The link between school environments and student academic performance

We found that schools with more trees had a higher percentage of proficient or advanced scores in Mathematics and Reading standardized tests after controlling for school size, student teacher ratio, and free lunch enrollment. However, not all types of landscapes have the same beneficial properties. Large expanses of land, “featureless landscapes,” including large areas of campus lawns and athletic fields have negative effects on academic performance. These results may help to guide the decisions made by landscape architects on the basis on evidence when they plan new and renovate existing schools.