Key Points
-
Schools are unique built environments because children are especially vulnerable to environmental hazards.
-
Schools are also unique built environments because of their high density, their long hours of use, the multiplicity of functions they house, and their role as workplaces for teachers and staff.
-
The school’s surroundings—the site on which it is built and the features of the surrounding neighborhood—can have an impact on health and safety.
-
Student travel to school involves a balance between the health benefits of walking and bicycling (active transportation) and safety considerations.
-
Within the school, chemical exposures; physical factors such as lighting, noise, and humidity; contact with nature; and the food environment all affect health and safety.
-
Outside the school, playground and sports facilities need to balance the value of exploration and physical activity with the need for safety.
-
Tools such as the commissioning of high-performance schools and school environmental health audits can improve school environments.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Audi, J., and J. R. Geller. 2006. “Chemical Exposures in and out of the Classroom.” In Safe and Healthy School Environments, edited by H. Frumkin, R. J. Geller, and I. L. Rubin, 189–206. New York: Oxford University Press.
Austin, S. B., S. J. Melly, B. N. Sánchez, A. Patel, S. Buka, and S. L. Gortmaker. 2005. “Clustering of Fast-Food Restaurants around Schools: A Novel Application of Spatial Statistics to the Study of Food Environments.” American Journal of Public Health 95: 1575–81.
Benya, J., L. Heschong, T. McGowan, M. Miller, and F. Rubenstein. 2003. Advanced Lighting Guidelines. White Salmon, WA: New Buildings Institute. http://www.newbuildings.org/advanced-lighting-guidelines
Bingler, S., L. Quinn, and K. Sullivan. 2003. Schools as Centers of Community: A Citizen’s Guide for Planning and Design. Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities. http://www.ncef.org/pubs/pubs_html.cfm?abstract=centers_of_community
Braza, M., W. Shoemaker, and A. Seeley. 2004. “Neighborhood Design and Rates of Walking and Biking to Elementary School in 34 California Communities.” American Journal of Health Promotion 19: 128–36.
CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). 2008. Kids Walk-to-School: Then and Now—Barriers and Solutions. http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/kidswalk/then_and_now.htm
Davis, B., and C. Carpenter. 2009. “Proximity of Fast-Food Restaurants to Schools and Adolescent Obesity.” American Journal of Public Health 99: 505–10.
Dellinger, A. M., and C. E. Staunton. 2002. “Barriers to Children Walking and Biking to School—United States, 1999.” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Review 51: 701–4.
Eley, C. 2006. “High-Performance School Buildings.” In Safe and Healthy School Environments, edited by H. Frumkin, R. J. Geller, and I. L. Rubin, 331–50. New York: Oxford University Press.
Erwine, B. “Lighting.” 2006. In Safe and Healthy School Environments, edited by H. Frumkin, R. J. Geller, and I. L. Rubin, 20–33. New York: Oxford University Press.
Evans, G. W. 1994. “Learning and the Physical Environment.” In Public Institutions for Personal Learning: Establishing a Research Agenda, edited by J. H. Falk and L. D. Dierking, 119–26. Washington, DC: American Association of Museums.
Fox, M. K., A. Gordon, R. Nogales, and A. Wilson. 2009. “Availability and Consumption of Competitive Foods in U.S. Public Schools.” Journal of the American Dietetic Association 109 (2 suppl.): S57–66.
Gorman, N., J. A. Lackney, K. Rollings, and T. T. Huang. 2007. “Designer Schools: The Role of School Space and Architecture in Obesity Prevention.” Obesity 15: 2521–30.
Heschong Mahone Group. 1999. Daylighting in Schools: An Investigation into the Relationship between Daylighting and Human Performance. San Francisco: Pacific Gas and Electric Company. http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED444337.pdf
IOM (Institute of Medicine), Committee on Damp Indoor Spaces and Health. 2004. Damp Indoor Spaces and Health. Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences.
Jaakkola, J. J. K. 2006. “Temperature and Humidity.” In Safe and Healthy School Environments, edited by H. Frumkin, R. J. Geller, and I. L. Rubin, 46–57. New York: Oxford University Press.
Larson, N., and M. Story. 2006. “Nutrition at School: Creating a Healthy Food Environment.” In Safe and Healthy School Environments, edited by H. Frumkin, R. J. Geller, and I. L. Rubin, 218–37. New York: Oxford University Press.
Maxwell, L. E. 2006. “Noise.” In Safe and Healthy School Environments, edited by H. Frumkin, R. J. Geller, and I. L. Rubin, 34–45. New York: Oxford University Press.
McConnell, R., K. Berhane, L. Yao, M. Jerrett, F. Lurmann, F. Gilliland, N. Künzli, J. Gauderman, E. Avol, D. Thomas, and J. Peters. 2006. “Traffic, Susceptibility, and Childhood Asthma.” Environmental Health Perspectives 114: 766–72.
Moore, R. 2006. “Playgrounds: A 150-Year Old Model.” In Safe and Healthy School Environments, edited by H. Frumkin, R. J. Geller, and I. L. Rubin, 86–103. New York: Oxford University Press.
National Center for Education Statistics. 2009. Digest of Education Statistics. http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d09/.
Office of Technology Assessment. 1995. Risks to Students in School. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.
Perry, C. L., D. B. Bishop, G. L. Taylor, M. Davis, M. Story, C. Gray, S. C. Bishop, R. A. W. Mays, L. A. Lytle, and L. Harnack. 2004. “A Randomized School Trial of Environmental Strategies to Encourage Fruit and Vegetable Consumption among Children.” Health Education & Behavior 31: 65–76.
Rodin, J. 1976. “Density, Perceived Choice, and Responses to Controllable and Uncontrollable Outcomes.” Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 12: 564–78.
Sanchez-Vaznaugh, E. V., B. N. Sánchez, J. Baek, and P. B. Crawford. 2010. “‘Competitive’ Food and Beverage Policies: Are They Influencing Childhood Overweight Trends?” Health Affairs 29 (3): 436–46.
Simon, P. A., D. Kwan, A. Angelescu, M. Shih, and J. E. Fielding. 2008. “Proximity of Fast Food Restaurants to Schools: Do Neighborhood Income and Type of School Matter?” Preventive Medicine 47: 284–88.
Solomon, S. G. 2005. American Playgrounds: Revitalizing Community Space. Lebanon, NH: University Press of New England.
Tinsworth, D., and J. McDonald. 2001. Special Study: Injuries and Deaths Associated with Children’s Playground Equipment. Bethesda, MD: US Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Transportation Research Board, Committee on School Transportation Safety. 2002. The Relative Risks of School Travel: A National Perspective and Guidance for Local Community Risk Assessment. Special Report 269. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
U.S. Census Bureau. 2009. Facts for Figures: Back to School 2009–2010. CB09-FF.14. http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/cb09-ff14.html
Watson, M., and A. L. Dannenberg. 2008. “Investment in Safe Routes to Schools Projects: Public Health Benefits for the Larger Community.” Preventing Chronic Disease 5(3): A90. http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2008/jul/pdf/07_0087.pdf
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Andrew L. Dannenberg, Howard Frumkin, and Richard J. Jackson
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Frumkin, H., Fox, J. (2011). Healthy Schools. In: Dannenberg, A.L., Frumkin, H., Jackson, R.J. (eds) Making Healthy Places. Island Press, Washington, DC. https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-036-1_14
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-036-1_14
Publisher Name: Island Press, Washington, DC
Online ISBN: 978-1-61091-036-1
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)
