Teachers’ views of their primary school classrooms

Barrett, PS; Barett, L; Zhang, Y

Abstract

This paper presents the views of 222 head teachers and classroom-based teachers about
their experiences and perceptions of 193 specific classroom environments from 29 primary
schools in three different areas in England, UK. One-to-one interviews were carried out
focusing on teachers’ perceptions about their classrooms throughout the year. It was found
that teachers’ views of their overall comfort were fairly high, despite widespread problems
with overheating, stuffiness, glare and noise. Surprisingly, schools built in 1950s had the
least negative feelings, while those since the 1990s to date had the highest. The teachers
appear to be aware of the “hard” aspects of the physical environment, but less conscious of
the impact of “softer” aspects, especially those with impact on the level of stimulation
created.

Citation

Barrett, P., Barett, L., & Zhang, Y. (2016). Teachers’ views of their primary school classrooms. Intelligent Buildings International, 8(3), 176-191. https://doi.org/10.1080/17508975.2015.1087835

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 21, 2015
• Online Publication Date: Oct 16, 2015
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2016
• Deposit Date: Aug 24, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 5, 2016
• Journal: Intelligent Buildings International
• Print ISSN: 1750-8975
• Electronic ISSN: 1756-6932
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 8
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 176-191
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17508975.2015.1087835
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17508975.2015.1087835
• Related Public URLs: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tibi20#.Vdrta6hdUuc
• Additional Information: Funders : Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC); Projects : Holistic Evidence and Design (HEAD); Grant Number: EP/J015709/1