The Importance of Good Sound Absorption in Schools
Improves Concentration
When students can clearly hear what the teacher is saying, they stay more focused for longer. This leads to students contributing more to class discussions and being more interested in the lesson. The pupils can also communicate easily with the teacher without the teacher needing to ask them to repeat themselves, which can undermine confidence.
Reduces Stress
Irritating background noise is very stressful for both the teacher and the pupils and it leads to tension and stress which is not conducive to a good learning environment. A good absorber will reduce this background noise by several decibels which is clearly beneficial for all. The teacher should be more relaxed and calm and this will reflect positively on the students. Also some students with learning difficulties get very tense in a noisy situation so very good sound absorption is critical in their learning environment.
Enables More Effective Group Sessions
Modern teaching methods encourage group work and this could lead to a very noisy classroom if noise is bouncing off all the room surfaces. It is natural in noisy situations to raise one’s voice in order to be heard and this just escalates when everybody raises their voice. A room with good acoustics will mean that much of this noise will be absorbed and so people will not need to talk so loudly. This should help prevent teachers from losing their voices too which can result in absences from work which increases the schools’ costs.
Enhances Good Behaviour
Students get bored and lose attention when they cannot clearly hear what the teacher is teaching. This often leads to bad behaviour which disturbs the whole class and will probably increase the teacher’s stress levels. The teacher will also lose valuable teaching time having to reprimand poor behaviour, and it can often be quite difficult to pinpoint the culprit in a noisy classroom.
Examples of Acoustic Performance Specification in Schools
Type of room | Mid-frequency Reverberation Time Tmf (seconds), in finished but unoccupied and unfurnished room | |
UK – New Build | Ireland | |
Nursery School: Playrooms, quiet rooms | ≤0.6 | |
Primary Schools: Classrooms, general teaching areas, small group rooms | ≤0.6 | <0.6 |
Secondary Schools: Classrooms, tutorial rooms, language & science laboratories, art rooms, study rooms | ≤0.8 | <0.8 |
Classroom designed specifically for use by hearing impaired students, speech therapy rooms | ≤0.4 | |
Music classroom, drama studio, library | ≤1.0 | <1.0 |
Performance & recital room | 1.0 – 1.5 | |
Recording studio, ensemble room | 0.6 – 1.2 | |
Assembly halls, small multi-purpose halls | 0.8 – 1.2 | 0.8 – 1.2 |
Indoor sports hall (< 280 m²), gymnasium | ≤1.5 | <1.5 |
Indoor sports hall (> 280 m²) | ≤2.0 | <2.0 |
Swimming pool | ≤2.0 | |
Dining room | ≤1.0 | <1.0 |
Lecture rooms small (less than 50 people) | ≤0.8 | <0.8 |
Lecture rooms large (more than 50 people) | ≤1.0 | <1.0 |
Lignotrend absorption panels are available directly from ourselves and we will offer technical support and advice. These panels are made to order. Contact us for more information.