As we move further into 2020 and schools are still closed, more and more parents are turning to homeschooling to continue their children’s education. It’s certainly a huge load off of parent’s minds that their children aren’t at risk for COVID-19 infection, and with more and more professionals today working from home they are perfectly positioned to keep up with their children’s homeschooling programs.
That opens a whole different discussion, though. Now that families are staying at home the vast majority of the time due to lockdowns from the pandemic, it becomes more and more important to talk about the air quality at home. Air quality grows considerably worse as people spend more time indoors. Going out and getting air is a great way to clear the air and get some much needed ventilation in our homes, but that’s something a lot of people are being discouraged from doing to help in the effort against the pandemic.
There’s long list of studies and data on how poor air quality affects student’s performance at school. The exact same problems apply at home, except it’s probably worse as most homes have less ventilation and space in comparison to schools. And it’s doubly more difficult during the lockdowns. And sadly data shows how poor air quality affects school children.
- A study from the University of Texas found the GPA among students exposed to high levels of ambient air pollution were lower.
- High levels of CO2 make students drowsier, unable to concentrate and impair their performance.
- Children exposed to high concentrations of NO2 scored 6 to 9 points lower for tests measuring memory.
- High levels of particulate matter caused children to have higher rates of absenteeism due to asthma or other illnesses.
And all these issues apply to children who may now be going through homeschooling, as long as the room conditions prevent good ventilation and introduce poor air quality to the children trying to learn. It’s counterproductive at best, and may cause long term chronic respiratory illnesses to the child at worst.
The need to provide a good quality environment for children so they can learn without distractions or impediments is greater than ever. Monitoring the air quality in your child’s study room is vital, and will result in better learning and more importantly, better health in the long run.
Be sure to monitor your air’s quality and take the necessary steps — ventilation, cleaning, and installing proper HVAC systems — to create the most conducive environment for your child’s schooling.
