Classroom carbon dioxide concentration, school attendance, and educational attainment

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Pediatric Health
• Educational Research

Background:

• Classroom carbon dioxide (CO2) levels are a potential indicator of indoor air quality.
• Previous research has not fully established the link between CO2 concentrations and child school attendance or educational outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between classroom CO2 concentrations and primary school children's attendance and academic attainment in Scotland.
• To test the hypothesis of an inverse relationship between CO2 levels and school attendance/educational attainment.

Main Methods:

• CO2 concentrations were measured over 3-5 days in 60 naturally ventilated primary school classrooms.
• Data on CO2 levels were correlated with class average annual attendance and national academic standards, adjusting for socioeconomic status and class size.

Main Results:

• Median CO2 concentration averaged 1086 ppm during the school day.
• Higher Time Weighted Average CO2 concentrations were inversely associated with school attendance, but not academic attainment.
• A 100 ppm increase in CO2 correlated with a 0.2% reduction in annual attendance, approximately one half-day per year.

Conclusions:

• Elevated classroom CO2 levels (>1000 ppm), indicating inadequate ventilation, are prevalent.
• Poor classroom ventilation may negatively impact school attendance in children.
• Further research is needed to explore potential adverse health outcomes linked to inadequate ventilation in schools.