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Welcome to the Health & Lifestyle report from VOALearning English.
It is not a secret that spending time outdoors is good forour health. The more we learn about the benefits ofbeing in nature, the more sense it makes to get outside.
This could be especially important for school children.
New research suggests that kids may learn betterwhen they are surrounded by greener spaces. Greenspaces are spaces filled with vegetation – like trees,flowers and other plants.
But these days, outdoor time is competing for a child’sattention with indoor activities. Children may find itdifficult to resist computers, television and electronicgames.
So, in many parts of the world children are spendingless and less time outdoors. All this indoor activity canhurt a child’s physical and mental health.
But can it affect how well they do in school?Researchers in Barcelona, Spain and in the UnitedStates are trying to answer that question.
The study of the enviroment on health
Doctor Payam Dadvand works at the Centre for Research andEnvironmental Epidemiology in Barcelona. He and his team study how theenvironment affects health. The researchers wrote that, “Approximately onehalf of the world population lives in cities, and it is projected that by 2030,three of every five persons will live in urban areas worldwide.”
Dr. Dadvand and his team studied more than 2,600 children from 36 schoolsin the city. The kids were seven to 10 years old. The researchers usedinformation from satellites to learn how much green space surrounded eachschool.
Over one year, the children took computerized tests four times. The testsmeasured memory and attention span.
The researchers then created mathematical models to compare the amount ofgreen spaces around the schools with the test scores.
The researchers found that the children with higher contact with green spacehad better ability to memorize. They were also more attentive. The teambelieves that good air quality is the main reason for the results. More treesmeans less air pollution.
Scientist Jordi Sunyer also worked on the study. Mr. Sunyer says thatschools surrounded by greenery had less air pollution in the classrooms. So, it seems it’s not just outdoor time that is good for children but outdoor timesurrounded by clean air.
“What these data are telling us is that a way to manage air pollution in thecities is increasing vegetation in the schools.”
However, some experts question the use of satelliteimages to determine the amount of green space.
Satellite images would not show if the green spaces areactually useable, such as playgrounds and parks. Also,satellite images would not show if children actuallycome into contact with the green spaces.
Other experts say this study does not consider otherfactors that may play a part in a child’s learningenvironment.
The Massachusetts study
But the findings of the Barcelona study seem to support a six-year study onelementary schools in the U.S. state of Massachusetts.
Researchers there studied students at 905 schools from 2006 to 2012. Theyfound that students in schools that had more green spaces scored higher onstandardized testing in English and math.
The researchers in the Massachusetts study used more factors than theBarcelona study — factors such as race, gender, English as a secondlanguage, parent income, student-teacher ratio and school attendance.
The question of how green spaces affect learning is a new one.
Lisa Freund is an expert in child psychology for the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. She says more studies are needed to learn why vegetation in and around schools improves mental ability.
“There‘s something about being out in nature that can be very supportive of the human. But do we need the actual greenery around us? Do we just need pictures? We don‘t know.”
The Barcelona researchers published their study in the journal Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences. The Massachusetts researchers are fromseveral universities in the United States and Taiwan. Their research can befound in PLOS ONE.
And that’s the Health & Lifestyle report from VOA Learning English.
I’m Anna Matteo.
Maia Pujara reported this story for VOA News from Washington, D.C. Anna Matteo adapted it for Learning English and added additional information about the Massachusetts study. Caty Weaver was the editor.
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Words in This Story
vegetation – n. plants in general : plants that cover a particular area
environmental epidemiology – a field of science concerned with the discovery of how environmental exposures add to or protect against injuries,sicknesses, developmental conditions, disabilities, and death
data – n. facts and statistics collected together for reference or analysis
attention span – n. the length of time during which someone is able to think about or remain interested in something
factor – n. something that helps produce or influence a result : one of the things that cause something to happen
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