Teach Middle East Magazine Apr - Jun 2020 Issue 3 Volume 7 | Page 29

W
ith
its
idyllic
village pond and
ancient oak trees,
Fingringhoe
in
Essex, UK feels frozen in time. The
tiny 88-pupil primary school, built in
1863, also oozes a sense of history.
Indeed, it seems an unlikely location
for someone to test out a new
piece of potentially game-changing
classroom technology. But that is
exactly what has happened. “Our research, and others', confirms
that poor light levels, the wrong
temperatures, inappropriate sound
volumes and rhythms, humidity, air
pollution, CO2 and air pressure can
all impair learning. Our Learnometer
research tool automatically samples
your classroom environment, and
makes suggestions through a
unique algorithm as to what might
be changed to allow students to
learn and perform at their best.”
Education
technology
guru
Professor
Stephen
Heppell
approached the school and asked
them to try out a prototype of the
new “Gratnells Learnometer” device
he has developed with the leading
education business. The small
primary now joins 100s of other
schools and universities worldwide
who have already been piloting the
technology. In fact, the Learnometer device
measures seven key environmental
factors known to have an effect on
learning outcomes: Temperature,
humidity, CO2, Chemicals (TVOCs),
fine dust (PM 2.5), and light and
noise levels. Data sampled by the
Learnometer is sent over existing
school wifi networks to cloud
based storage. Teachers, managers
and even pupils can then access
the data via the Learnometer
dashboard to see what is happening
in the classroom environment in
real time.
Professor Heppell says of the
project, “Learnometer is a unique
combination of hardware, software
and analysed data that help
learners, and thus schools, perform
better by optimising physical
environments for learning.”
With pilot sites around the world,
including in the UK, Europe,
Australia, New Zealand and the
UAE, Professor Heppell and his
team have already built up over half
a million hours of research data.
In Dubai, The Kindergarten Starters
(KGS) school has been involved in
the Learnometer project from the
very early days. Its CO2 levels have
decreased dramatically after indoor
plants
including
oxygenating
ferns (Nephrolepis), English ivy
(Hedera Helix) and spider plants
(Chlorophytum
Comosum)
amongst others were introduced to
improve air quality in its classrooms.
Professor
Heppell
is
also
enthusiastic about ‘Bring Your
Own Plant’ or BYOP activities
in schools. Having children
bring in and name their own
plant makes them feel more
invested in their learning space.
They benefit from better oxygen
levels and when the plants are
in white pots, better light levels
too which in turn increases
alertness. Bringing plants into
the classroom may also improve
well-being and positivity.
Speaking about carbon dioxide,
Professor Heppell says, “At
lower levels, CO2 will affect
concentration. Above as little
as 1,000 parts per million, and
arguably lower still, CO2 will be
inducing sleepiness and poor
concentration with abnormal
heart rate and nausea. We have
been dismayed by the damaging
levels we have observed in
examination and test rooms.”
The Learnometer can act as
a springboard for introducing
many STEAM activities into the
classroom, bringing Learnometer
data to life. Professor Heppell
says that the process of making
learning better engages everyone
as reflective learners and that
making small improvements in
each of the key areas measured
by the Learnometer leads to the
aggregation of marginal gains.
Marginal gains, he claims, are
as vital in schools as they are in
sport.
Concluding, he says, “If learning
was the Olympics, this is what it
would look like.”
For more information
gratnellslearnometer.com
visit