Acoustical environment evaluation of Joint Classrooms for elementary schools in Taiwan

As open education is the future education mainstream, Joint Classrooms are found in new schools or rebuilt old schoolhouses in Taiwan. However, there have been serious problems in acoustic environment in the Joint Classrooms in the 6 years since the first appearance in 1999. There are no substantial evaluations or improvement suggestions available now. As a result, the acoustic environments of Joint Classrooms in Taiwan were analyzed, via on-site measurements and questionnaires, to understand the current situation of acoustic environment and compare the differences between traditional and Joint Classrooms. This study proposed an Evaluation Model of Acoustic Environment in Classrooms to evaluate the environmental quality of elementary schools with actual measurements and questionnaires. It was found that the acoustic environment of these elementary schools is not adequate. With open windows, the noise levels at both Joint Classrooms and traditional classrooms are 20 dB (A) above the standard. The reverberation time in traditional classrooms is better, while in Joint Classrooms it tends to be longer.