Stupid Question - but do you consider air-conditioning in a school to be important??

[JLeigh29]

I've just gone on maternity leave after working as a teacher in an area with high humidity and 35 degree plus temps. The first 5 years I spent in a class without air con and noticed my students were often listless and unable to concentrate, not to mention numerous nose bleeds and even vomiting from heat stress (I did too when I first started).

I think that children concentrate better in an air-conditioned environment. Having said that, nothing rates more highly for me than quality teachers.

How old are the buildings? New classrooms are being designed to take advantage of breezes and with better materials that don't heat up so much, so that would be a factor too.

[LoveKnowsNoBounds]

It is a brand new building, so it surprised me even more when there wasn't any air conditioning. The air in the top rooms felt humid and stagnant. Though I was happy with most other factors there, there were a couple of older teachers which I have heard from some can be a negative as younger teachers are generally more enthusiastic? The principal seemed great but the AP didn't seem to happy to be there, hard to tell when you don't know them and going off first impressions.

[~clover~]

Though I was happy with most other factors there, there were a couple of older teachers which I have heard from some can be a negative as younger teachers are generally more enthusiastic? The principal seemed great but the AP didn't seem to happy to be there, hard to tell when you don't know them and going off first impressions.

I wouldn't go by age hun. The principle here is a grandmother in her 60's & is more enthusiastic & fun than DD2's 25ish year old infants teacher. Its the personality, not the age. DD1's kindy teacher was also in her 60's & a great teacher.
I've found alot of the younger ones (around my age) can be quite stuck up at times. Not sure if they actually are or its just me, but they just don't seem as fun either. There is a male teacher at the girls school who the kids are loving in his early 20's, but the others the same age I know of they don't relate to as well.

[Bathsheba]

I tend to agree with clover regarding age based generalisations. At the schools where i have worked and sent my children the older teachers have been excellent. Full of enthusiasm and generally more knowledgable and tolerant of children with special challenges. Some of the younger ones who hadn't had children themselves didn't really understand how homelife impacts on a child's learning... the fact that Mum might be pregnant and too tired to help do the reader every night just an example. So yes, it's more about teachers as individuals rather than age. I have also known young teachers from large families to be very understanding about hectic home lives too for example.

[Kazbah]

In Brissie our school didn't have aircon - but then again most of the houses don't. If you're acclimatised to aircon all the time, then sending a kid to school without aircon is difficult for the kid.

Also depends on the design of the school, IYKWIM? My Brissie school (private) was built by convicts, and the architecture was wide verandahs so the sun didn't hit windows, and the breeze could flow through. But without that design it would have been unbearable - I find that buildings down here in Melbourne are hotter than in Brissie cause there's no verandahs, no eaves, no cross-breezes ...

[Bathsheba]

So true Kazbah! People think Melbourne is cool pretty much all year... it is so NOT! Not enough deep verandahs... too many box like buildings...crazy. That's why i love old architecture... the coolest home i have lived in in melbourne was a 100yo terrace house in inner melbourne... thick stone walls to keep out the heat of summer... no a/c but walking inside onto the cool marble tiled foyer was such a relief on a hot day.

[LoveKnowsNoBounds]

I will take on the age comment. I'm glad to hear that older teachers can be fun and enthusiastic. Has anyone found air-con to be a negative? I.e. child getting sick from being too cold?

[jesses_girl]

Im pretty sure ALL of the schools in townsville have air conditioning, it just gets too humid here. I didnt have air conditioning for half of primary school and it was hell! But i did learn, i didnt know any diferent, but i did realize that when ac was first being bought into my school and only a couple of building had it, i couldnt concentrate in the non ac room, all i was thinking about was going into ac. I think it depends on where you live, here in townsville i couldnt send my kids to school with no ac in summer, but if it wasnt as humid i dont think i would have a problem.