Heat threatens equal opportunities in Swiss schools

Heatwaves are creating unequal learning conditions in Swiss schools, teachers warn, with classrooms reaching temperatures well above 30 degrees. SRF reported that schools in ten cantons reopened this week after the summer holidays, while temperatures in many parts of Switzerland again exceeded 30 degrees.

Few classrooms have air conditioning, and cities are particularly affected. The Basel region, one of Switzerland’s hottest areas, has broken heat records again this summer.

In many classrooms, it is already too hot for regular lessons in the morning, said Jean-Michel Héritier, president of the Basel-Stadt Voluntary School Senate, the canton’s largest teachers’ association. Teachers can often only supervise pupils rather than teach them, he said.

Conditions vary between schools. A small number of locations have ventilation systems that still allow normal learning, while many others lack suitable equipment. This means pupils have different learning conditions depending on where they attend school, Héritier said.

“Equal opportunities are being reduced,” he said. In overheated classrooms, “the level of education will certainly not rise, but fall”.

Doris Ilg, co-head of Basel-Stadt’s primary schools, acknowledged the differences between locations. “We do not want to gloss over it; it is a fact,” she said.

To reduce the impact of the heat, schools can adjust lessons and choose subjects requiring less concentration. They can also schedule additional breaks or move classes to cooler places, including basement rooms and museums. The canton is examining the use of ceiling fans at selected locations and nighttime ventilation.

Teachers call for building upgrades

Ilg said these measures were not a permanent solution. If hot weather persists for longer periods, “structural measures are needed”, she said.

The Basel-Stadt School Senate and the Baselland Teachers’ Association have called for greater investment in school buildings. They want heat to be recognised as a permanent school and education problem, faster renovation and climate-proofing of buildings, better insulation and shading, improved ventilation and cooling systems, and consideration of changes to the school calendar, including the timing of summer holidays.

The Baselland association has described conditions in some classrooms as unacceptable and measured temperatures of up to 42 degrees. Not all classes can move to cooler places, while ceiling fans are currently used only in isolated cases.

“Ultimately, we need better facilities to guarantee educational success in the future,” Héritier said. As heatwaves become more frequent, how schools deal with high temperatures will become increasingly important.