Noise Control for Virtual Lessons in Virginia
When the MathScience Innovation Center's educational broadcasting efforts began reaching more students they decided to contact Acoustical Solutions, Inc. for advice and products.
After the soundproofing and noise control project was finished, the center's virtual lessons improved distance learning throughout central Virginia.
Application Introduction
Central Virginia's MathScience Innovation Center, which has been delivering math and science lessons in the classroom since the early 1960s, has a mission "to be the innovator, incubator and advocate of 21st Century math and science programs for the [Virginia] Capital region's K-12 educators and students."
In 2007, it only seemed fitting that 21st Century math and science programs be taught using a 21st Century medium, the internet.
The Center's teachers delivered the first Internet lessons from their desks in cubicles, and eventually moved to an empty classroom.
"That room had a lot of echo due to a hard concrete floor and exterior walls that picked up outside vehicle and lawnmower sound," said the Center's multimedia producer, Echol Marshall, Ph.D. "All our rooms are on slabs, so there was intrusion from neighboring classrooms as well."
By the spring of 2010 the demand for lessons required several lessons be delivered simultaneously. The Center found that it now needed four spaces in which teachers could operate alone yet still in close proximity to one another. Small rooms were built as private studios, which solved the space issue, but still teachers were battling audio distractions.
Treatment Provided
Treating the sound inside the broadcast rooms
After discussing various options for treatment with staff at Acoustical Solutions, Marshall decided to combat the echo and reverberation in the broadcast rooms with three products.
1. First, Sonex Audio Tiles were installed on the rooms' ceilings to combat floor-to-ceiling reverberation. These foam panels work by absorbing sound waves before they have a chance to bounce off the ceiling and back at the teachers or reverberate through the space.
2. Next, to treat the side-to-side reverberation, 64 square feet of beige SoundSuede™ Acoustical Wall Panels were installed in each broadcast room.
These fabric wrapped panels work in largely the same way as the audio tiles, by absorbing sound waves with which they come into contact, thus reducing echo and reverberation.
3. Because the center's teachers broadcast both video and audio, Marshall chose the next wall treatment because it serves two purposes.
He had Acoustical Solutions install one 4'x8'AlphaSorb™ screen-printed acoustical panel behind each broadcast seat.
These panels serve the same absorptive purpose as the other panels in the room, but with an added bonus. The center's logo is printed on these panels' fabric.
"We use these panels as a backdrop for our lessons," Marshall explained. "It helps reinforce our brand and gives our broadcasts a more professional look."
Treating the sound transfer between rooms
As demand grew and lessons were broadcast more frequently, Marshall explained, "one thing we needed to do was isolate the lessons that were being simultaneously delivered."
To accomplish this isolation, Acoustical Door Seal Kits were installed on each of the room's doors. These kits include jambs, automatic bottoms and thresholds.
Sealing the openings around doors drastically reduces noise transfer because of what is known as the 1 percent rule. This rule states that a 1 percent opening will allow up to 50 percent of the sound to escape.
"With these door seals, when the door closes you can actually feel the room tighten up," said Marshall.
Results
In the end, the "true broadcast persona" Marshall spoke of came to fruition.
"The product we deliver is now more professional," Marshall said. "And it's more than the sound that goes into the mic. The room has a silence that keeps the teachers focused on their lesson, and it's the feel of the room that creates an aura of professionalism, a feeling of confidence. And all that translates into lesson quality."
For more information on this application, contact Michael Binns.
