Acoustical design for libraries in schools to comply with ANSI S12.60

Abstract

In K-12 schools, the library functional space is now usually called the media center, as this space houses and disseminates information that is stored on both print and digital media. These spaces have fewer sound absorbent book stacks than were found in previous print-only libraries. Instead, computer workstations for student access to local and web-based material are provided. Often these facilities are used as group learning spaces, with several group classes occurring simultaneously. These changes to the traditional school library space present challenges to the acoustical design. Another challenge is that in a number of school districts across the US, a media center must be designed to meet the requirements of ANSI/ASA 12.60-2010/Part 1, “American National Standard Acoustical Performance Criteria, Design Requirements and Guidelines for Schools, Part 1: Permanent Schools,” also known as the “Classroom acoustics standard.” This is because a media center can be defined as a core learning space that is subject to that standard, with its requirements for low noise and reverberation, and for higher sound isolation from adjacent spaces. Several case studies are presented which highlight the design challenges for modern school media centers, and the successful design solutions.