Condition of public school facilities

Question:
What are the current conditions of America's public school facilities?

Response:
Public school principals were asked to describe the extent to which various environmental factors interfered with classroom instruction. A majority of schools, 56 percent, reported that various environmental factors, taken together, did not interfere at all with the delivery of instruction in permanent buildings, while the remainder reported at least some interference: 33 percent reported minor interference, 9 percent reported moderate interference, while only 1 percent reported major interference.

• In permanent buildings, heating and air conditioning were the most frequently reported interferences, with less than half of schools reporting that air conditioning did not interfere at all with instruction. Air conditioning interfered to a moderate or major extent in permanent buildings in 16 percent of schools; heating interfered to a moderate or major extent in 13 percent of schools. Schools reported less severe interference from heating and air conditioning in portable buildings, with 11 percent of schools reporting moderate to major interference from air conditioning, and 9 percent reporting the same from heating.

• In portable buildings, acoustics or noise control was reported to be a moderate or major problem in 18 percent of schools, compared to 12 percent for permanent buildings.

• The size or configuration of rooms was reported as moderate or major interference in portable buildings by 16 percent of schools. The interference was less severe in permanent buildings, with 13 percent of schools reporting moderate or major interference.

• Portable buildings had more severe interference from the physical condition of ceilings, floors, walls windows and doors, with 14 percent of schools reporting moderate to major interference. Interference in permanent buildings at the moderate to major level was reported by 11 percent of schools.

• Portable buildings also had more severe interference from ventilation and indoor air quality than permanent buildings. Ventilation in portable buildings was a moderate to major problem in 14 percent of school; 11 percent of schools had moderate to major interference from ventilation in permanent buildings. Indoor air quality interfered with instruction to a moderate or major extent in portable classrooms in 12 percent of schools; permanent buildings had moderate to major interference from indoor air quality in 10 percent of schools.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). Public School Principals Report on Their School Facilities: Fall 2005 (NCES 2007-007).

Percentage distribution of public elementary and secondary schools indicating the extent to which various environmental factors interfered with the ability of the school to deliver instruction in school buildings, by type of building: Fall 2005
Environmental factor, by type of building	Not at all	Minor extent	Moderate extent	Major extent	Not applicable
Permanent buildings
All factors, taken together	56	33	9	1	---
Artificial lighting	76	18	5	1	---
Natural lighting	73	18	5	1	3
Heating	63	24	10	3	1
Air conditioning	46	21	10	6	17
Ventilation	66	22	8	3	---
Indoor air quality	69	21	7	3	---
Acoustics or noise control	61	27	9	3	---
Physical condition of ceilings, floors, walls, windows, doors	71	19	8	3	---
Size or configuration of rooms	64	23	9	4	---
Portable buildings
All factors, taken together	55	30	13	2	---
Artificial lighting	68	25	5	3	---
Natural lighting	62	26	7	1	4
Heating	66	23	7	2	1
Air conditioning	63	22	7	4	3
Ventilation	62	24	11	3	---
Indoor air quality	62	26	10	2	---
Acoustics or noise control	56	26	14	4	---
Physical condition of ceilings, floors, walls, windows, doors	60	26	11	3	---
Size or configuration of rooms	58	26	11	5	---

--- Not available.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). Public School Principals Report on Their School Facilities: Fall 2005 (NCES 2007-007).

Related Tables and Figures:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2012, Digest of Education Statistics 2011, Table 107. Percentage of public schools with permanent and portable (temporary) buildings and with environmental factors that interfere with instruction in classrooms, by selected school characteristics, type of factor, and extent of interference: 2005
  

Other Resources:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2006, An Examination of the Conditions of School Facilities Attended by 10th-Grade Students in 2002