Measuring classroom acoustics with a systematic approach

Classroom acoustics has major implications in speech production, in speech intelligibility and in the learning process. Excessive noise levels and long reverberation times, in fact, can degrade the speech production and propagation in classrooms thus can impair an effective listening. Recent studies have highlighted the need of guaranteeing optimal conditions in classrooms to enhance the capability of students to understand a vocal message and to reduce the vocal effort required to teachers. However, a lack in the available literature exists with respect to an effective protocol of acoustic measurements to be performed in classrooms so that accurate comparisons can be performed across several classrooms, which present different architectural, thus acoustics, features. This work is an attempt to identify the best guidelines for practitioners, architects and acousticians when performing acoustic measurements in classrooms. A protocol to accurately and effectively measure the acoustic parameters in classrooms is proposed, as well as to compare results across different types of environments.