This systematic review of the literature examined the available evidence on the connections between green space around schools and students' academic performance. The review was limited to studies focusing on green space within and around school campuses (versus home environments) and explicitly looked at student academic outcomes, including standardized test scores, end-of-semester grades, and college preparatory exams (standardized achievement tests).
The researchers identified only 13 peer-reviewed articles meeting the search parameters. This limited number of studies suggests that research on the association between school green space and academic performance is still in its early stages. Most of the studies (10 out of 13) had been published since 2014 and typically focused on urban schools. All of the studies focused on schools and students in Global North countries, with 10 of the 13 focusing on schools in the United States. Two of the studies used individual-level outcomes and were based on sample sizes of 567 and 2429 students. Eleven of the studies used school-level outcomes and were based on sample sizes ranging from 101 to 6333. While most of the studies (10 of 13) reported findings on elementary school children, several focused on middle school, five on high school and one on college level students.
The 13 studies reported a total of 122 findings. Most of the findings (64%) were non-significant; 8% were significant and negative; and 28% were significant and positive. Positive findings were limited to greenness at distances up to 2000 m around schools and related more to end-of-semester grades and college preparatory exams. Findings regarding writing scores were generally non-significant. The most promising findings for the influence of green space on achievement related to college preparatory exams. Other promising results related to the positive association between window views and academic achievement, especially as manifested by end-of-semester grades. Trees seemed to have more of a positive impact on academic performance than other types of greenness around schools. Findings relating to the potential effects of socioeconomic status, gender, and urbanization showed mixed results. Nine of the included studies were judged to be of fair quality, two of good or excellent quality, and two of poor quality.
While the results of this systematic review show mixed results, they do provide enough evidence to warrant further research on the potential impact of green space around schools and the academic performance of students. Such research may reveal -- as some studies do -- that green space is especially beneficial for low-SES students in urban areas. If so, increased green space around schools may be one way to address the concern about public education perpetuating health and income disparities.
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