RRL

School buildings are one of the most important facilities in a community given that
students spend about 25% of their time inside classrooms. Moreover, a school usually has a
considerably higher occupancy rate than any other type of building. (Katic D, Krstic H., Marenjak
S., 2021). Ensuring access to quality education in a safe environment for all children worldwide is
the fourth of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). ( Sustainable Development Goals,
department of economic and social affairs, United Nations, 2015)

Structural safety of school infrastructure against natural and manmade hazards is

prerequisite to ensure a safe environment for children's learning activities. Thus, the structural
safety of school infrastructure remains a high priority on the agenda of the UN Office for
Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), and it is reflected in the structure of the recently revised
Comprehensive School Safety (CSS) framework. (Global Alliance for Disaster Risk Reduction and
Resilience in the Education Sector (2022)

Key targets of the Sendai Framework related to the education sector are: i) minimize the
deaths and injuries on schools due to hazard impacts; ii) substantially reduce the number of
school children affected by disaster impacts; iii) reduce hazard related investment losses in
education sector; iv) minimize the loss of school days due to hazard impacts. Moreover, school
infrastructure and associated contents exposed to natural hazards, collectively sum up to an
asset value of $13.6 trillion, representing the scale of the potential economic losses to
educational systems [4], without including the cultural and social losses associated to it. (The
World Bank, Global library of school infrastructure (GLOSI), global program for safer schools
(GPSS), 2022)

An effective school facility is responsive to the changing programs of educational

delivery, and at a minimum should provide a physical environment that is comfortable, safe,
secure, accessible, well illuminated, well ventilated, and aesthetically pleasing. The school
facility consists of not only the physical structure and the variety of building systems, such as
mechanical, plumbing, electrical and power, telecommunications, security, and fire suppression
systems. The facility also includes furnishings, materials and supplies, equipment and
information technology, as well as various aspects of the building grounds, namely, athletic
fields, playgrounds, areas for outdoor learning, and vehicular access and parking.

The school facility is much more than a passive container of the educational process: it
is, rather, an integral component of the conditions of learning. The layout and design of a facility
contributes to the place experience of students, educators, and community members.
Depending on the quality of its design and management, the facility can contribute to a sense of
ownership, safety and security, personalization and control, privacy as well as sociality, and
spaciousness or crowdedness. When planning, designing, or managing the school facility, these
facets of place experience should, when possible, be taken into consideration. (Rickets D.,
October 06, 2019 )

3 Characteristics of Great School Buildings

1. Space
 Space is both practical and psychological. Small spaces can feel cramped,
claustrophobic, unwelcoming. They also restrict how many educational materials can be stored
within easy reach of teachers and students. Research has shown that rooms with low ceilings
are linked to increased cortisol levels, an indication that cramped classrooms lead to stressed
students.

2. Natural Light

Daylight is an essential element of the lighting of any room, and classrooms are no
exception. Though artificial light is needed to supplement natural light sources, good building
design maximizes available light from the sun as the main light source. We all know the glum
feeling of being in a room with no windows. According to studies at The University of
Mississippi, students seem to learn better in brightly lit rooms

3. Temperature & Air Quality

Student health is affected by pollutants in the air. The impact will be even worse for
children who suffer from asthma, which could be more than 10% of students. For this reason
regulations for air quality in classrooms demand that CO2 levels do not exceed a daily average of
1500ppm.

The headcount to floorspace ratio should also be considered here. Larger rooms have an
advantage when it comes to air quality, especially those with large windows and skylights.
Mechanical ventilation is added, and CO₂ sensors control the level of air conditioning needed to
ensure ideal learning conditions. (Smith R. , March 19, 2020)

The lack of school infrastructure and facilities remains the “most pressing issue“ being
faced by the country’s education sector, Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte
said on Monday, Jan. 30. Speaking during her presentation of the Basic Education Report (BER)
2023, Duterte stressed the need to build and repair schools so that the growing number of
Filipino learners nationwide will be accommodated. Citing the Department of Education’s
(DepEd) latest data, she revealed only 104,536 out of the 327,851 school buildings in the
Philippines are in “good condition.” Furthermore, there are also 100,072 schools that need
minor repairs, 89,252 that require major repairs, and 21,727 that are set for condemnation.
(Antonio R., January 20, 2023, 12:19 A.M.)

Over the years, limited school facilities have been a perennial pain for teachers and
learners as the number of classrooms has failed to keep up with increasing enrollment in public
schools. For the school year 2022 - 2023, around 28 million students enrolled in public schools –
nearly a million more than the 27.2 million that enrolled the previous year. In September,
Duterte ordered all schools to shift to face-to-face learning by November despite acknowledging
the limited classrooms that can accommodate all students. Nearly 47,400 out of 47,612 public
schools or 99.5% are implementing in-person classes as of January, based on DepEd’s latest
data. Most Filipinos believe that the lack of classrooms is DepEd's most pressing problem,
according to a Pulse Asia survey commissioned by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian. More than half or
52% of the 1,200 respondents said that the lack of classrooms should be immediately addressed
by DepEd, followed by inadequate school materials and a lack of teachers. (Chi C., January
30,2023, 6:39 P.M.)

From the 2,833 target buildings of 2014-2017, at least 1,353 were completed while
1,480 are still under or have yet to start construction. Geraloy Palao-ay, Department of
Education–Cordillera information officer, said there is a huge budget allotted for the
construction of school buildings, however, the lack of bidders and impotence of contractors
were cited as major problem behind the backlog. The Department of Public Works and Highways
(DPWH) was allotted P5.1 billion for the construction of school buildings. Palao-ay added in 2014
and 2015, data shows almost all provinces have 100 percent completion rate for school
buildings. For 2017, only 3.73 percent of completed schools were recorded in Abra and 15.24
percent in Ifugao. Prior to the school opening, Balik Eskwela teams from the regional office
conducted field monitoring and assess issues and concerns in different divisions. The lack of
classrooms was cited as the top problem recorded for Baguio City and La Trinidad, Benguet. “We
have to admit it is the problem we face every year. We cannot keep pace with the increase of
population. After senior high school, many from other municipalities consider La Trinidad with
universities and colleges accessible,” added Paloa-ay. Palo-ay added other schools have used
makeshift classrooms. For school year 2018-2019, tentative enrollment in public and private
schools for the elementary and secondary schools in the region is set to reach 422,973.
(Alomondo L., June 10, 2018, 5:48 P.M.)

The main barriers to the effective recovery of existing school buildings are the lack of a
coherent and comprehensive methodology to address the process and an ever limited
intervention budget. To overcome this situation, it is necessary to structure the decision-making
process, as well as prioritize the choice of interventions according to a multi-stage matrix that is
able to guide interventions and satisfy the different stake-holders involved during the process.
Likewise, it will be equally important to support the creation of new financial instruments and
sources of funding. It is evident that it is not possible to evaluate only the aspect of costs as a
driver for decision-making. During the last few years, the improvement of the building’s energy
efficiency has been a very important lever not only to raise funds but also to stimulate the
renovation of existing school buildings. The reason for this choice lies in the immediate
perception of the economic return due to the sudden reduction in consumption, which
translates into lower maintenance and operating costs for the municipal administration. In some
cases, some interventions were the occasion to focus also on the improvement of the building
seismic performance, which sometimes is underestimated but that in particular areas can
strongly affect the safety of the people work in and studying in these spaces. On the other hand,
new teaching and learning methods require a modified use of the school spaces, able to
accommodate of daily change The main barriers to the effective recovery of existing school
buildings are the lack of a coherent and comprehensive methodology to address the process
and an ever limited intervention budget. To overcome this situation, it is necessary to structure
the decision-making process, as well as prioritize the choice of interventions according to a
multi-stage matrix that is able to guide interventions and satisfy the different stakeholders
involved during the process. Likewise, it will be equally important to support the creation of new
financial instruments and sources of funding. It is evident that it is not possible to evaluate only
the aspect of costs as a driver for decision-making. During the last few years, the improvement
of the building’s energy efficiency has been a very important lever not only to raise funds but
also to stimulate the renovation of existing school buildings. The reason for this choice lies in the
immediate perception of the economic return due to the sudden reduction in consumption,
which translates into lower maintenance and operating costs for the municipal administration.
In some cases, some interventions were the occasion to focus also on the improvement of the
building seismic performance, which sometimes is underestimated but that in particular areas
can strongly affect the safety of the people work in and studying in these spaces. On the other
hand,new teaching and learning methods require a modified use of the school spaces, able to
accommodate of daily change reaching the maximum flexibility for teaching and learning
activities. At the same time, this need of flexibility should relate to added building envelope and
systems capabilities, for example, by the use of natural ventilation and day lighting or the use of
low-temperature heating systems, increasing the need of monitoring indoor quantities and
fostering a continuous commissioning approach. Further development of the research will focus
on new functional requirements, which combine energy-related as well as functional, and
maintenance measures.reaching the maximum flexibility for teaching and learning activities. At
the same time, this need of flexibility should relate to added building envelope and systems
capabilities, for example, by the use of natural ventilation and day lighting or the use of low-
temperature heating systems, increasing the need of monitoring indoor quantities and fostering
a continuous commissioning approach. Further development of the research will focus on new
functional requirements,which combine energy-related as well as functional, and maintenance
measures.(Dela Torre S., Bochiarelli M., Et. Al, 2020)
REFERENCES WRITTEN IN ORDER:

Title: Energy Performance of School Buildings by Construction Periods in Federation of Bosnia

and Herzegovina (Source: https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/11/2/42)

Sustainable Development Goals, department of economic and social affairs, United Nations,
2015 (https://sdgs.un.org/goals)

Global Alliance for Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience in the Education Sector (2022)
(https://www.undrr.org/publication/sendai-framework-disaster-risk-reduction-2015-2030

(The World Bank, Global library of school infrastructure (GLOSI), global program for safer
schools (GPSS), 2022) (https://gpss.worldbank.org/en/glosi)

(Rickets D., October 06, 2019 ) (https://abcdeducation.weebly.com/poor-facilities-in-public-

schools.html) (Retrieved From : Weebly.com ////Retrieved on: September 30, 2023)

(Smith R. , March 19, 2020) (https://modulek.co.uk/characteristics-of-good-school-classrooms-

with-examples-from-uk-school-buildings/#:~:text=Good%20school%20buildings%20put
%20students,classrooms%20fail%20to%20facilitate%20learning. Retrieved on: November 30,
2023

(Antonio R., January 20, 2023, 12:19 A.M.) (Retrieved from: Manila Bulletin
https://mb.com.ph/2023/1/30/vp-duterte-bares-lack-of-school-facilities-most-pressing-issue-in-
ph-education Retrieved on: September 30, 2023

Chi C., January 30,2023, 6:39 P.M.) Retrieved From: Philstar.com

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2023/01/30/2241344/state-education-two-out-three-
school-buildings-need-repairs Retrieved on: September 30, 2023

(Alomondo L., June 10, 2018, 5:48 P.M.) Retrieved from: Sunstar.Com.ph
https://www.sunstar.com.ph/baguio/local-news/incomplete-schools-still-hound-cordillera

Retrieved on: September 30,2023

(Dela Torre S., Bochiarelli M., Et. Al, 2020) Title: Buildings for Education , A Multidisciplinary
Overview of the Design of Buildings. https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/23056