Acoustic Blinds and Curtains for the classroom
The modern classroom faces a unique challenge. It should be a space that is conducive to flexible and collaborative learning – and it should allow students to hear and be heard.
Installing acoustic curtains in classrooms can not only help control noise levels, but also create flexible learning spaces and alleviate visual distractions.
Acoustic Blinds and Curtains has helped a number of Schools in Australia. Contact us below for projects, references and for more information about how we can help you.
Learn more about How it Works and Acoustic Test Results.
Acoustic Blinds and Curtains can help control noise levels, create flexible learning spaces and alleviate visual distractions
New-style classrooms demand new thinking
A revealing Macquarie University study of 100 kindergarten students conducted in 2015 found that speech perception among students in open-plan spaces was significantly poorer than that of students in enclosed classrooms.
The study found that between half and 70% of children said they could not hear their teacher very well or at all when the other classes were doing noisy group work.
Significantly, the study revealed that children’s speech perception (their ability to hear words in sentences) was consistently high (approximately 80%) in enclosed classrooms regardless of how far they were seated from the teacher. However, in open-plan classrooms, children’s scores dropped from 75% at the front of the classroom to as little as 25% at the back.
Teachers in open-plan classrooms also reported being more distracted by noise, said Kiri Mealings of Macquarie University’s child language laboratory.
Case study: How to manage distraction in the classroom
Paul Wellham of St Philip’s Christian College, Newcastle, says children’s ability to focus by successfully managing their distractions is important for them to be able to succeed as learners.
As Head of Junior School at the independent non-denominational Christian college, Wellham has overseen the installation of acoustic curtains in a large, open-plan learning space in the Junior School’s new building. The curtains have brought flexibility to the teaching program and helped reduce the impact that distracting sights and sounds can have on students’ ability to concentrate.
“We have three classes per year level in the Junior School and flexible learning environments so the children aren’t in separate classrooms,” Wellham explains. “The building was completed in 2018 and what we discovered over the ensuing 18 months or so was that we needed to have greater flexibility over the open-plan space by zoning off areas of the open classroom. That’s where the acoustic curtains have helped.”
