Psychosocial factors and indoor environmental quality in respiratory symptom reports of pupils: a cross-sectional study in Finnish schools

ObjectivesPoor indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in schools is related to higher respiratory symptoms of pupils, but little is known about the importance of other factors. This study examined the associations between different psychosocial factors and other pupils’ individual and allergic characteristics, beyond school IEQ, and reporting of respiratory symptoms in pupil-administered and parent-administered questionnaires.SettingAll primary and secondary schools in two areas of Helsinki, Finland.ParticipantsPrimary school pupils (grade 3–6, n=8775, 99 school buildings) and secondary school pupils (grade 7–9, n=3410, 30 school buildings) reported their respiratory symptoms, as well as psychosocial factors and individual characteristics. Parents of primary school pupils (grade 1–6, n=3540, 88 school buildings) also filled in questionnaires, but the response rate was low (20% in 2017 and 13% in 2018).Main outcome measureRespiratory symptoms were reported in relation to the school environment and in general (without such relation) by pupils or parents.ResultsWorry about IEQ and low school satisfaction, and asthma and hay fever were related to higher reporting of respiratory symptoms in three samples. The variance between schools in respiratory symptoms was low (intraclass correlation=0.6%–2.4%). Psychosocial factors, especially worry about school’s IEQ, explained more of the variance between schools in symptoms than IEQ among secondary school pupils and parents, but not among primary school pupils for symptoms in general. Worry about IEQ also modified the associations between IEQ and respiratory symptoms, but only in parental reports.ConclusionIn addition to IEQ, psychosocial factors and pupils’ individual and allergic characteristics were related to higher reporting of respiratory symptoms in all three samples. Psychosocial factors explained more variance between schools than IEQ, although it was 2.4% at most. Other factors beyond IEQ should be considered when interpreting symptom reporting in indoor air questionnaires.

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Associations between indoor environmental quality in schools and symptom reporting in pupil-administered questionnaires

Environmental Health ◽

10.1186/s12940-019-0555-6 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Kateryna Savelieva ◽

Tero Marttila ◽

Jussi Lampi ◽

Sari Ung-Lanki ◽

Marko Elovainio ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Secondary School ◽

Secondary Schools ◽

Primary School ◽

Environmental Quality ◽

School Environment ◽

Summary Score ◽

Symptom Reporting ◽

School Buildings ◽

Indoor Environmental Quality ◽

Primary School Pupils

Abstract Background The associations between indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in homes and symptom reporting of children have been extensively studied, but only few large-scale studies have been done in schools. We examined associations between expert-assessed IEQ in schools and pupils’ reporting of different symptoms, and whether associations were stronger if participants relate symptoms to the school environment. Methods The questionnaire survey was done in all primary and secondary schools in two areas of Helsinki, Finland. Primary school pupils (grade 3–6, n = 8775, 99 school-buildings) and secondary school pupils (grade 7–9, n = 3410, 30 school-buildings) reported their symptoms. Symptoms were combined into respiratory, lower respiratory, eye, skin, and general symptom groups. Surveys were also done among the parents of the primary school pupils (grade 1–6, n = 3540, 88 school buildings), but results are reported only in the supplement due to the low response rate (20% in 2017 and 13% in 2018). The associations between IEQ and symptoms were analyzed using multilevel logistic regression analysis. Results Several of the IEQ indicators were highly correlated and indicators were therefore mainly analyzed by combining them into a summary score and into latent classes. Dose-response associations were found between IEQ problems and higher reporting of respiratory and general symptoms among both primary and secondary school pupils. Some associations were also observed with lower respiratory and skin symptoms, but not with eye symptoms. The associations were somewhat stronger with symptoms related to the school environment compared to symptoms reported without such relation: for a unit change in IEQ summary score and respiratory symptoms in primary schools, odds ratios were 1.07 (95% CI 1.02–1.06) and 1.04 (95% CI 1.04–1.10), and in secondary schools 1.09 (95% CI 1.01–1.09) and 1.05 (95% CI 1.02–1.17), respectively. Conclusions Expert-assessed IEQ problems in schools were associated with increased reporting of especially respiratory and general symptoms. The associations were only somewhat stronger in magnitude for symptoms reported in relation to the school environment compared to symptoms reported without such relation.

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The Effect of Interactional Adjustments on the Overall Comprehension of Spoken Texts: A Case Study

JALT Journal - JALT Journal 24.1 ◽

10.37546/jaltjj27.2-3 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 27 (2) ◽

pp. 187

Author(s):

Marcos Peñate ◽

Geraldine Boylan

Keyword(s):

Secondary School ◽

Foreign Language ◽

Primary School ◽

Target Language ◽

Primary School Pupils ◽

Primary And Secondary School ◽

Secondary School Pupils

One of the basic conditions required for pupils to learn a foreign language is that their teachers must speak to them in the target language—and always at a level which is understandable to them. The effectiveness of interactional adjustments such as repetitions, comprehension checks, and nonlinguistic aspects used by a teacher to help primary and secondary school pupils with their general understanding of spoken texts delivered in English is analysed in this article. Once the effectiveness of such adjustments is confirmed, a comparison is made between the teacher’s use of adjustments when teaching a group of 10-year-old primary school pupils and when teaching a group of 17-year-old secondary school pupils. 外国語指導の重要な要件の一つとして、当該外国語を指導言語とし、しかもそれを学習者が理解できるレベルで使わなければならないということが挙げられる。そのために教員は学習者とのやり取りの最中、理解の確認、繰り返し、あるいは非言語行動により絶えず調整を行わなければならない。このような調整がどのくらい効果があるのかを、小学校、中学校の授業を観察し分析した。さらに10歳の小学生対象の授業、17歳の中学生対象の授業でどのように違うかをあわせて考察した。

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Energy consumption, self-reported teachers’ actions and children's perceived indoor environmental quality of nine primary school buildings in the Netherlands

Energy and Buildings ◽

10.1016/j.enbuild.2021.110735 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 235 ◽

pp. 110735

Author(s):

Dadi Zhang ◽

Philomena M. Bluyssen

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

The Netherlands ◽

Primary School ◽

Environmental Quality ◽

School Buildings ◽

Indoor Environmental Quality

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Influence of problematic child-teacher relationships on future psychiatric disorder: population survey with 3-year follow-up

The British Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1192/bjp.bp.112.120741 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 202 (5) ◽

pp. 336-341 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

lain A. Lang ◽

Ruth Marlow ◽

Robert Goodman ◽

Howard Meltzer ◽

Tamsin Ford

Keyword(s):

Secondary School ◽

Psychiatric Disorder ◽

Primary School ◽

Secondary Analysis ◽

Population Based ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Primary School Pupils ◽

Secondary School Pupils

BackgroundTeacher-pupil relationships have been found to mediate behavioural, social and psychological outcomes for children at different ages according to teacher and child report but most studies have been small.AimsTo explore later psychiatric disorder among children with problematic teacher-pupil relationships.MethodSecondary analysis of a population-based cross-sectional survey of children aged 5-16 with a 3-year follow-up.ResultsOf the 3799 primary-school pupils assessed, 2.5% of parents reported problematic teacher-pupil relationships; for secondary-school pupils (n=3817) this rose to 6.6%. Among secondary-school pupils, even when children with psychiatric disorder at baseline were excluded and we adjusted for baseline psychopathology score, problematic teacher-pupil relationships were statistically significantly related to higher levels of psychiatric disorder at 3-year follow-up (odds ratio (OR) = 1.93, 95% CI 1.07-3.51 for any psychiatric disorder, OR=3.00, 95% CI 1.37-6.58 for conduct disorder). Results for primary-school pupils were similar but non-significant at this level of adjustment.ConclusionsThis study underlines the need to support teachers and schools to develop positive relationships with their pupils.

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A field survey on the indoor environmental quality of the UK primary school classroom

British Journal of School Nursing ◽

10.12968/bjsn.2016.11.10.492 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 (10) ◽

pp. 492-496 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Yufan Zhang ◽

Peter Barrett ◽

Fay Davies ◽

Lucinda Barrett

Keyword(s):

Primary School ◽

Environmental Quality ◽

Field Survey ◽

Indoor Environmental Quality ◽

School Classroom ◽

The Uk

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Dare to Dream: A Vignette Survey on Self-Selection in Secondary Education Track Choice

Sociological Research Online ◽

10.1177/1360780418757539 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 23 (2) ◽

pp. 354-373

Author(s):

Tamás Keller

Keyword(s):

Secondary School ◽

Primary School ◽

Grammar School ◽

Time Of Application ◽

Vignette Study ◽

The Past ◽

School Grades ◽

Self Selection ◽

Secondary Track ◽

Primary School Pupils

This article investigates applications to schools on the highest secondary track in Hungary (grammar schools). In Hungary, primary school pupils can apply to any secondary school. Pupils’ primary school grades play a crucial role only in the admissions procedure, and the exact cut-off point for admission is not known at the time of application. Pupils, however, might adjust their preferences according to their school grades and thus may not apply to schools on their preferred track. Dealing with the endogeneity of pupils’ preferences, the article applies an experimental vignette study. The respondents are primary school pupils who will shortly be applying to secondary schools. They assess the likelihood of a hypothetical pupil (described in the vignette) applying to schools on the highest track. The characteristics of the ‘vignette-person’ (such as his or her grades and preferences) are randomly allocated, and thus preferences are exogenous to grades. The results show no interaction between preferences and grades, which means that a clearly positive preference for grammar school does not compensate for poor grades. This may lead to self-selection, if pupils with a clearly positive preference for grammar school but poor primary school grades do not apply to their preferred secondary track. Since admission cut-off points are not known ahead of application, ignorance of the schools’ requirements is assumed to lie behind this self-selection. The article discusses the implications of the findings and suggests that schools should provide transparent information for applicants about the grades of pupils who have been admitted to those schools in the past.

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