Improve academic performance and classroom atmosphere
Replacing mobile phones with green plants
From 1 January 2024, mobile phones will no longer be allowed in secondary schools in the Netherlands. They have a proven negative effect on school performance and classroom atmosphere. In response to this, the Flower Council of Holland has partnered up with Air So Pure to launch a campaign to make classrooms greener. Plants in the classroom give both students and teachers more energy, improve the atmosphere and boost concentration. Research has proven this.
Improve air quality
Studies conducted by the Institute for Nature Education and Sustainability (IVN) show that plants have a positive impact on classroom atmosphere and improve student performance. The higher humidity and oxygen levels improve air quality in the classroom, which allows the brain to function better. An educational environment with plants makes teachers and students more creative and more productive. Plants in the classroom also have a positive impact on the social climate. They promote a sense of calm, thereby reducing stress and aggression. This means that plants actually have the opposite effect of mobile phones in the classroom.
Studies have shown that mobile phones have a negative effect on language proficiency and the atmosphere in the classroom. Children become more individualistic, which leads to less contact among students. Mobile phone use in the classroom also leads to more aggression and a higher risk of personality disorders. Research shows that academic performance improves at schools where mobile phones are prohibited.
Jungle classroom
To help schools make the transition, the Flower Council of Holland wants to create ‘jungle classrooms’: classrooms that are filled from top to bottom with air-purifying plants. To be eligible for the transformation, classes can send an email to klasvolplanten@gmail.com, together with a picture of the classroom and a brief explanation of why their class should win the ‘jungle make-over’. Once the room has been turned into a green oasis, the class will also get to enjoy a lesson about plants and plant care, as well as a plant care kit. The educational package of Air So Pure teaches them how to take care of their new plants.
Want to find out more?
For more information on this campaign, contact Campaign Manager Gabriëlle Dullaart at gdullaart@bloemenbureauholland.nl.
