposure levels, major sources and health impacts
Oliveira, Marta
A total of 28, 35, and 31% of the studies reported levels that exceeded the international outdoor ambient air guidelines for PM10, PM2.5, and benzo(a)pyrene, respectively. Indoor and outdoor concentrations of PM10 at European schools, the most…
Keywords: Biomarkers, Children exposure, Health effects, Particulate matter (PM), Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHS)