Distance learning has assumed a relevant role in the educational scenario. The use of Virtual Learning Environments contributes to obtaining a substantial amount of educational data. In this sense, the analyzed data generate knowledge used by institutions to assist managers and professors in strategic planning and teaching. The discovery of…

The author briefly reports some significant findings concerning the impact of the environment on human perception, behavior, and performance, touching particularly on color, seating arrangement and crowding, and music and noise. Implications for schools are discussed. (PGD)

Recent research indicates there are a great many nonvisual effects of light on people. The control of rickets and the suntan effect are well understood. Less well known effects include synchronization of a number of physiological rhythms and prevention and control of infantile jaundice. Physiological and psychological effects also vary with the…

The quality of indoor lighting can influence task performance, social interaction and communication, health and safety, visual comfort, student behavior, and aesthetic judgments. These by-products of lighting are examined in this literature review in an effort to define the conditions that are associated with good lighting quality. Lighting…

The most persistent question in the field of school facility planning relates to that of the relationship between the built environment and the performance and behavior of users, particularly students. Ways in which the built environment affects two student variables--student achievement and student behavior--are explored. The first variable is…