Research Paper : Can We Pandemic Proof The Schools?

Reconsider Redesign Retrofit:

Can we Pandemic Proof the schools?

Adjusting to the New Normal

Analysis of School Building Management Guidelines and Natural Ventilation

Animesh Paliwal

Ashima Saini

Daanish Akram

Jayant Negi

Kolata Tejaswi

Manan Jain

05 Sukhvinder Kaur

Keywords: Natural ventilation, Indoor air quality, Airborne, Covid 19, Student Performance, Disease transmission, Sick building syndrome, Management guidelines Guide: Ar. Gunjan Jain In the last one and a half years since the pandemic began, the unprecedented closing of educational institutes has not only affected the overall well-being of students but has also stripped school going children of their right to basic education. Now as the schools are gradually reopening, there is a dire need to decrease the probability of virus transmission in the schools.

The research aims to analyse natural ventilation strategies in schools in a composite climate, in conjunction with building management guidelines, to minimize the risk of virus transmission without compromising on thermal comfort.

Relevant school buildings have been studied from the available literature to understand the management of indoor air quality and thermal comfort based on window opening patterns, retrofitting, and various ventilation strategies. Based on the willingness of the schools to participate in the study and considering the time bound nature of the research, two secondary schools (one government and one private) in Delhi have been taken up as primary case study. With the help of the school staff, efforts were made to analyse the implementation of building management guidelines and to analyse the ventilation rates in classroom layouts.

An online survey was conducted across secondary class students from Delhi to understand the effect of closing down of the schools on their overall well being, and the problems, if any, faced by the students w.r.t to indoor air quality and thermal comfort in relation to natural ventilation in their school classrooms.

Based on the Inferences drawn from the secondary and primary studies, a matrix of design interventions, retrofitting solutions and management guidelines has been generated that could be incorporated in existing as well as new school buildings to make them resilient against any similar future outbreak.

Seminar2021

18

Re-consider, Redesign, Retrofit: Can we Pandemic Proof Schools?

Paliwal, Animesh Kaur, Sukhvinder Saini, Ashima Jain, Manan Negi, Jayant Akram, Daanish Kolata, Tejaswi School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi-110002, India, Guide: Jain, Gunjan (Ar.)

ABSTRACT In the last one and a half years since the pandemic began, the unprecedented closing of educational institutes has not only affected the overall well-being of students but has also stripped school-going children of their right to basic education. Now as the schools are gradually reopening, there is a dire need to prevent the transmission of virus in the schools.

The research aims to analyze natural ventilation strategies in schools in a composite climate, in conjunction with building management guidelines, to minimize the risk of virus transmission without compromising on thermal comfort.

Relevant school buildings have been studied from the available literature to understand the management of indoor air quality and thermal comfort based on window opening patterns, retrofitting, and various ventilation strategies. Based on the willingness of the schools to participate in the study, two secondary schools (one government and one private) in Delhi have been taken up as primary case studies to analyze the implementation of management guidelines and ventilation rates in classroom layouts. An online survey was conducted across secondary class students from Delhi to understand the effect of online education on their overall well being.

Based on the combined Inferences, a matrix of design interventions, retrofitting, and management solutions have been generated that could be incorporated in existing as well as new school buildings to make them resilient against any similar future outbreak.

Keywords: School Buildings, Circulation, Ventilation, Natural ventilation, Indoor air quality, Airborne, Covid 19, Occupancy density, Student Performance, Disease transmission, Sick building syndrome, School reopening guidelines.

1.0 Introduction In December 2019 cases of pneumonia of unknown cause were reported to WHO which was then identified as a novel coronavirus on January 7, 2020. “As the cases continued to spread rapidly throughout the world, In March 2020, the Director-General of WHO declared that the outbreak could be characterized as a pandemic” (WHO, 2020). Lockdowns were observed in countries worst hit by the disease. In India educational institutes suspended physical classes on March 6th, followed by a nationwide lockdown on March 25th (Express Web Desk, 23 March 2021). This unprecedented turn of events greatly affected all sectors and institutions throughout the country. Now after more than a year and a half of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, the effects of these changes are apparent, especially in educational institutions.

As of September 2021, there were more than 28.6 crore students enrolled in schools in India, out of which 13.3 crore were secondary school students (UNESCO, 2021). In March 2020, education through digital mediums was proposed through various platforms as an alternative (Ministry of Education, India, 2020). However, the switch from offline to online, combined with other lockdown restrictions has made a significant impact on the mental health, education, and daily routine of students (Chaturvedi et al, 2020).

Not only that, but education has also become inaccessible for a large section of society. A survey conducted by the Times of India showed that the majority of students not engaged in any form of learning were those from the poorest or those from rural households. Among these sections also, girls were relatively more likely to have stopped attending classes than boys (TNN, 8 March 2021). These studies highlight an increasing need to revert to physical classes.

1.1 COVID-19 and reopening of schools The COVID-19 virus has been observed to have three common modes of transmission including contact, droplets, and aerosols which can travel hundreds of meters or more (Wang and Du, 2020). Combined with the fact that schools as a typology have a much higher occupancy (4m2/person as per NBC 2016) than other typologies, meaning an increase in transmission rate (Leclerc et al., 2020).

1.1.1 Ventilation Ventilation of buildings is required to supply fresh air for respiration of occupants, to dilute inside air (NBC, 2016).

Well-ventilated spaces, enhanced by particle filtration and air disinfection methods, can help reduce the risk of transmission, whereas ventilation systems that work on air recirculation systems can significantly increase the risk of transmission (CDC, 2020). The cases of transmission from people more than 2m apart were found to occur in enclosed spaces with poor ventilation (Medicine, T.L.R., 2020). With no ventilation, it takes about 4 min for the number of small droplets in the air to be halved; whereas in a mechanically ventilated room supplemented

by natural ventilation this period is reduced to 30s, substantially faster than in poorly ventilated or unventilated rooms (Asanati K. et al., 2021).

1.1.2 Building management guidelines Other measures dealing with building operations and management are also required to tackle the pandemic. From September 1, 2021, with specific guidelines for schools, offline classes resumed in a majority of states in India in a phased manner. However, since the issues stated above stem from several factors, the efficiency of these guidelines in curbing the transmission of disease, and their impact on the health of the occupants need to be analyzed to ensure a positive learning experience for the students.

1.1.3 Indoor Air Quality and thermal comfort Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is determined by empirical measurements of air pollutants present in an indoor space(US EPA, OAR, 2019). It contributes to the Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) which further helps determine the livability of indoor space and how it affects the health and comfort of the occupants. While good IEQ inside classrooms increases productivity, concentration, and learning, poor IEQ results in a bad performance, stress, and various illnesses (Ma’bdeh et al., 2020) with an increased rate of virus transmission.

2.0 Research design The above literature highlights the need to reopen schools so that a part of normalcy can be restored and the problems faced by students in the online mode of education can be countered.

However, since the pandemic is still not over, it may not be safe to resume physical classes without any precautions. Now that schools are reopening, The aim of this study is to come up with suggestions to improve building management and natural ventilation to make schools pandemic resilient in a composite climate without compromising on thermal comfort.

There are three main objectives of this study. The first objective is to analyze the building guidelines issued by the government for the reopening of schools and assess their execution as well as the impact on the learning experience of students. The second objective is to analyze ventilation strategies in educational buildings with their relation to student health, performance, and comfort. The third objective of this research is to come up with a matrix of building design strategies, management guidelines as well as retrofit solutions that can be applied to school buildings in a composite climate to help make them resilient against another similar future outbreak without compromising students’ learning experience. The study will focus on the architectural domain without going into the engineering aspect of the topic. It will be focused on secondary educational buildings in an urban context.

The following limitations were faced throughout the study due to time constraints, unavailability

of equipment, and other factors: 1. Owing to the fairly recent occurrence of the COVID-19 virus, as well as its evolving nature, the data available on this subject may change, or prove to be unreliable or incomplete at a later stage.

2. Due to the time restraint, the collected data for comfort levels which varies from season to season may not be completely accurate since temperatures vary greatly in a composite climate.

3. For primary studies, the equipment needed for the measurement of values required to calculate the IAQ or the rate of air changes in an enclosed space was not accessible.

4. There may not be enough students attending school offline to conduct a proper primary survey.

2.1 Methodology

Fig. 1.1 Methodology Diagram Source: Authors

3.0 Review of standards 3.1 Review of standards related to school design The following are spatial standards for the design of secondary school classrooms. These were studied to understand the standard occupancy of students in classrooms with respect to the classroom area.

Table 1.1: Spatial standards Designing Standards Number of student places/classrooms

Category

Secondary/High Secondary

40

Setbacks

Exits

*Front = 15m *Side = 6m

*30m from most remote areas *Min. 2 staircase

Gross areas of classrooms(sqm)/ student place 1.26 Occupancy

Sec High

For schools having 2 sections/class

For schools having 4 sections/class

3.2 sqm

2.6 sqm

Source : (NBC 2016 & IS 8827:1978)

According to the standards, higher senior secondary classrooms are generally designed for 40 students with a minimum classroom area of 50.4 m2.

3.2 Review of standards related to ventilation in schools Different ventilation standards were studied to compare the minimum ventilation requirement in pre-pandemic classrooms and how these standards are changing for post-pandemic classrooms.

3.2.1 Window-Wall Ratio (WWR) is a parameter that affects the energy needed for heating, cooling, and lighting of buildings (Ciacci et al., n.d.). According to ECBC 2017, WWR should be less than 40% for buildings in composite climates.

3.2.2 Window Floor Ratio (WFRop) is used to determine the potential of using external air for ventilation. Ensuring minimum WFRop helps in ventilation, improvement in thermal comfort, and reduction in cooling load (ENS, 2017). According to IS 8872-1978, WFR for school buildings should be more than 20% in case the openings are located only on one wall and 15% in case such openings are located on both sides at the same sill level.

3.2.3 Rate of ventilation (Q): The ventilation rate of a building is usually defined as the rate at which external air (fresh air) flows into the building.

Q = k*A*v (m3/h) where, k = efficiency of opening based on the orientation of windows w.r.t. to wind direction and ventilation type. k= 0.1 for single sided ventilation k= 0.6 for cross ventilation with wind perpendicular opening k= 0.3 for cross ventilation with wind 45 degrees to openings A = Smallest opening area (m2) v = Wind velocity (m/h) according to meteorological data.

3.2.4 Air Change per Hour (ACH): The amount of air leakage into or out of a building or room in terms of the number of times the building volume or room volume is exchanged (NBC, 2016).

ACH =Q/V Qreq. = ACH/V where, Qreq. = Required ventilation rate in m3/h in a given volume of space V = Volume of the space.

Center of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Vol. 1, 2021 has recommended ACH values for a COVID-19 like situation for different spaces. These values are almost double the old recommended ACH values as per NBC 2016.

Table 2.1: Recommended Air change rates per hour ACH (NBC 2016)Entrance Corridor Lift cars School rooms Libraries Laboratories Canteen Offices Dance Halls Lecture theatres Toilets, bathrooms

ACH as per covid (CSIR, Vol 1, 2021) -

3-5 5-10 20, minimum 5-7 3-5 6-15 8-12 6-10 12, minimum 5-8 6-10

Entrance Corridor Lift cars School rooms Libraries Laboratories Canteen Offices Dance Halls Lecture theatres Toilets, bathrooms Isolation rooms

-

4-6 6-12 24, minimum 12, minimum 12, minimum 8-18 10-15 12, minimum 15, minimum 12, minimum 10-12 10, minimum

The amount of air decreases as the air space available per In COVID-19 like situations, 36m3 per person per hour person increases, and it may vary from 20 m3 to 30 m3 per (10 liters/person/second) is recommended as specified in person per hour.

EN 16798-1 Source : (NBC, 2016 & CSIR, 2021)

According to CSIR 2021, “the most effective way of reducing the effects of a contaminant in a space is by dilution with fresh air (supply of outside air to reduce the airborne concentration of contaminants in the building). Thus, ventilation is recognized as an efficient method for reducing the airborne transmission of pathogens; therefore, there is a need for a paradigm shift in ventilation from space-focused design to occupant-focused design”.

3.3 Review of post-pandemic guidelines to re-open schools Before schools started reopening in a phased manner from 1 September 2021, Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) released the following building management guidelines that include precautionary measures to be adopted in schools to curb the transmission of the virus.

Table 3.1: DDMA Guidelines for re-opening schools Awareness drive

Posters/standees on preventive measures about COVID-19 to be displayed at all prominent places like classrooms, washrooms, parking, entry, and exit, etc. to ensure COVID Appropriate Behavior (CAB)

Quarantine room

The Head of school / Institute should ensure the availability of a Quarantine Room in the school / Institute in case of any emergency.

Face masking

All members of the school / Institute must wear a mask in the proper way. Head of School /Head of Institute to ensure that spare masks are available in school / Institute.

Hand sanitization at the entrance

Compulsory hand sanitization at the entrance of school / Institute, ClassRoom, Labs, Library and Public Utility, etc.

Classroom Sanitization

Proper and regular cleaning and sanitization of classrooms.

No sharing of food/stationery

Students may be guided not to share lunch, books, copies and stationery items, etc.

Staggered lunch breaks

The Lunch breaks may also be staggered to avoid crowding of students and held preferably in an open area particularly as the students will be removing their masks while having food.

50% students per classroom

Maximum 50% students per classroom may be called depending upon the capacity/occupancy limit for seating of the students to maintain proper social distance.

1 hr. Interval between shifts

There should be a gap of at least 01hoursr between the exit of the last group of the morning shift and the entry of the first group of Evening shifts in double-shifted schools /colleges.

Seating Arrangement

The seating arrangement should be done in such a way that the seat/chair is occupied in an alternate manner.

Minimizing crowding

The help of volunteers may be taken to avoid crowding and maintain COVID Appropriate Behavior (CAB) at the entry/exit gates of the building/premises.

Symptoms check

Mandatory Thermal Screening at school / Institute entry gates. No student, teachers, staff, or guest should be allowed to enter the school

Covid-Must

Hygiene

Crowd Management

Entry-Exit Management

/Institute premises without proper thermal scanning.

Ventilation

Maximizing entrances/exits

Use all the entry/exit gates in the building to avoid crowding at the time of entry and exit of students.

Physical distancing

All School / Institute authorities have to maintain physical distance at all times by ensuring that students do not assemble or gather near entry/ exit gates of the school/Institute.

Naturally Ventilate classrooms

Proper ventilation in all the classrooms and covered places should be ensured.

Source : (DDMA, 2021)

4.0 Case studies analyzing guidelines for COVID like situations in schools Following studies are done to understand the various COVID management strategies and if certain guidelines are efficient to prevent the virus transmission in a school like high occupancy building. The three case studies were done at an urban level regarding the COVID-19 outbreak and the necessary measures or strategies that need to be adopted in schools.

Table 4.1: Covid Guidelines analyzing case studies Name of Study

COVID-19 Cases and Transmission in 17 K–12 Schools

SARS-CoV-2 Transmission After Implementation of a Comprehensive Mitigation Strategy

AIA Releases Design Strategies for Safer Schools post COVID-19

Location

Wood County, Wisconsin, US

New Jersey

America

Context

Urban

Urban

Urban

Climate

continental humid climate

continental humid climate

-

Study year

Nov 2020

27 Nov 2020

24 June 2020

Insights

-Student masking compliance -Provide or retrofit locking casters to limit -Comprehensive mitigation was reported to exceed 92% furniture mobility where mobility could approaches including frequent throughout the course of the pose an issue of physical distancing. testing and universal masking study. Older children were -Ensuring additional touchless trash cans can help prevent outbreaks in reported to be equally compliant are placed near entrances. in-person high school settings with masking as younger -Providing touchless water drinking even when there is ongoing children. dispensers. community transmission.

-High levels of compliance, -Providing a touchless hand washing -physical distancing, universal small cohort sizes (maximum of hygiene station near the door. masking, and behavioral 20 students), and limited contact -Removing non-essential furniture to reinforcement in conjunction between cohorts likely helped increase floor area. with improved air filtration, and mitigate in-school SARS-CoV-2 -Providing disposable towels and frequent testing can be effective transmission and could be disinfectants for students to clean desks in preventing transmission responsible for the low levels of prior to and after use. within campus settings transmission detected in schools.

-Increasing per student occupancy x 2.

Source: Authors

The first two case studies, in Wisconsin and New Jersey respectively, majorly deal with the analysis of the experiments conducted concerning masking in younger and older children, cohort sizes, physical distancing, and behavioral reinforcement in these times for children. Apart from this, the study also reveals how improved air filtration can be an effective way of preventing transmission on the campus. The third case study is about the adaptation of design strategies released by AIA for better functioning of schools and creating safer environments for the children.

Before the pandemic, the schools and classrooms had interaction and activities regularly and for this mobility of furniture for creating islands for group discussions, etc. was necessary. However, the case study records how much liberty may pose a problem in the current scenario. It also discusses the need for contactless amenities in the school premises and other management policies that need to change in order to provide a safe place post-pandemic.

5.0 Case studies to understand ventilation strategies in schools.

Fig 2.1: Ventilation Related secondary studies diagram Source: Authors

To understand the various ventilation strategies, we took up six case studies from all over the world. The case studies taken up in this paper deal with ventilation measures, thermal comfort, and indoor air quality (IAQ). These factors are subsequently based on the Indoor Air Temperature, Radiant Temperature, Air Velocity and Perceived Air Quality (PAQ), Ventilation Rate, CO2 Concentration respectively with Relative Humidity being the common parameter controlling both the factors.

Before the pandemic, maintaining Thermal Comfort was given a good deal of importance such that the Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) was often compromised in favor of it. Post-Pandemic, there was a shift, with natural ventilation being more emphasized in the classroom through simple strategies like opening windows, which led to better IAQ at the cost of lesser thermal comfort.

Therefore, it is inferred that IAQ and Thermal Comfort are closely related to the overall well-being of the occupants in a classroom and the strategies adopted in bringing about a change in ventilation should not be probed in isolation with respect to just one factor.

Table 5.1: Six Case studies compiled from available online literature Jordan University

Primary School in Seville, Spain

Archbishop Secondary school, Cyprus

Climate

Hot and Arid

Mediterranean Climate

Warm, Mediterranea n climate.

Warm Summer

Temperate

Warm and Humid

Year of Study

2020

2020-21

2019

2002

2017

2016

NV

Hybrid: pre-pandemic, natural: pandemic

NV

NV

Hybrid

NV

Semi-open singly loaded corridors.

Doubly loaded classroom.

Parameters

Ventilation Type

Singly-loaded Classroom corridors with Cross-ventilation Arrangement north-facing opening windows.

County School, England

KU leuven, England

CMR EKYA School, Bangalore

Arranged along Single loaded the core corridors/bridges staircase with open roofs.

Classroom Floor Area (sqm)

58.22

105.3

56

56

278.4

59.4

Orientation

North facing

South class:

South

West

South facing

South & East-facing

Retrofitted

Yes

No

No

No

No

Context

Urban

Semi-Urban

Sub-Urban

Sub-Urban

Urban

WWR (%)

19%

31%

50% of south

19.2%

SW - 27%

-

and 17% on north

NE - 26%

WFR

8.2%

9.9%

25.0%

9.6%

13.0%

-

Occupancy

1.78

4.05

2.5

2.5

1.78

-

Occupancy Hours

30

25

32

30

30

-

Insights

Building retrofitting systems like wind towers and chimneys used in conjunction with other passive systems and simple natural ventilation techniques such as opening windows can greatly enhance the IEQ in a classroom.

These systems are comparatively cheaper, simple, and energy-efficie nt.

Night ventilation relies on cross-ventilatio n through 10 motorized bottom hung windows at both sides of the room with weather sensors.

Without night ventilation, none of the lecture rooms meets the requirement of overheating hours less than 5% of the time in use.

Corridors/ bridges are staggered to let in light, ventilate the space, and have plantations in between.

Staggered glazing is acoustic-friendly ventilation windows that let in fresh air while also blocking out the noise.

Wind tunnels located after every two classrooms that open into the corridor areas keep the entire school campus including all the classrooms well ventilated.

Openings in the roof facilitate the Stack effect.

In the study done before the pandemic, it was found that the thermal comfort was good for most of the time, but the IAQ of the classrooms was not under acceptable standards.

In the study done during the pandemic, when there was 100% natural ventilation through window openings; the IAQ improved significantly, however thermal comfort took a dip here.

Ventilation during all the breaks was the best at keeping the IAQ under acceptable standards. In the case of cross ventilation during all breaks, it was observed that CO2 levels fell drastically compared to any other iterations.

Ventilation in classrooms, especially on the upper floors can be increased by increasing opening sizes.

Night flushing can also improve airflow and air quality in the classrooms.

A holistic natural ventilation system like a passive stack combining basic strategies like cross-ventilatio n, buoyancy, and venturi can be effective.

Source: Authors

6.0 Primary case studies Based on the willingness of schools to participate in the study and considering the time-bound nature of the research, two secondary schools in Delhi have been taken up as primary case studies. With the help of the school staff, building management guidelines and their implementation is studied in conjunction with ventilation rates in classrooms.

6.0.1 Delhi Public School, Mathura Road: DPS is a private co-educational day and boarding school with 6500+ students. The school is naturally ventilated with a site area of approximately 25 acres. The secondary wing has a single entrance where sanitization and thermal screening of the entrants are done. This wing has four different exits with different travel routes to limit overcrowding and avoid congestion.

Classrooms are sanitized at regular intervals thrice a day.

6.0.2 Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya (SKV) Block-A, New Delhi: Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya, Keshav Puram, A - Block, Delhi is a government school managed by the Department of Education. The school is co-educational and has an attached pre-primary section.

Table 6.1: Basic Information about DPS and SKV

School

Location

Climate

Mathura Road, DPS New Delhi, Composite India

SKV

Block A Keshav Puram, New Delhi, India

Composite

Year of Ventilati Study on Type

Sept.

2021

Sept.

2021

Classroom Arrangement

Classroom Floor Area (sqm)

Orientation

Context

NV

Single loaded corridor and courtyards with adequate open green spaces

56.2 and 46.8

East-west facing and north facing classrooms

Urban

NV

Classes are arranged around a doubly loaded corridor.

32.5

South-east facing classrooms

Urban

Source: Authors

6.1 Classroom layout analysis The max. window to wall ratio (WWR) recommended for composite climate as per ECBC 2017 is 40%. The min. openable window to floor ratio recommended for school buildings by IS 8827-1978 is 20% for single-sided ventilation and 15% for cross ventilation. For these studies, we will be taking average outdoor wind speed, v, as 5000 m/h (CSIR, 2021) and average wind direction as northwest direction for delhi.

6.1.1 Layout 1 (DPS) -Single side ventilation -North-orientated windows

-Carpet area = 46.8 m2 -Area of the smallest opening, A =2.692 m2 -Classroom volume =159.12 m3 -WWR = 37.12% -WFR = 12.72% -Ventilation rate required, Qreq. =ACH*Vol = 12*159.12 = 1909.4 m3/h -Ventilation Rate Achieved = k*A*v =(0.1)*(2.692)*(5000) = 1346 m3/h 6.1.2 Layout 2 (DPS) -Cross ventilation -East and west oriented windows (45 degrees to wind direction) -Carpet area = 56.2 m2 -Area of the smallest openings on one wall, A =1.12 m 2 -Classroom volume - 190.9 m3 -WWR (East) = 22.21% (West) = 15.61% -WFR = 29.66% -Ventilation rate required, Qreq. = ACH*Vol = 12*190.9 = 2290.8 m3/h -Ventilation Rate = k*A*v =(0.3)*(1.12)*(5000) = 1680 m3/h 6.1.3 Layout 3 (SKV) -Single side ventilation -South orientated windows -Carpet area = 32.5 m2 -Area of the smallest opening, A = 4.4 m2 -Classroom Volume = 104 m3 -WWR = 45.67% -WFR = 21.54%

-Ventilation rate required, Qreq. = ACH*Vol = 12*104 = 1248 m 3/h -Ventilation Rate = k*A*v =(0.1)*(4.4)*(5000) = 2200 m3/h Table 7.1: WWR, WFR, and Ventilation Rate in all 3 layouts Layouts

Climate

Layout 1 Composite (DPS) Layout 2 Composite (DPS)

Type of Orienta ventilation tion system North East

WFR (%)

Single-Sided 12.72% Ventilation Cross Ventilation

MIn. WFR WWR according to (%) IS 8827-1978 20

29.66%

15

Layout 3 South-E Single-Sided Composite 21.54% (SKV) ast Ventilation

20

West

37.12% 22.21% 15.61% 45.67%

Max. WWR Ventilation MIn. req.

Rate according Ventilation Achieved to ECBC, rate as per 2017 12 ACH (m3/h) 40

1346

1909.4

40

1680

2290.8

40

2200

1248

Source: Authors

Layout 1 has a much less WFR (12.72%) than the other 2 layouts, making it the least naturally ventilated layout. While in layout 2, singly loaded corridors with the presence of cross ventilation make it a better-ventilated layout.

Although Layout 3 has a better WFR as per the WFR requirements, because of a doubly-loaded corridor and only single-sided ventilation, its WWR is way above the ECBC limit (40%), resulting in undesirable heat gain and glare during the day. When we compare these values with the values of the secondary case studies, we can infer that only layout 2 (DPS) and Archbishop school, which also had cross-ventilation, are able to achieve the minimum WFR values for school layouts within the limit of WWR. Looking at the rate of ventilation, it can be inferred that only type 3 is reaching the minimum required value of ventilation rate for its volume. This can be due to the small volume of layout 3 as compared to its window sizes. None of the DPS layouts reach the minimum required ventilation rate for 12 air changes per hour (ACH) for their volumes. Although DPS layout 2 has cross-ventilation, the smaller openable area on the west wall poorly affects its rate of ventilation.

6.2 Comparison of guidelines followed by both the schools with DDMA guidelines Based on the field visits, discussions with school management staff, and survey results, the following comparative analysis of the various guidelines followed by both the schools is made.

These are further compared with the guidelines issued by DDMA (Delhi disaster management authority) regarding the reopening of schools to assess their method of implementation.

Table 8.1: Analysis of school guidelines reopening schools.

DDMA GUIDELINES

DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL

SARVODAYA KANYA VIDYALAYA

SYMPTOMS CHECK

Yes - Symptom check at the entry point for students, teachers, and other staff.

Yes

FACE MASKING

Yes - Mandatory masks

Yes - Mandatory masks

HAND SANITIZATION

Yes - Hand sanitization booths at all entry points.

Use of touchless sensors in the lift to prevent infection by touch.

Yes - Frequent handwashing is encouraged

NO SHARING OF FOOD / STATIONERY

Yes

Yes - Students are encouraged to avoid sharing lunch or any other stationery with each other

STAGGERED LUNCH BREAKS

Yes -Activities that are usually done in groups are avoided, minimum or no contact is encouraged in lunch breaks and games periods.

Yes

Yes - Choice between physical or online class 50% STUDENTS PER followed by mandatory masks in classrooms CLASSROOM (approximately 40% attendance at the time of the survey)

Yes - Max. 50% attendance although alternative day schooling is in place.

1 HR. INTERVAL BETWEEN SHIFTS

Yes - Alternate entry timings for students

Yes -Time slots are allocated to different groups.

VENTILATION

Yes - Use of natural ventilation [mostly cross-ventilation] in all classrooms and corridors all the time.

Yes - Single-sided ventilation in all classrooms, outdoor classes after a certain time period.

MAXIMISING ENTRANCES/EXITS

Yes - One entry with thermal screening with multiple exit routes to avoid crowding.

Yes - The number of entry and exit points has been increased.

MINIMISING CROWDING

Yes - Distance and circulation markings at apt places for social distancing and fixed circulation. Yes - Entry/exits are opened and closed Predefined path markings in corridors make it after certain time periods, easier to follow the guidelines.

PHYSICAL DISTANCING

Yes - Maintaining physical distance Yes - Use of single student desks with alternative using seating arrangements, decreasing seatings to maintain physical distance the student strength per classroom, using morning and evening shifts,

AWARENESS DRIVE

Yes - Spreading awareness among students through posters and signages at junctions.

Yes - Posters and signages at different locations

QUARANTINE ROOM

Yes

Yes

Source : (DDMA guidelines, Authors)

Based on the above table, It can be inferred that both DPS and SKV are following DDMA guidelines in order to reopen schools with utmost safety. DPS is incorporating various other strategies including touchless lifts, single desk seatings, and circulation markings on floors to make it even safer for students. Although SKV is having alternate day schooling, with discussions with school staff and an online survey, it was found that it is just meeting the maximum student occupancy requirement (50%) while DPS is maintaining 40% student occupancy. SKV is also incorporating strategies such as outdoor classes after a certain amount of time to avoid infection.

7.0 Survey and Discussions In the online survey conducted for this study, a total of 80 responses were recorded from senior secondary students (9th -12th standard) enrolled in schools in Delhi. Out of these, 42% of respondents are in 12th, 41% are in 10th, 12% are in 11th, and only 3% are in 9th standard. 72% of respondents’ schools had natural ventilation while 27% had hybrid ventilation. The responses received are majorly from Lancer’s Convent, Laurel High, and Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya schools.

The main objectives of the survey were as follows: 1. To understand the effects of online classes on students' overall well-being.

2. To understand and assess the school’s COVID response.

3. To understand the problems and opportunities with natural ventilation in a school building.

4. Perception of IAQ and natural ventilation.

7.1 Questionnaire on students overall well-being 7.1.1 Physical well being Out of all the respondents, almost 71% of the students complained of headaches and eye strain. A considerable number of students also reflected increased weight (45.9%) and backache (43.6%).

7.1.2 Mental well being Almost 66% of the students indicated social disconnection during the lockdown. 62% of them

showed a lack of motivation during that phase and 44% of the students noted a rise in stress levels during the pandemic.

The data indicates the degrading effects of online education on the overall well-being of students. With the decrease in physical activities and the degree of social disconnect, students experienced a lack of motivation, higher levels of stress, anxiety followed by fatigue, weight gain, and eyestrain.

Additionally, the average screen time per day during the pandemic is 3.97 hours for students whereas according to the 24-Hour Movement Guidelines, teens should only get two hours of screen time a day.

7.2 Questionnaire on students overall learning experience About 73.2% of the students experienced a degradation in their learning experience and 45.4% in academic performance. About 81.1% experienced degrading peer learning and competition among students.

7.3 Questionnaire on the quality of thermal comfort Methodology: ● Respondent’s relative location in the classroom concerning any openings was recorded. ● The qualitative analysis is evaluated based on Fanger’s PMV Scale. ● Qualitative data from the PMV Scale was correlated with the Respondent’s respective

location from the openings.

54.9% of the Respondents surveyed were seated away from the window, while 31.4% of them were seated adjacent to it, with the rest 13.7% of respondents being seated in the corner furthest from the windows.

It was found that respondents sitting adjacent to windows had a higher level of thermal discomfort during the summer and winter seasons in contrast to respondents seated elsewhere away from windows who had a more ‘neutral’ level of comfort on the PMV scale.

During summer, 54.5% of the total respondents experienced some kind of thermal discomfort in the early morning classes while the number of respondents experiencing discomfort increased by 70.9% in afternoon classes. During Winters, 45.4% experienced discomfort in early morning classes while 47.2% experienced discomfort in afternoon classes.

7.4 Window opening/closing patterns followed in classrooms 7.4.1 Reasons for keeping the windows open during school hours

The majority of the students (83%) kept the windows open to let in the fresh air. 38.2% of them kept them open because of COVID guidelines. 34.5% of the students kept them open to regulate the indoor temperature while 13.7% opened the windows to tackle room odors.

7.4.2 Reasons for keeping the windows closed during school hours The data indicate that at present, where 40% of the surveyed students rated indoor thermal comfort levels as neutral, 39.00% rated that temperature regulation methods and ventilation

strategies employed in the classroom fall short of providing a comfortable indoor environment.

7.4.3 Open classroom preference by the student The data indicates that 68.5% of students are comfortable taking classes in open and semi-open spaces. Although, the main concern of 31.5% of participants who are not comfortable with open classes, was outside noise, distractions, and weather conditions. Therefore, if we can cater to these problems, we can create more safe learning spaces.

8.0 Recommendations Based on all the combined inferences and results, a list of design, retrofitting, and school management suggestions for both, new school designs and existing schools is derived. However, due to the time restraint for the study, the efficiency of these suggestions may need to be further established with more studies.

8.1 Design recommendations 8.1.1 Planning a. Design a narrow school building/classroom with a maximum width of 7650mm to naturally ventilate the building. b. Design irregular building shapes as they have large variations in pressure, hence can enhance natural ventilation. c. Design singly loaded corridors with larger openings on both sides of the classroom for inlet and outlet of air. d. Design courtyard typology for schools wherever possible to ensure ventilation by stack effect in all classrooms.

8.1.2 Arrangement of classrooms a. While designing doubly loaded corridors, stagger the arrangement of classrooms, and build wind tunnels in between 2 consecutive classrooms to bring in the wind to naturally ventilate all the classrooms and circulation areas.

8.1.3 Physical distancing a. Design more open classrooms with green outdoor spaces having a combination of open and semi-open areas so that the air can easily flow in enclosed spaces and students can use outdoor spaces whenever necessary.

8.2 Retrofitting recommendations 8.2.1 Ventilation a. Increase the area of operable windows to have minimum required rate of ventilation as per 12 ACH.

b. Incorporate staggered ventilators to allow for natural ventilation while also blocking out the noise. c. For single-sided ventilation, incorporate wing walls outside windows to enhance the ventilation. d. Add solar chimneys in conjunction with any of the given passive strategies to maximize ventilation. e. Incorporate an automatic window control system and schedule window openings after 2 class hours for approximately 15 mins to bring down the CO2 concentration levels below the threshold level. f. Incorporate nocturnal cooling (night flushing) by adopting a method of opening windows during the night. g. Plant green plants outside the classroom windows below sill level to allow fresh clean air to enter into the space while also maintaining good IAQ.

8.3 Building Management recommendations 8.3.1 Social Interaction and Circulation a) Increase the number of entry-exit points to at least 2. Identify different student and staff entrances. b) Limit crowding at entrances by keeping at least a 30 minute time difference between arrival/departure times for different classes. Allow school functions to work in different shifts. c) Incorporate 2-way circulation in corridors. Mark circulation arrows in all corridors and entry-exit areas.\ d) Increase the number of breaks (15 min. breaks after every 2 class hours) to decrease prolonged seating in one space.

8.3.2 Physical Distancing a) Use single-student seating desks followed by alternative seating arrangements. b) Stagger and fix the student furniture in place maintaining a physical distance of 1830m (6 feet) between students.

8.3.3 Ventilation a) Use fans with open windows to maximize dilution ventilation (using fans with closed windows only recirculates the air which is not desirable in the COVID-19 scenario). b) During extreme winters or extreme summers, incorporate ventilation during intervals. c) For ventilating in classrooms during intervals, schedule opening of windows after every 2 class hours for approximately 15 mins. The teacher present in class can be

given this duty to ensure all the classrooms can naturally ventilate during the interval.

8.3.4 Hygiene a) Incorporate the use of touchless technology on entrance doors, bathroom fixtures, lifts, sanitizer dispensers, etc. b) Incorporate the use of step ‘n’ pull handles for doors, bathroom fixtures, sanitizer dispensers, etc. c) Keep disposable hand towels and disinfectant napkins in every classroom so that students can disinfect their desks before use.

9.0 Conclusion The pandemic has altered our way of life in more than one way and adapting to this new normal may be the only way forward. While resuming physical classes still carries a certain amount of risk since the pandemic is not yet over, there are ways in which buildings can be made safer, if not completely resilient against the virus. There is more than one dimension to this problem and consequently, the solution has to be all-encompassing too. Controlling the spread of the virus requires awareness on the subject and proper safety measures whereas to counter the undesirable impacts of these measures one needs to innovate while reverting back to natural ventilation.

10.0 Author contributions and acknowledgments We would like to express our gratitude to our seminar coordinator team, Prof. (Dr.) Ranjana Mittal, Ar. Gunjan Jain and Ar. Priyanka Kochhar, for their professional guidance and periodic reviews throughout the semester. A special thanks to our guide Ar. Gunjan Jain for her valuable expertise and guidance throughout the research. We appreciate the valuable feedback and experiences shared by Ar. Raja Singh, Ar. Gaurav Shorey, and Ar. Deependra Prashad, which helped us improve our research in innumerable ways.

We also express our gratitude to DPS school, Mathura Road, Delhi. Our research would have been incomplete without their cooperation and willingness to participate in our research. Lastly, we would like to thank all the interviewees and participants in this research for cooperating with us.

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