Study says good ventilation could slow spread of virus

Study says good ventilation could slow spread of virus

An update on school procedures tomorrow.

New at ten -- many students across north alabama already are - or soon will be - attending classes in- person, and a new study says it knows how to keep them safe from coronavirus.

Released by the university of minnesota, the study says proper ventilation and seating in classrooms - and even the exact location where a teacher stands - can help keep the virus from spreading.

Waay 31's casey albritton learned what results of the study show.

Casey?

Take a look at this diagram from the study--it shows an asymptomatic teacher without a mask-- when the teacher is near ventilation, particles spread to only the front of the classroom.

When the teacher is not near an air vent, the whole room becomes a hot spot.

Janelle arbuckle/ parent "how many kids are going to be in the classroom and how do you teach these kids to social distance and how they can be spaced?"

Janelle arbuckle says she is still deciding whether or not to send her children back to traditional school in the madison city schools district.

Janelle arbuckle/ parent "if you don't make any changes, then we aren't going to see any improvement.

We will just be back where we were in march."

She says before she makes a decision, she wants to see how classrooms will be structured.

Janelle arbuckle/ parent "i think there are a lot of arrangements that could be made.

There are a lot of changes that could be made in the entire design of a classroom.

It doesn't have to be set up the way it's always been."

A study done by the university of minnesota showed virus particles don't spread as widely when the teacher is directly under an air vent --but when the teacher is on the opposite side of the air vent, particles fill the room... researchers say this information this could help arrange classrooms in a safer way.

Janelle arbuckle/ parent "it's really hard to judge how those things are going to affect until we've tried it."

The study also shows that good ventilation will filter some of the virus in the air...but not all of it.

After running a 50 minute simulation in a classroom, researchers found 10 percent of particles were filtered from the air.

The majority ended up on the walls.

Janelle arbuckle/ parent "it's scary for the teachers and the kids to think