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Kanters, et al., 2014

BACKGROUND: Partnerships between school districts and community-based organizations to share school facilities during afterschool hours can be an effective strategy for increasing physical activity. However, the perceived cost of shared use has been noted as an important reason for restricting community access to schools. This study examined shared use of middle school facilities, the amount and type of afterschool physical activity programs provided at middle schools together with the costs of operating the facilities.

METHODS: Afterschool programs were assessed for frequency, duration, and type of structured physical activity programs provided and the number of boys and girls in each program. School operating costs were used to calculate a cost per student and cost per building square foot measure. Data were collected at all 30 middle schools in a large school district over 12 months in 2010-2011.

RESULTS: Policies that permitted more use of school facilities for community-sponsored programs increased participation in afterschool programs without a significant increase in operating expenses.

CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest partnerships between schools and other community agencies to share facilities and create new opportunities for afterschool physical activity programs are a promising health promotion strategy. Keywords: school facilities; afterschool physical activity; school facility costs.

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Flores, et al., 2015

It is the major purpose of this study to determine the difference on the attitude between high and low performing Junior Marine Engineering students towards the School facilities and services. Descriptive type of research was utilized in the study. Result showed that the Marine Engineering students are at their best in morning subjects but they don’t care what their schedule is for as long as they finished all subjects on schedule. The low performing students prefer only the teachers do the talking and they like to simply listen to the teachers compared to the high performing students. It is recommended that putting some variety in the usual lecture-demonstration method of teaching into student-centered approach of learning would give better atmosphere of gaining knowledge and comprehension applicable for diverse learning styles of the students.

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National Center for Environmental Health

Protecting children from exposure to lead is important to lifelong good health. Even low levels of lead in blood have been shown to affect IQ, ability to pay attention, and academic achievement. And effects of lead exposure cannot be corrected. The most important step parents, doctors, and others can take is to prevent lead exposure before it occurs.

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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2015

Lead is a naturally occurring metal used in the production of fuels, paints, ceramic products, batteries, solder, and a variety of consumer products. The use of leaded gasoline and lead based paint was eliminated or restricted in the United States beginning in the 1970s, resulting in substantial reductions in exposure to lead. However, children continue to be exposed to lead due to the widespread distribution of lead in the environment. For example, children are exposed to lead through the presence of lead-based paint in many older homes, the presence of lead in drinking water distribution systems, and current use of lead in the manufacture of some products.

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CDC, 2013

Elemental lead is a soft, malleable, dense, blue-gray metal that occurs naturally in soils and rocks. Lead is most often mined from ores or recycled from scrap metal or batteries. Elemental lead can be combined with other elements to form inorganic and organic compounds, such as lead phosphate and tetraethyl lead. Lead has a variety of uses in manufacturing: storage batteries, solders, metal alloys (e.g. brass, bronze), plastics, leaded glass, ceramic glazes, ammunition, antique-molded or cast ornaments, and for radiation shielding. In the past, lead was added to gasoline and residential paints and used in soldering the seams of food cans. Lead was used in plumbing for centuries and may still be present.

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School Planning and Management, 2016

Whether your school district offers a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) program or incorporates Art (STEAM), both programs have a similar goal: Deliver a robust interdisciplinary curriculum in a space that accommodates a wide variety of activities, tools and materials. This “makerspace” is a hub for hands-on, project-based learning, creation and invention. The key to designing a flexible makerspace is to ask the right questions during the planning phase.

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Integrated STEM Education Conference, 2012

We present an informal learning experience for youth ages four through eleven and their families utilizing the integration of art, design, and technology to deliver STEM concepts. The workshop, titled Scrapyard Challenge Jr. 1.0 (SCJ 1.0), was developed from modifications made to an interaction design workshop oriented towards adults, in which participants build novel and expressive electronic objects using found materials and junk. Tapping into the momentum surrounding the maker and tinkerer movements, the learning experience introduces basic principles of electricity and systems thinking using hands-on activities that encourage personal and creative self-expression. Through detailing our experience we suggest that current trends in art, design, and technology practice can provide fertile ground for developing STEM learning. Indeed we argue that this triangulated space is the logical starting ground for the development of a wide variety of STEAMD initiatives.

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Ghanbari, S., 2015

There has been some debate and research that suggests the arts are well-suited to be combined with science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines making the STEM acronym STEAM. STEM education is an educational and political priority in the United States and is valued as a means of strengthening national security and ensuring global competitiveness. The STEAM paradigm also emphasizes the importance of STEM education, but argues that the arts have the ability to open up new ways of seeing, thinking, and learning. This study aims to share student learning experiences in two established university programs that integrate an arts discipline with a STEM discipline. Student and alumni interviews are compared within a collective case study methodology. Framed by principles of sociocultural theory and experiential learning theory, this inquiry explores the role of arts integration, collaboration, and experience centered learning in knowledge creation.

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In 2004, the Oregon Transportation and Growth Management Program contracted with the Community Planning Workshop (CPW) at the University of Oregon to conduct a year-long evaluation of Oregon’s school siting process. The purpose of the evaluation was twofold: (1) to develop a better understanding
of the challenges and opportunities school districts and local governments experience when making school siting decisions; (2) to empower school districts and local governments to make more informed decisions about future school siting. This handbook is the culmination of that research and synthesizes many of the lessons learned.

As part of the study, CPW performed the following tasks:

Literature Review: Conducted an extensive review of literature about school siting issues.

Case Studies: Investigated the school siting practices of eight school districts around the state through site visits and interviews with school superintendents, school facility planners, local government planners, architects, and neighborhood groups. Administered a school transportation survey and conducted focus groups at four middle schools to learn more about how children get to and from school.

School Superintendent Survey: Created a survey, disseminated to school district superintendents, focusing on district needs and siting issues.

Oregon School Siting Forum: Held a statewide conference encouraging dialogue about school siting issues by a wide range of people, including school district personnel, architects, planners, health advocates, and neighborhood organizers.

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Beatty & Shimshack, 2011

School buses contribute disproportionately to ambient air quality, pollute near schools and residential areas, and their emissions collect within passenger cabins. This paper examines the impact of school bus emissions reductions programs on health outcomes. A key contribution relative to the broader literature is that we examine localized pollution reduction programs at a fine level of aggregation. We find that school bus retrofits induced reductions in bronchitis, asthma, and pneumonia incidence for atrisk populations. Back of the envelope calculations suggest conservative benefit-cost ratios between 7:1 and16:1.

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