Quality of Life and Acoustic Comfort in Educational Environments of Curitiba, Brazil

Abstract

It is believed that poor classroom acoustics leads to lower levels of student learning and exposes teachers vocal folds to greater physical wear and tear. This study sought to compare the quality of life by World Health Organization (whoqol-bref) questionnaire of 61 teachers working at schools with different acoustic conditions. This paper reports on a descriptive exploratory study aimed at ascertaining the following: (1) outdoor sound pressure levels in the immediate surroundings of two primary schools; (2) background noise levels inside classrooms; (3) reverberation times in classrooms; (4) the teacher's perception of noise in the work environment; (5) the teacher's vocal intensity in the classroom; and (6) the teacher's perceived quality of life. It was found that the quality of life of teachers, as well as the major causes of acoustic discomfort, do not stem from a source outside the classroom, halls, and physical education classes. Instead, they originate inside the classroom and are caused by students during school hours; the teachers' vocal intensity exceeds the limits of tolerability both in schools that provide acoustic comfort and in those that do not. The basic conditions required to ensure the health of the participants in this study during their workday were found to be unsatisfactory.