The new St. Peter's College of Toril amerliorating indoor air quality through breathing architecture

Abstract

Numerous studies highlighted the importance of occupant perception and measuring indoor air quality parameters to attain its highest rating in the school's indoor environment. This case study addresses this gap that aims to determine the level of indoor air quality in college student's perception of their naturally ventilated classrooms. This study employed a descriptive explanatory-sequential design to measure classrooms' existing indoor air quality conditions using a PACE questionnaire in a purposive simple random of 221 respondents, a field survey of 16 classrooms, and interviews. Results show the overall indoor air quality scored in a poor state (m=2.561), in particular attributes of walls, ceilings, floors, and furniture; ventilation; location/proximity; and outdoor area. Thus, to support the lower satisfaction level of ventilation, the indicated average relative humidity value (60.524%) was higher than the upper limit of international standards. The analysis of key themes from integrated interviews provided precise insights concerning the condition of the classroom. In conclusion, the indoor air quality of the naturally ventilated college classrooms needed to be improved based on the perceived satisfaction of PACE, and it did not fully provide proper ventilation under its present condition. It enables the recommendation of controlling and designing building factors for effective solutions for achieving desirable indoor air quality.