Some teachers are infamous for trying to prevent students from sleeping by lowering the temperatures in their rooms to near freezing levels — which I find ironic, since hibernation occurs as a result of animals being cold-stressed. Others are simply victims of the broken thermostats that result in the opposite extreme: teenagers sweating as if they just finished a mile run on a 90-degree day.
Intentional or not, the fluctuating classroom temperatures are both annoying and unproductive and a source of complaint by many students. According to a study by Healthy Kids, students tested in overly cold or warm classrooms did worse than students in a controlled, “room temperature” environment.
My experience generally tends to align with this study, but I also notice that my urge to sleep in class is inversely related to temperature. My head feels like a lead weight tilting toward sleep when temperatures hit record lows.
Additionally, the National Library of Medicine reports that “anemia is a central component of the inability of iron-deficient individuals to temperature regulate when they are cold stressed.”
As someone who has experienced both iron deficiency and iron deficiency-induced anemia, I often feel as though I’m on the verge of turning into a popsicle in some frigid-cold classrooms. To escape the chill, I wear many layers to school — yet, that only makes me feel sleepier.
On the other hand, if the temperature is too warm, brain fog floods my mind and it becomes hard to think. Also, no one wants to walk out of class with gnarly sweat stains for all the world to see.
Sometimes, over the class period, the temperature in a room varies greatly, which results in the rustle of jackets and sweaters collectively being taken on and off. Instead of paying strict attention — which, to any of my teachers reading this, I always am — I get distracted thinking about whether or not I feel hot enough to take off all four of my sweatshirts.
In fact, according to the Institution of Education Sciences, “Classroom temperatures should be maintained between 68 degrees and 75 degrees Fahrenheit during the winter months and between 73 degrees and 79 degrees Fahrenheit during the summer months.” Limiting the thermostat to this range of temperatures optimizes the combination of student productivity and classroom comfort.
If the problem lies within a thermostat misfiring, the solution is better maintenance.
But if the thermostat is working just fine, then the solution is even simpler. To the teachers who are trying to keep us on the edge of our seats, please stop.
For the sake of my sanity (not to mention comfort), I hope that more moderate temperatures lie in my future.
