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Daylighting in Schools An Investigation into the Relationship Between Daylighting and Human Performance Detailed Report CALIFORNIA BOARD FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY DETAILED REPORT DAYLIGHTING IN SCHOOLS
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This is the DETAILED version of the PG&E 1999 Daylighting and Schools Study, including appendix
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... One interview subject noted that it would be difficult to find a tenant for a building in Germany without operable windows. 25 25 Auer, Thomas (2008, July 7). Personal interview with managing director at Transsolar ...
... One interview subject noted that it would be difficult to find a tenant for a building in Germany without operable windows. 25 25 Auer, Thomas (2008, July 7). Personal interview with managing director at Transsolar ...
A number of buildings built in central and northern Europe over the course of the last two decades utilize a range of more advanced facade design solutions than those typically implemented on U.S. buildings – a trend that has been driven in part by higher energy prices, stricter building codes, and higher expectations regarding the quality of the built environment. Through a critical analysis of select North American buildings and interviews with building professionals in northern Europe and North America, this report identifies both simple and advanced facade technologies that enable the development of commercial buildings that minimize the need for HVAC and lighting energy use, while enhancing occupant well-being. Challenges and lessons learned from detailed North American case study buildings are discussed in the hope that these can serve as a guide for the successful implementation and accelerate the adoption of advanced facade design solutions in the U.S. building stock. Findings from discussions with design teams and building managers reveal that many of the fundamental principles driving facade design in European buildings can and are already being applied in North American buildings. One exception to this trend is that automated facade technologies are only slowly beginning to penetrate the market, accompanied by a moderate learning curve on the projects on which they have been installed. Regular system maintenance, occupant education, and assessment of occupant satisfaction during the building operation phase are critical for ensuring that facade systems are meeting energy and occupant comfort requirements.
... This suggests that the daylight quality of classroom environments is critical for students' comfort and long-term visual health [10]. In another study, the relationship between students' performance and daylighting was examined over 8000 children in 450 different classrooms and it was concluded that there was a 20% improvement in the grades of students in classrooms with sufficient daylight [11][12][13]. In the field of architectural education, workshops are more important than other classrooms due to their duration of use. ...
... Lighting in educational environments is more than a mere functional necessity; it is a critical factor that shapes learning experiences and outcomes. The positive effects of proper lighting, such as enhanced student performance, improved health, and energy savings, are well-documented [1][2][3][4]. Different studies discussed the problem of the existing classroom lighting problems such as glare, excessive illumination, and inadequate daylighting-that negatively impact visual comfort and learning, underscoring the need for design improvements [4][5][6][7][8][9]. This study seeks to fill the gap in understanding by comparing Thai lighting standards in educational settings with those of Western countries, specifically focusing on illuminance levels, color rendition (CRI), and glare control. ...
This research examines the natural and artificial lighting performance comparison in an architecture classroom at a university in southern Thailand and gives principles for enhancing lighting design. The sample for the study was classroom spaces. The efficacy of natural and artificial lighting was studied using static and dynamic models, and data were obtained using a 4 in 1 multi-function environmental meter at various times of the day. The current study adopted the IESNA (Illuminating Engineering Society of North America) and CIBSE (Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers) lighting standards for the performance comparison analysis. The results showed that the natural light in the classrooms did not satisfy the standards for lighting levels. In contrast, the artificial lighting was more effective but raised some issues with uniformity and glare. The study offers recommendations for improving lighting effectiveness, maximizing natural light, reducing energy consumption, improving the uniformity of artificial illumination, addressing issues with various classroom lighting designs, and creating more comfortable and realistic learning environments.
... The NIF effects of light express how light affects the circadian rhythms that regulate various physiological functions and affect the psychology and behavior of humans [11]. Different studies on schools have shown that daylight boosts productivity [12], leads to better academic performance [13], affects hormonal production and body growth [14], and helps prevent myopia rates among students [15]. On the other hand, Figueiro and Rea found that lack of morning daylight in classrooms delayed the circadian clock of students [16]. ...
Early design decisions have a considerable influence on energy use and occupants’ comfort in buildings. Balancing these two design aspects is extremely important in educational buildings where comfort conditions affect students' health and learning ability. Recent studies have shown a high sensitivity of adolescents and children towards lighting environment, proving the ability of better lighting conditions to improve students’ performance and general health. Admitting more daylight into classrooms can achieve the objectives of regulating students' circadian rhythms due to the proper amount, spectrum, and duration of daylight compared to electric light while minimizing energy use. This study uses multi-objective optimization to find the optimal classroom design in the cold, mixed-humid, hot-humid, and hot-dry climate zones of the U.S. The optimization objectives include minimizing energy use and maximizing the horizontal (desk-plane) and vertical (corneal or eye-plane) daylighting levels. Department of Energy (DOE) primary school building is used as a reference model. Results have shown that rectangular-south-oriented classrooms have the least energy use, while rectangular-north-oriented classrooms provide the highest and most uniform daylighting levels at the desk plane through the entire classroom and at least to the middle of the classroom at the eye-plane. Shallow classrooms with northeast- and southeast windows provide maximum daylighting levels at the eye-plane in the depth of the classroom. The classroom design with the best overall performance in all objectives has a rectangular plan and a northeast-oriented window. All optimal solutions have 3-5% higher window-to-wall ratio (WWR), higher window head height, and 5-8% less energy use than the reference classroom.
... Nowadays, the lighting effects on human performance, behaviour and mood are well known (Veitch 2005). Studies in classrooms have shown correlations between horizontal illuminance and students' cognitive improvement (Heschong Mahone Group 1999;Piderit and Labarca 2015;Piderit et al. 2013;Plympton, Conway, and Epstein 2000). From the point of view of visual comfort in classrooms, glare control is one of the most important aspects to be (Bluyssen et al. 2020;Ricciardi and Buratti 2018), its ability to suppress melatonin, the sleep hormone, and therefore not negatively affect the circadian cycles of people (Konis 2017(Konis , 2019. ...
Openwork façades are used commonly in buildings in hot climates in the tropics. However, little is known about their performance regarding daylight sufficiency, glare probability, and non-visual effects. In a hypothetical classroom, climate-based simulations were carried out in 3 cities in Colombia. Results were analysed considering people's perception of light sufficiency and temporal variations in the directions of view. The results showed differences in daylighting performance due to the surface reflectance of the façades. When considering people's perception in the assessment, openwork facades with a high surface reflectance in the perforation have a great potential to improve daylighting performance of indoor environments. Key Innovations A temporal approach was used aiming the integration into one observer's position the three DGP and EML values obtained from each direction of the view. We examined the daylighting performance of the façades daily therefore, the targeted time of each criterion was considered per day. Under the assessment approach used in this study, a façade's daylighting performance will be higher when the three criteria are met simultaneously, over most of the days of the year. Small changes in the reflectance of openwork elements internal and external surfaces can affect the façades daylighting performance. Practical Implications In evaluating the differences in daylighting performance of openwork façades when modifying the reflectance of its surfaces, a daily-based analysis of the criteria is more accurate than an annual-based analysis.
The global COVID-19 pandemic has increased attention to the relationship between the built environment and health, particularly in educational settings where students spend a significant amount of their time. Traditional side daylighting used in schools, while cost-effective and easy to construct, can result in uneven indoor daylighting. To address this issue, this paper proposes a terraced teaching building design model for primary and secondary schools in Guangzhou based on the design experience of an “open-air school movement” during a historical respiratory epidemic in the early 20th century. The proposed design relies on skylight for lighting, and each classroom has an outdoor platform. An optimization algorithm based on Spatial Daylight Autonomy (sDA), Uniformity of Daylighting (UOD), Annual Sunlight Exposure (ASE), Outdoor Platform Area (OPA), Gable Wall Length (GWL), and Space Utilization (SU) is used to obtain the optimal concrete form of the building. To speed up the simulation process, a set of Artificial Neural Network (ANN) based rapid prediction network models for complex forms is proposed. This group prediction method improves the simulation speed by 357 times and grossly speed up the optimization process based on six indexes in the early design stage, resulting in four terraced teaching buildings that meet the above criteria. Overall, the proposed design provides a novel architectural form that ensures overall visual comfort while promoting students' learning and physical health.
The light that enters through our eyes is not only for vision. The human circadian system responds to light differently than the visual system. The timing of each biological function in mammals is directed by the main clock located in the Supraquiasmic Nucleus, which is regulated by light. However, until now, only the interaction of light with our visual system has been taken into account when choosing the parameters of indoor lighting sources, including those in the classroom. In the publications about school lighting, the first concern was the common parameters of indoor lighting such as horizontal workplane illuminance, illuminance uniformity, and avoiding reflections on different surfaces. In this chapter, the authors show publications about new findings on the effects of light on people, studies carried out in different countries aimed at improving classroom lighting, current regulations on lighting related to classroom lighting, and new parameters that are being considered, along with those already used for new and better lighting.
Skylight Type A, under bright sun, mid day, no electric lights Dotted areas show diffusing 6' x 6' skylight and 14' x 14' skylight well Window Code 1
- Capistrano
Capistrano, Skylight Type A, under bright sun, mid day, no electric lights
Dotted areas show diffusing 6' x 6' skylight and 14' x 14' skylight well
Window Code 1, Skylight Type A, Daylight Code 5