Natural Light and Productivity: Analyzing the Impacts of Daylighting on Students’ and Workers’ Health and Alertness

Abstract

Abstract-Studies show that the quality of the school environment significantly influences students' academic performance. Among the many attributes of the school environment, light is one of the most visible and talked about ones. Lighting in the classrooms has been the subject of many studies for over a century. In recent years, special attention has been given to the impact of natural light on learning as light has physiological, psychological and behavioral influences on school children as well as workers. A multitude of surveys has indicated also that daylight impacts the health. We believe that workers' and students' health, satisfaction, attention, and consequently performance are improved with the help of natural light. This paper discusses the current literature and design-based evidence to evaluate the impacts of natural light on office workers and students' scholastic performance. Issues of timing and exposure to daylight are also discussed.Keywords-Daylighting, Morning Sunlight, Students, Health, Workers Performance, Alertness I. INTRODUCTIONAmong the many elements that impact building occupants, lighting seems to have the most influence. Light is an essence for humans and it is known that has physical, physiological, and psychological influences [1].In the early part of the 20 th century, natural light was the primary source of building illumination. In a short span of a couple of decades, electric lighting became the primary source of illumination, mostly because of convenience. In recent years, energy conservation and environmental concerns have changed those practices and brought daylighting once again at the forefront of the sustainability debate [2]. For decades, an appropriate lighting design was based on the idea that it should meet the needs of the building occupants especially in terms of visual task performance. However, recent connections between health and wellbeing and lighting have made lighting of building interiors one of the most salient environmental factors in architectural design [1]. Recent studies have proven that there is a correlation between lighting and humans' performance and health. Light does not only provide visual information but also constitutes a powerful modulator of our circadian rhythm and many non-visual functions including the state of alertness, mental focus, and cognitive performance [3]. Light is also an important ingredient in educational settings, as it appears to have strong influences on cognition and learning. Research on electric lighting in classrooms has received some attention over the last few decades but research on the impact of natural light on students has been somewhat scarce [4]. The limited number of studies in this area seem to show that windows and daylight can enhance students' physical and psychological health, influence their mood, behavior and learning [5], [6]. Our study presents a comprehensive review of recent work that explored the relationship between daylight and students' and workers' health and performance. In this regard, the in...

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