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Learning, Lighting and Color: Lighting Design for Schools and Universities in the 21st Century
Abstract
Uniform illumination levels in the classroom and focused brightness on the "teaching wall" made good sense for students in Henry Ford's era. If you were training to take your place on the assembly line, you needed to focus on the work at hand and ahead to your supervisor, but the future no longer belongs to students who look only straight ahead. In a world where advanced degrees in professional disciplines are rapidly becoming a commodity, prosperity belongs to individuals with the ability to react with agility to unpredictable market forces, data, and events. Successful schools and universities are adapting their offerings to learner-centered, rather than teacher or curriculum-centered, modes of delivery. The paradigm is no longer about delivering information, but in nurturing a broad array of learning styles and experiences. Many of the environments for learning have not caught up with these approaches to educational delivery. When working with architects and lighting designers, even visionary educators often ask for the same old classroom, with a few bells and whistles added, such as new carpeting, a ceiling mounted data projector, and extra electrical outlets. However, an effective learning environment in the 21st century has little in common with the rows of classrooms and desks or child factories of the industrial or information age. Fielding dispels seven myths about color and lighting in educational architecture: (1) Uniform brightness level; (2) Primary colors for children; (3) Red incites aggression, green is calming; (4) Neutral colors are best; (5) It's best to use all the same lamps; (6) It's best not to use natural light in gymnasiums; and (7) Performance spaces should not have any windows, advocating the identification of patterns of learning activity and design prior to laying out a building as a good way to ensure a lighting solution that takes advantage of the full range of human capabilities. This article comments on the role of lighting in: (1) Vistas, Movement, and Lighting Design Principles; (2) Full-Spectrum Lighting; (3) Welcoming Entry; and (4) Science Lab Areas. [This article was co-published in German and English by PLD -- the official magazine of the European Lighting Designers' Association(ELDA) and the International Association of Lighting Designers(IALD).]
... The potential for varied colors and lighting to evoke emotions ranging from calm and relaxing to energetic and exciting has been demonstrated in studies (Suh et al., 2020). Consequently, learning environments are increasingly recognized as spaces that can be optimized for diverse spatial experiences, influencing students' ability to learn at their optimum capacity (Fielding, 2006). If colors and lighting can indeed influence mood and behavior, this realization may have significant implications for the design of educational spaces. ...
... Among the myriad physical factors within the learning environment, color and light greatly impact individuals' psychological well-being within interior spaces (Küller et al., 2009). Young children, unconsciously and instinctively, are highly attuned to color and light as primary physical variables that define their visual and sensory experiences (Fielding, 2006). ...
... Thoughtful color design can enhance children's overall mood and well-being by modulating the stimulation level they experience (Barrett et al., 2017;Jalil et al., 2012;Küller et al., 2006). While experiments have shown that children are naturally drawn to colors resembling nature and human skin tones (Fielding, 2006), primary colors are prevalent in children's environments despite outdated perceptions of their effects (Fielding, 2006). A diverse palette incorporating different shades, tones, and saturation levels creates a stimulating learning environment. ...
This research investigates the influence of color-filtered lighting in relation to biophilic design, specifically within the preschool learning environment where design elements impact early childhood development. Among various architectural design components, research underscores the pivotal role of lighting in affecting children’s pleasantness and energy levels. The experiment yielded three key findings: (1) discernible differences in pleasant and energy levels were observed between existing white lights and specific color-filtered lights; (2) varying pleasant and energy levels were noted among different color-filtered lights; (3) a relation was identified between external conditions (confounding variables) and pleasant and energy levels in the context of color-filtered lights. Subsequently, the study delved into the interplay between the effects of color-filtered lighting and natural light, specifically focusing on the Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) level. There is an opportunity to refine and innovate lighting elements of learning environments through the interplay between indirect experience elements of biophilic design, attention restorative theory (ART), and perceived emotional experience. The study offers valuable insights into the relationship between specific lighting conditions and elevated energy and pleasantness levels suggesting a meaningful avenue for further research and practical application in educational settings.
... Illumination is a critical area that needs more attention from educators, administrators, designers and maintenance teams. A term that describes features much broader than the standard overhead electric lighting system, illumination also consist of direct natural light, indirect natural light, and indirect artificial light and reflected light, as well as the control of all light resources (Fielding, 2006;John & Timothy, 2005;Liberman, 1990;Oneworkpalce, 1999). ...
... The visual environment affects a learner's skills to observe visual stimuli and affects his or her mental manner, and then, performance. The fact is if students have motivation in their school's interior environment, they would be more academically successful (Fielding, 2006;Pulay, 2010). The positive effect of lighting on students' learning performance occurs if it designed correctly. ...
... National efforts are ongoing to support and encourage the use of day lighting, energy efficiency, and renewable energy technologies in schools' designing, which can considerably enhance the performance of learning environment. For example evidence shows that "In daylight classrooms math scores improve by 20% and verbal scores by 22%." (Fielding, 2006) Today the most important task in educational design has been a demand for addition of daylight into the design of classrooms. There are two important reasons for extensive use of daylight in classrooms. ...
The purpose of this study is to identify the influence of light on students' learning performance within learning environments from knowledge internalization perspective. Learning is an important part of people's life. People learn everywhere and any time. However having an appropriate building design as a learning place environment including universities or schools will motivate students for learning more and having better learning performance. Lighting in an environment is one of the essential elements that have direct influence of people's performance. This study is a comprehensive review of different types of lighting and the influence of them on people's performance especially students' learning performance. The result that comes from this study shows that it is essential to improve lighting in learning environments to enhance students' motivation to learn more. In this study the researcher utilized survey and measured the influence of lighting quality on students' learning performance. Utilizing survey data collected from 50 students from Alpha course in Faculty of Creative Multimedia in Multimedia University in Malaysia. This study found significant impact of lighting quality and students' learning performance this finding is also supported through interview from two experts.
... Studies have proven everyone learns differently, but the one constant is that we are learning all the time. We learn the most when we feel safe, secure, cozy, and challenged (Fielding, 2006). Humans are wired to learn by recognition and pattern development. ...
... Successful school curricula are moving from teacher-centered modes of delivery to a learner-centered curriculum. The concept is no longer about delivering information to the students but having the students learn through experiences (Fielding, 2006). Many concepts and factors, such as teaching strategies, curriculum, instructional materials, assessment, classroom management, the organization of the physical environment, and the use of time all focus on supporting the learning-centered way of teaching in a classroom setting (Ehly, 2009) This new learner-centered curriculum is based on the development of small learning communities. ...
... Most school systems are larger than this, so one way to create these small groups is to adjust the scale of the environment. This can be done by incorporating smaller buildings or clusters of space where color and lighting play an important role in creating spaces (Fielding, 2006). Research has also found the organization of the interior environment can have an impact on the depth of learning (Edwards, Gandini, & Forman, 1998). ...
This study examines how awareness of the interior architecture of a building, specifically daylighing, affects students academic performance. Extensive research has proven that the use of daylighting in a classroom can significantly enhance students’ academic success. The problem statement and purpose of this study is to determine if student awareness of daylighting in their learning environment affects academic performance compared to students with no knowledge of daylighting. Research and surveys in existing and newly constructed high schools were conducted to verify the results of this study. These design ideas and concepts could influence the architecture and design industry to advocate construction and building requirements that incorporate more sustainable design teaching techniques.
... Illumination is a critical area that needs more attention from educators, administrators, designers and maintenance teams. Illumination is not only about electric light it also consist of direct natural light, indirect natural light, and indirect artificial light and reflected light, as well as the control of all light resources (Fielding, 2006;John & Timothy, 2005;Liberman, 1990;Oneworkpalce, 1999) Variable light applies a potential advantage in indoor office accommodations with respect to subjective or emotional mood (Hoffmann, Gufler, Griesmancher, Bartenbach, & Canazei, 2008). Controlled daylight and appropriate artificial illumination needs to be carefully addressed in schools as well because lighting is critical to the quality of students performance (John & Timothy, 2005). ...
... The visual environment affects a learner"s skills to observe visual stimuli and affects his or her mental manner, and then, performance. The fact is if students have motivation in their school"s interior environment, they would be more academically successful (Fielding, 2006;Pulay, 2010). The positive effect of lighting on students" learning performance occurs if it designed correctly. ...
The purpose of this study is to identify the influence of indoor lighting on students’ learning performance within learning environments from knowledge internalization perspective. This study is a comprehensive review of literatures base on the influence of indoor lighting on people’s productivity and performance especially students’ learning performance. The result that comes from this study shows that it is essential to improve lighting in learning environments to enhance students’ learning performance and also motivate them to learn more. In this study the researchers utilized Pulay (2010) survey and measured the influence of lighting on students’ learning performance. Utilizing survey data collected from 150 students from Alpha course in Malaysia. This study found significant impact between lighting quality and students’ learning performance this finding is also supported by interview from two experts.
... This conclusion is backed by many previous studies (Küller and Mikellides 1993;Kwallek et al, 1996, cited in Küller et al, 2007. In reality, most schools' walls are printed in white as white is the first hue discovered by humans; it gives people a feeling that the environment is hygienic and structured; it gives a desirable background to show artworks; and teacher as classroom focus for students (Fielding, 2006;Le Corbusier, 1925, cited in Grube, 2014. Nevertheless, many researchers stated the disadvantage of classrooms using white print. ...
Relation between students’ satisfaction or well-being and the indoor classroom design; students’ opinions on the design of physical classrooms; and the influence of the parameters of indoor classroom design on students’ outcomes and performance have long been popular topics of original research studies. However, the voice of a teacher who is also a classroom user and serves as a leader is underestimated. No original study, systematic and non-systematic reviews give a comprehensive answer to the question of how the physical classroom design affects teachers. This narrative review will fill up this gap by disclosing the effect of seven main parameters of physical classroom design on teachers and give the best possible interior design of the classroom for teachers.
... This architectural impression is in line with several previous studies which stated that Environmental lighting is very important to determine the welfare and productivity of users. Illumination is not only about electric light but also consists of direct natural light, indirect natural light, and indirect artificial light and reflected light, as well as control of all light sources [17]. Neatness and smell have an impact on one's emotions such as boredom, motivation, and engagement [18]. ...
... Lighting and sensory needs. The research on the effects of light and color on children with ASD is limited; nevertheless, the impacts on student behavior and success in the general (Fielding, 2006). Clerestory windows (windows placed above the students' sightline) can be installed to reduce distractions from outside (Benya, 2001;Humphreys, 2005;Tufvesson and Tufvesson, 2009). ...
Purpose
The observation by the authors, based on their extensive experience working in K-8 public schools in the region showed the special needs classrooms catering to children with exceptionalities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Intellectual Disability (ID) and Emotional Disturbance (ED) are typically makeshift arrangements with no consideration given to students' unseen sensory needs. A thorough literature review indicates that there are no holistic design guidelines in place to meet the sensory needs of students with ASD, ID and ED. This study seeks to address this gap by providing considerations to meet the sensory needs impacting these students' focus, behavior and classroom engagement with course content and peers.
Design/methodology/approach
Sensory design guidelines were established utilizing a qualitative method, providing a foundation for the development of classroom prototypes that address the sensory needs of students with ASD, ID and ED.
Findings
The new guidelines, which correlated interior design strategies with the sensory needs of children with ASD, ID and ED, and the resulting prototypes provide a basis for the further development of design standards and takes designers closer to creating more conducive and inclusive environments.
Practical implications
This study reinforced the belief that these recommendations should be considered in the school-wide design. Many students can be included with their typical peers for all or part of their school day if space has been designed to accommodate their differences.
Originality/value
This study bridges the gap while documenting the correlation between design factors and sensory needs of students with exceptionalities, in this case, ASD, ID and ED.
... P1-High schools design should serve as symbols of their communities [4] P2-Design small learning communities to improve student engagement and a sense of belonging [9,30] P3-Design places with appropriate scale provide more intimate spaces and create comfort for all [9] P4-School design should be warm, funny, open and attractive and shows the function of the school [45] P5-Design schools as welcoming places [44] P6-Consider home as a template for school [9,37] P7-Use green plants, lighting and colors in interior spaces to create good feelings [46,47] P8-Design high school in which students and teachers feel pride [21] P9-Design the exterior and interior facilities with appropriate scales so the students can use them independently [9,34] P10-"Allow learners to personalize their space as much as possible" [9] to provide them with the sense of identity and self-respect [36,43,48] P11-Provide "physical comfort and well-being" in school design [8,29] erence on Civil Engineering, Conf nal Internatio nd 2 ...
This study develops a multidimensional model for high school design in Iran. This model has six main aspects: formal, functional, psychological, socio-cultural, technological and ecological, as well as subgroups under each of these aspects. The priorities of the architectural principles under each aspect of the model were evaluated in a closed questionnaire by LIKERT scale. In each question, the importance of one design principle is asked. The architects who are employed in the "National Organization of Development and Renovation of Schools" in Iran filled the questionnaires. The data is analyzed by Exploratory Factor Analysis method. Based on the data analysis, the final model for high school design and the prioritization of the principles are concluded.
... National efforts are ongoing to support and encourage the use of daylighting, energy efficiency, and renewable energy technologies in schools' designing, which can considerably enhance the performance of learning environment. For example evidence shows that -In daylight classrooms math scores improve by 20% and verbal scores by 22%.‖ (Fielding, 2006) Page 65-68 Today the most important task in educational design has been a demand for addition of daylight into the design of classrooms. There are two important reasons for extensive use of daylight in classrooms. ...
The purpose of this study is to identify the impact of daylight on students‘ learning performance within learning environments. Since, learning plays an important role in people‘s life; having suitable and appropriate learning place seems very important an essential. It can motivate people to learn more and better. Learning environment includes all schools, universities or other places even libraries where people study there. Well designed learning palaces make students happy and energize and vice versa. In general, lighting in an environment is one of the necessary and important elements which have direct impact on people‘s performance. Apart from all indoor (artificial) light profits, natural light itself has more benefits on peoples‘ health and wellbeing. Having aptwindows in classrooms are very important for having appropriate daylight, and also outside viewing. This connection with outside can provide significant physical and physiological benefits for users especially students. In this study the researchers try to identify the importance of daylight in learning places and discover the influence of that on students‘ learning performance. The result that comes from this study indicates that applying daylight in learning environment is very essential, but students feel and understand that while they involved with that. This paper is a review paper which came for a master thesis. Researchers review that to find support for the hypothesis that applying daylight in classrooms affects and enhances students‘ learning performance.
... Lighting is another important condition for learning that has an impact on student academic outcomes. Lighting is not only about natural and artificial lighting but it also encompasses other aspects, such as indirect daylight and indirect artificial light, reflective lighting and the ability to control all such features of lighting (Oneworkplace, 1999;McCreery & Hill, 2005;Fielding, 2006). This brought about more artificial lighting being introduced in schools and natural lighting was not given its due importance. ...
A growing body of research shows that conditions for learning significantly
influence students’ academic achievement (Schneider, 2002). Research indicates that conditions for learning, including physical conditions and social relations, as well as students' sense of security, influence students' academic performance. Environmental conditions, including air quality, indoor lighting, temperature, accessibility, the spatial configuration of the class and décor (Fisher, Godwin, & Seltman, 2014), the school and classroom size (Coupé, Olefir & Alonso, 2016) also influence students' achievement. However, a relatively small number of studies in Malta examine the impact of conditions for learning at home and in school on student academic performance. This dissertation aims to explore the effects of environmental factors on student learning and seeks to determine which conditions for learning hinder students’ achievement in school. The study also examines whether there are some differences in students' perceptions of learning environment among primary and
secondary, and with both male and female students. The study also examines
the impact of students' family characteristics on their perceptions of conditions for learning and the effect of perceived environmental conditions at school and home on student academic achievement.
To examine the established research questions, this dissertation applies a
concurrent triangulation mixed-method design that combines the results of a
survey which included primary and secondary school students with the findings from a set of interviews conducted during a similar period. The objective was to effectively examine students’ experiences when learning in different environments and under various conditions. In total, 205 primary and secondary students completed a paper-and-pencil survey and eight students participated in a follow-up interview.
KEYWORDS: CONDITIONS FOR LEARNING, ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, SOCIAL BACKGROUND, SOCIAL RELATIONS, RESOURCES FOR LEARNING
... Aggression, visual impact, and strain are negative reported impacts of red color (6). Fielding's (12) research showed that red color incited aggression yet green color helped with calming and yellow color induced simplistic. ...
Background: Color is one of the most important physical features of the environment that affects the architectural quality of space, behavior, and human feelings.
Objectives: This study was conducted to investigate the effect of classroom red walls on the aggression of female high school students.
Methods: The sample size in this study included 70 female high school students studying in Shiraz, Iran, during the academic year of 2017 to 2018. The research sample was obtained using cluster random sampling. In this way, one area was selected randomly from four educational districts of Shiraz. Then, one school was selected randomly from all female high schools in a selected district. Classes were randomly divided to two groups of 35 students, control and intervention group, among all the school classrooms. At first, a pre-test including Buss and Perry aggression questionnaire was performed. Then, the classroom walls of the intervention group were painted red. While the classroom walls of the control group were white. After 12 weeks, aggression tests were performed for each group. The means and standard deviations were used at descriptive level and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used at inferential level.
Results: Pre-test and post-test score of aggression in the intervention group was 76.89 ± 25.494 and 101.00 ± 25.121. In the control group, the mean of pre-test and post-test were 79.54 ± 19.655 and 76.60 ± 19.820. The results of ANCOVA analysis showed that the classroom with red walls could significantly increase the level of aggression in general (P < 0.001) and its subscales, including verbal aggression (P < 0.001), physical aggression (P < 0.001), anger (P < 0.001), and hostility (P < 0.001).
Conclusions: According to the results, red color of the classroom walls increased the aggression and its dimensions, including verbal aggression, physical aggression, anger, and hostility among female high school students.
... For instance, inadequate indoor air quality has been shown to adversely affect cognitive development, reading skills, attention, focus and overall psychological well-being of students. Another variable such as color was also studied with regard to preferences and meaning and how it might influence the user's learning experience (Fielding 2006). Wu and Ng (2003) investigated the effect of daylight; Felsten (2009) investigated the effect of views and nature; Doxey, Walczek and Zajicek (2009) and Han (2009) studied the influence of interior planting on classroom environment, academic performance, behavior and overall well-being of students and faculty. ...
Since the late 1990s, learning environment culture has changed. Recent studies indicate that hierarchical, formal teacher-centered classroom structure is not fully compatible with current generation's learning preferences affected by a rapid rise of accessible digital technologies and online content. Two major themes emerge from this review of published literature. An arrival of new opportunities and factors associated with widespread accessibility of wireless mobile technology and changes in pedagogical methods impacted by technology and generational learning preferences have created new needs, opportunities and activities that demonstrate a need to design effective, flexible student-centered learning environments that converge with emerging technologies, encourage interaction and collaboration, and support student learning and learning performance.
... Turning to provisions for controlling light, temperature and noise analysis showed that infant/toddler classrooms provided better provisions compared to preschool classrooms, whereas the inspection body seemed to play a role mainly in preschool classrooms, with private preschool classrooms being better equipped as far as these indicators are concerned. Although heating, lighting and ventilation systems seemed to function adequately and the existing law was applied, our observation showed that new, alternative approaches were not adopted as far as those systems are concerned, which may help to improve the quality of the physical environment (American Academy of Pediatrics et al., 2002;Arthur, Larson, Gillman, & Sussman, 2006;Fielding, 2006;Gleason & Knodell, 2002;GSA, 2003;Head Start, 2005). Turning to maintenance and cleanliness, infant/toddler classrooms seemed to have more problems compared to preschool classrooms. ...
The physical environment of the preschool programmes has been proven to affect both children's overall development and the quality of the programme. However, both nationally and internationally the contribution of the physical environment in the effectiveness of a programme and in the achievement of educational goals is often overlooked. The aim of the present study was to assess the quality of the indoor physical environment of infant/toddler and preschool classrooms and to examine differences between private and public classrooms. Research results indicate that the quality of the physical environment in both infant/toddler and preschool classrooms was of minimum quality. Moreover, limited differences have been revealed controlling for inspection body. The findings are discussed and the need to bring the scientific field of the physical environment to the forefront is highlighted.
The quality of natural lighting within secondary school classrooms can significantly affect the physical and mental well-being of both teachers and students. While numerous studies have explored various aspects of daylighting performance and its related factors, there is no universal standard for predicting and optimizing daylighting performance from a design perspective. In this study, a method was developed that combines measurements and simulations to enhance the design parameters associated with daylighting performance. This approach facilitates the determination of precise ranges for multiple design parameters and allows for the efficient attainment of optimal daylighting performance. Daylight glare probability (DGP), point-in-time illuminance (PIT), daylight factor (DF), and lighting energy consumption were simulated based on existing control parameters of operational classrooms. The simulation results were then validated using field measurements. Genetic algorithms (GAs) were employed to optimize the control parameters, yielding a set of optimal solutions for improving daylight performance. The differences between daylighting performance indicators corresponding to the optimal solution set and those of the basic model were compared to test the performance of the optimized parameters. The proposed method is a robust process for optimizing daylight design parameters based on GAs, which not only enhances daylighting performance but also offers scientifically grounded guidelines for the design phase. It is a valuable framework for creating healthier and more productive educational environments within secondary school classrooms.
ABSTRACT:The process of interior design is effectively linked with the functionand aesthetics of the space. It is also the way of turning space from a mereexpression of material and masses into living objects through which thespace user lives the story of feeling for the art of interior design.There are factors which affect the individual’s peace and comfort; theseinclude the psychological effects of light regulation, the features of thematerial, and the choice of colors (warm or cold). Because of the im-portance of illumination and colors and their vital effect in developinginterior space and controlling the psychological and physiological com-fort of the space user, this paper has been prepared to explore the roleof utilizing light and colors in interior design of Living Rooms (in Cai-ro-Egypt) in order to support and develop the design process aimingto provide psychological, environmental and visual comfort inside thespace.The model aims to set criteria for providing illumination, both naturaland artificial and also colors, together with setting bases for the interiordesign of different spaces within the living room. A descriptive analyt-ical approach is implemented through a thorough study of colors andlighting and their effective relationship within the space of living room.Fifty prospective dwellers participated in a survey using virtual realityenvironments that presented required design bases for selected colorsand lighting groups in living rooms. The aim was to measure the physi-ological and psychological effect of the selection of colors and lightingon man.
This paper will explore briefly what research tells us about library design and, more specifically, the design of reading spaces for the provision of pleasure reading in school libraries. Acoustics, lighting and temperature levels, amongst other factors, all have an impact upon the learning experience that takes place in any school space. How we approach the creation of library reading spaces will be discussed with a particular focus on student views and opinions. Furniture, layout, colour, display and ambience will all be considered in light of how they affect comfort and learning opportunities. A number of illustrative examples of school library reading spaces and the views of students will be shared with the audience during the formal presentation.
The design of a learning space, and the many factors that come together to create that space, impact on how we feel and behave in that space and ultimately how we learn. This paper will discuss the importance of mission statements, policy and planning in light of how we create spaces that are learning-driven, humancentred and flexible. Of particular interest is how the culture of the space and the use technology are incorporated into design considerations in light of these factors. This paper explores, very briefly, the theoretical discussion, whilst the conference presentation will consider examples of these view in practice.
This article explores the learning context for talent development in public schools. Total aspects of the environment from physical space, affective elements, and pedagogical approaches affect learning. How teachers believe and perceive their roles as teachers influence instructional design and decision making. In this article, the optimal environment for developing students’ strengths and talents will be discussed and practical suggestions for “Extreme Classroom Makeovers” will be offered.
This chapter adopts a critical perspective of how open education (OE), based on the principles of equity and access, aligns with the mega-drivers of contemporary higher education. These include key drivers of OE such as lifelong learning, self-directed career development and credentialing. The process of synthesising learning, work and transition within what is described as the 'conceptual age' of work, is daunting to the majority of members of the workforce globally. A combination of regulation, academic dogma underpinning traditional university models and rigid assumptions as to the nature of knowledge frustrate the promotion of OE. This case study explores a work-based learning (WBL) university program designed to broaden access and equity to universities within the context of mega-drivers shaping higher education demand. The model complements rather than competes with traditional university offerings and represents a pragmatic response to the barriers to participation and OE principles.
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