Image © Ed White Photographics. Courtesy of naturally:wood

Why Wood is an Effective Material for Schools

由专筑网Cortana，小R编译

人们的许多童年经历都来源于学校。无论这些记忆是好的还是坏的，大多数儿童和青少年的大部分时间都是在教室或其他教育设施中度过的。根据IQAir的数据，“每年，孩子们平均在学校中度过1300个小时”。但是，即使世界变化如此迅速，特别是在互联网影响下获取信息如此便利，学校的设计和运作在某种程度上仍然是过时的。正如前一篇文章所指出的，理想的教育空间和教室的配置应该适应现代的教学方式，而不是传统方式那样学生坐在一排课桌前面对着老师。但重要的是，人们对教育设施的分析并没有停止，所有的表面和材料都会对使用者的健康和学习产生重大影响。

Many of our childhood experiences take place in school. Whether these memories are good or bad, most children and teenagers spend a majority of their days in classrooms or other educational facilities. According to IQAir, “every year, children spend an average of 1,300 hours in school buildings.” But even as the world changes rapidly, and the internet in particular increases the accessibility of information, the design and operation of schools remain, in a way, outdated. As noted in a previous article, ideally the typology of educational spaces and the configuration of classrooms should suit more contemporary ways of teaching and learning, rather than the traditional organization of rows of desks facing a teacher at the head. But it is important that the analysis of educational facilities does not stop there. All surfaces and materials have a significant impact on both the well-being and learning of users.


Image © krista jahnke photography. Courtesy of naturally:wood

室内环境的设计对人类健康至关重要，这一直观的结论也得到了越来越多科学证据的支持。例如，在之前的文章中，人们观察到了声学缺陷对知识获取过程的阻碍，它会干扰学生的注意力，削弱学生和老师之间的交流，另一个重要的因素是室内环境的空气质量。根据EPA（美国环境保护局）的观点，室内空气质量是健康的室内环境的重要组成部分，这一点可以帮助学校实现教育孩子的主要目标。污染的室内空气，这个问题比许多人想象的要普遍得多，它会引发呼吸道疾病，甚至会影响一个人完成任务时所需要的注意力、计算能力和记忆力。根据同一资料来源，几乎每13个学龄儿童中就有1个患有哮喘，使其成为因慢性疾病而缺课的主要原因。

The design of indoor environments is of critical importance to human health - an intuitive conclusion that is also supported by a growing body of scientific evidence. In this previous article, for example, we observed how much deficient acoustics can hinder the knowledge acquisition process, interfering with attention and worsening the communication between student and teacher. Another factor of paramount importance is the quality of air in indoor environments. According to the EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) indoor air quality is an essential component of a healthy indoor environment and can thus help schools achieve their primary goal of educating children. Polluted indoor air - a far more common problem than many may think - can trigger respiratory diseases and even impair a person's ability to perform tasks that require concentration, calculation, and memory. According to the same source, almost 1 in 13 school-age children have asthma, making it the main cause of school absenteeism due to chronic diseases.


Image © Nic Lehoux. Courtesy of Perkins + Will and naturally:wood

由于这些原因，在为一所新学校或一所学校的翻新工程指定材料时，必须考虑到对使用者生活质量有重大影响的几个变量。各种研究表明，木材的弹性和多功能性使其成为非常适合学校和其他类型建筑的材料，有助于创造安全、健康和激发潜能的环境。

木材的主要优点是一个非常难以衡量的因素。尽管人们普遍认为，材料的选择对室内环境的美观性有重大影响，但直到最近才证明，它对人的心理影响可能同样重要。British Columbia大学和FPInnovations进行的研究得出结论，建筑物内的木材在视觉上有助于降低使用者的压力水平。这篇全球研究综述总结了最新的科学研究和生物亲和设计的趋势。这使得木材的使用有益于潜在的混乱环境，不过更多的证据表明还它还具有其他优势。

For these and many other reasons, when specifying the materials for a new school or for the renovation of a school, it is essential to consider several variables that will contribute significantly to the quality of life of users. Various researches have shown that the resilience and versatility of wood make it a very suitable building material for schools and other typologies, helping create safe, healthy and inspiring environments.
One of the main benefits of wood is a factor very difficult to measure. Although it is widely accepted that material choice has a significant impact on the aesthetic quality of an indoor environment, the idea that it may be equally important for psychological reasons has not been proven until recently. Research carried out by the University of British Columbia and FPInnovations concluded that the visual presence of wood inside buildings helps reduce stress levels among occupants. This synthesis of global research summarizes the latest scientific research and converging trends on biophilic design. This makes wood use beneficial for potentially chaotic environments, though additional evidence indicates that there are other advantages as well.


Image © Andrew Latreille. Courtesy of Perkins + Will and naturally:wood

作为一种可再生的多功能建筑材料，木材可用于各种尺寸和各种不同的建筑体系，其主要是通过板材的使用，包括木框架结构、实木、新型木材交叉层压木板，以及各种内外饰用途。

此外，木材的衰减系数和吸音特性十分具有声学优势，使其可以灵活地用于从健身房到图书馆等各种不同的项目。木材的多孔性具有声学功能，可以不需要其他设备来改善音质。

As a renewable and versatile building material, wood can be used at a variety of different scales and in a variety of different construction systems, including wood frame, solid wood, mass timber, and various external and internal finishing uses, mainly through the use of panels.
Furthermore, wood's attenuation coefficient and sound absorption properties provide valuable acoustic benefits, allowing it to be used flexibly for a variety of different programs, from gyms to libraries. The porous nature of wood performs an acoustic function without the need for other devices to improve sound quality.


Image © Ed White Photographics. Courtesy of naturally:wood

使用木材还可以通过调节湿度来改善室内空气质量。木材的作用就像海绵一样，吸收和释放水分，保持与周围空气的平衡。这种特性可以在空气干燥时增加湿度，在空气潮湿时降低湿度的效果。另一个重要因素是木材为低过敏性，其光滑的表面可以防止颗粒的堆积（常见于地毯等软饰面），并且易于清洁。

学校使用木材的另一个优势是减少施工时间。时间总是一个问题，特别是对于翻修来说，通常需要在假期期间快速完成，尽可能减少与上课时间的重叠。预制和轻质系统使施工速度更快，特别是与混凝土的固化时间相比。随着新的大规模木制品和系统的出现，木材在抗震、防火、抗风方面也更有优势，从而带来额外的安全性。

The use of wood products can also improve indoor air quality by moderating humidity. Acting like a sponge, wood absorbs and releases moisture to maintain balance with the surrounding air. This property has the effect of increasing the humidity when the air is dry and decreasing it when the air is moist. Another important factor is that the wood is considered hypoallergenic, and its smooth surfaces can prevent the accumulation of particles (common in soft finishes like carpets) and are easy to clean.
Another advantage of using wood for schools is the reduction of construction time. Timing is almost always a concern, especially for renovations, which usually need to be done quickly during vacation periods so that the work has as little overlap with class times as possible. Prefabricated and lightweight systems make construction speeds even faster, especially compared to concrete with its high curing time. With the advent of new mass wood products and systems, wood also has advantages in seismic, fire, and wind resistance for the benefit of extra safety.


Image © Ed White Photographics. Courtesy of naturally:wood

与许多其他材料一样，木制建筑也需要维护，不过如果学校设计得当，减少木材与水和紫外线的直接接触，就可以大大减少修补的频率。在加拿大British Columbia的学区进行的一项有趣的调查发现，与其他材料相比，木材被破坏的频率较低，这可能是由于其被认为是一种装饰材料。

例如，在加拿大的Samuel Brighouse小学项目中，新建筑是促进可持续性和利用建筑本身作为教学工具的契机。项目团队将被动和主动的可持续发展策略结合起来，包括自然通风、自然采光、三层玻璃框架、地热能、太阳热水、绿色屋顶、散发少量挥发性有机化合物（VOC）的材料、具有碳吸收功能的材料、低维护材料等。据观察，木材的使用成为学生、员工和社区的热门讨论话题，内容不局限于木材的美观性，更是探讨了林业对当地经济的重要性和木材在缓解气候变化方面的作用等话题。

Like many other materials, wooden buildings require maintenance, although the frequency of touch-ups can be greatly reduced if the school is properly designed to reduce the wood's exposure to water and direct ultraviolet rays. An interesting survey conducted in school districts in British Columbia, Canada, found that wood is less frequently vandalized than other materials, likely due to its perception as a finishing material.
For example, for the Samuel Brighouse Elementary School project in Canada, the new building was approached as an opportunity to promote sustainability and to use the architecture itself as a teaching tool. The project team combined passive and active sustainability strategies, including natural ventilation, natural light capture, triple-glazed frames, geothermal energy, water heating by the sun, green roofs, materials emitting low quantities of volatile organic compounds (VOC), materials with carbon sequestration, low maintenance materials, and more. It was observed that the use of wood in particular became a popular topic of discussion among students, employees, and the community, which went beyond the aesthetic qualities of the material and instead broached topics such as the importance of forestry for the local economy and the role of wood in mitigating climate change.


Image © Nic Lehoux. Courtesy of Perkins + Will and naturally:wood

设计方案要将用户的健康与如何将自然资源更加明智和尊重地使用结合起来，这对于建筑业的未来至关重要。对于像学校这样需要经济、稳健和耐用的解决方案的建筑，使用环保可持续的系统和木材等材料可以为后代发挥重要的教育作用，为社区带来关键的变化。

要了解更多关于这个主题的信息，请阅读报告“Wood, Well-being and Performance: The Human and Organizational Benefits of Wood Buildings”。该报告总结了在建筑中使用木材和天然材料对健康影响的全球性研究。

Developing solutions that combine the well-being of users with a more intelligent and respectful use of our natural resources is essential for the future of the construction industry. For typologies that require economical, robust, and durable solutions, like schools, using environmentally sustainable systems and materials like wood can play an important educational role for future generations, bringing about critical changes in their communities.
To learn more about the topic, read the report "Wood, Well-being and Performance: The Human and Organizational Benefits of Wood Buildings", that summarizes global research on the health impacts of using wood and natural materials in our buildings.


Image © Nic Lehoux. Courtesy of Perkins + Will and naturally:wood


Image © Nic Lehoux. Courtesy of Perkins + Will and naturally:wood


Image © Nic Lehoux. Courtesy of Perkins + Will and naturally:wood