In this paper, we conducted a survey to reveal the general perception of parents toward outdoor air quality, particulate matter (PM), and indoor air quality (IAQ) at schools where their children attend. A total of 1,030 parents participated in this survey, where the age of their children ranged between 7 years to over 19 years of age. Each participant was either a member of a non-governmental organization (NGO) with a keen interest in air quality or an ordinary public panel member with less interest. The result of the survey indicated that the participants had a negative perception of air quality, and parents believed that the outdoor and indoor air is extremely polluted. The participants pointed out that they believe that the main reason for the pollution is due to particulate matter (PM) and school classrooms are the location where their children are exposed to PM the most. Based on our study, the majority of the participants prefer a mechanical ventilation system to reduce indoor air pollutants in schools. Our study should be referred to by school officials in order to maintain IAQ and as a way of addressing the concerns of parents who want to protect their children’s health.

This study was performed to investigate the characteristics of indoor air quality (IAQ) in elementary and middle schools in Gyeongbuk area from July to November 2006 . The measurements of indoor air pollutants were made to cover such components as PM-10, CO2, CO, NO2, O3, HCHO, TVOC, TBC, and Radon from school classrooms. The results of this study can be summarized as follows: all of them were less than IAQ standards of Korea. The mean concentration were measured by 43.0 ㎍/㎥ (PM-10), 745 ppm (CO2), 56.1 ㎍/㎥ (HCHO), 350 CFU/㎥ (TBC), 0.026 ppm (O3), 0.6 ppm (CO), and 59.2 ㎍/㎥ (TVOC). Radon was not detected in all surveyed classrooms. The I/O ratio of PM-10 was 0.8∼1.4, while that for HCHO was 5.7∼9.0. Therefore, it was concluded that the indoor pollution of formaldehyde was very serious in classroom.

Indoor air quality has been addressed as an important atmospheric environmental issue and has caught attention of the public in recent years in Korea. Good indoor air quality in classrooms favour student's learning ability, teacher and staff's productivity according to other studies. In this study, each classroom at four different schools was chosen for comparison of indoor and outdoor air quality by means of source generation types such as new constructed classroom, using of cleaning agents and purchased furniture. Temperature, relative humidity (RH), carbon dioxide (CO2), formaldehyde (HCHO), total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) and particulate matter with diameter less than 10 ㎛ (PM10) were monitored at indoor and outdoor locations during lesson. HCHO was found to be the worst among parameters measured in new constructed classroom, HCHO and TVOCs was worst in classroom with new purchased furniture, and TVOCs was worst in classroom cleaned by cleaning agents. Indoor CO2 concentrations often exceeded 1500 ppm indicating importance of ventilation. Active activity of students during break time made the PM10 concentration higher than a lesson. Improvements and further researches should be carried out considering indoor air quality at schools is of special concern since children and students are susceptible to poor air quality.