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https://www.theguardian.com/education/2020/nov/17/uk-teachers-and-pupils-are-bone-tired-and-now-theyre-freezing-cold
My response to this article, which has been put to me as an argument against for my efforts to raise awareness of the importance of good ventilation for indoor settings, including schools ...a Thread:
My response to this article, which has been put to me as an argument against for my efforts to raise awareness of the importance of good ventilation for indoor settings, including schools ...a Thread:
I was fortunate to attend this primary school that was one of the first “open-air” schools in north Wales. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_air_school The windows were huge and as kids we were taught the historical background- This must have stuck with me!
Look at the number of windows?! 2/
Look at the number of windows?! 2/
Open-air schools were used to tackle an #airborne infection, Tuberculosis (TB). Here’s a @WalesOnline article detailing the history of such a school in Rhiwbina, Cardiff in the 1930s 3/ https://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/nostalgia/cardiff-rhiwbina-tb-schools-history-18956171
It is becoming clear that SARS-CoV-2 is (finally) being acknowledged as an #Airborne infection, and that interventions tackling how this occurs should be introduced. WHO has recently published information on this despite some resistence for months on the issue: 4/ https://twitter.com/who/status/1327347872510177280
And the @WelshGovernment has acknowledged the importance of ventilation in their operational guidance for schools: 5/ https://gov.wales/operational-guidance-schools-and-settings-autumn-term-covid-19
I am aware of a lot of schools that have introduced regular window opening as part of their risk reducing protocols. However as far as I’m aware there isn’t an agreed protocol. Schools are doing as they see fit. It may be the case that windows are being kept open all day... 6/
Which may be cooling the classroom beyond what is necessary. I too have heard teachers complain about the possibility of getting too cold. I ask what do they wear and thermal clothing are never mentioned. Even this simple intervention wasn’t mentioned in the Guardian article. 7/
But i would argue that if a smart protocol is introduced, as they have done so in Germany for many weeks now, then even wearing thermals may not be necessary. Germany gets even colder than the UK! They’ve adopted a protocol for opening windows in classes at regular intervals. 8/
Martin Kriegel, head of the Herman Rietschel Institute at the Technical University of Berlin has researched the impact of aerosols on the infection of coronavirus. He said,
“A lot of people think that when it’s cold inside, the air inside is fresh. That’s not true.. 9/
“A lot of people think that when it’s cold inside, the air inside is fresh. That’s not true.. 9/
...”you have to open the windows completely at regular intervals. Not a lot of air gets in through a tilted window.”
So... Here’s the official guidance to schools from the German Federal Department for the Environment, translated for your convenience 10/
https://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&nv=1&pto=aue&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=auto&sp=nmt4&tl=en&u=https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/richtig-lueften-in-schulen&usg=ALkJrhgLRg5Awj8zLxCi7J_JzpanNciAkg#warum-ist-ein-regelmassiger-luftaustausch-in-klassenzimmern-wichtig
So... Here’s the official guidance to schools from the German Federal Department for the Environment, translated for your convenience 10/
https://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&nv=1&pto=aue&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=auto&sp=nmt4&tl=en&u=https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/richtig-lueften-in-schulen&usg=ALkJrhgLRg5Awj8zLxCi7J_JzpanNciAkg#warum-ist-ein-regelmassiger-luftaustausch-in-klassenzimmern-wichtig
Affordable technology in the form of CO2 monitors can be used to guide the need for improving the ventilation in a classroom. CO2 is a good proxy for how stale the air is. If the monitor records levels beyond a given threshold. See this recommendation from a friend! 11/ https://twitter.com/mrhillent/status/1328074123822723073
Clever Scientists such as @jljcolorado have done great work on this. Look at this for a calculator that can guide you 12/- https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16K1OQkLD4BjgBdO8ePj6ytf-RpPMlJ6aXFg3PrIQBbQ/edit#gid=519189277&range=A195
The CO2 meter could indicate the need for opening windows/doors to improve ventilation.
Teachers and children needn’t be made to work in cold environments unless it is scientifically indicated. 13/
Teachers and children needn’t be made to work in cold environments unless it is scientifically indicated. 13/
The prestigious Harvard school of public health @HarvardChanSPH have published a 5 step guide to check ventilation rates in classrooms: 14/ https://schools.forhealth.org/
Am I advocating going back to the 1930s then? No. We can be smarter- time our window opening in line with breaks and meal-times, fund increased heating, and use affordable tech such as CO2 monitors to guide us . You can wear thermal clothing if you so wish. #WeCanDoThis /FIN
One Extension:
There is a lot that technology can offer us in improving indoor ventilation. Follow @Orla_Hegarty who is a leading figure in the field for more info:
https://twitter.com/orla_hegarty/status/1320994996976234502?s=21 https://twitter.com/orla_hegarty/status/1320994996976234502
There is a lot that technology can offer us in improving indoor ventilation. Follow @Orla_Hegarty who is a leading figure in the field for more info:
https://twitter.com/orla_hegarty/status/1320994996976234502?s=21 https://twitter.com/orla_hegarty/status/1320994996976234502
