A Systematic Review Of Perceptual Attributes For Indoor Soundscape Assessment In Primary School Classrooms

This study investigates semantic attributes and evaluation methods used in the literature to assess children’s perception of the sound environment in primary school classrooms. While existing research on indoor soundscapes in educational settings has focused mainly on high schools and universities, there is a significant gap in understanding how younger children (ages 6–10) perceive and interact with classroom acoustic environments. Tools, attributes, and methodologies developed for adults may not be completely relevant or comprehended by children, due to their developing cognitive and linguistic abilities. Consequently, child-centric approaches are required for evaluating the auditory perception of children and designing educational spaces accordingly. To address this gap, a comprehensive review of existing research was conducted to identify key semantic attributes and tools, such as visual scales and pictorial representations. The preliminary insights from this ongoing work highlight the existing methodologies and will inform future research towards standardized frameworks for children.