High school students perform(表现) better on tests if they are in a classroom with a view of a green space, instead of a windowless room or a room with a view of built-up space, according to research from the University of Illinois Department of Landscape Architecture. 

"It is the first to show a relationship between studying with a green view and students' performance, " said William Sullivan, head of the research team. "It's a significant finding that if you have a green view outside your window, you'll do better on tests. " Sullivan hopes the results of their research will lead to some changes. "Changes in school design, for example, would be a much better thing than any of the things we spend money on in secondary education today, " Sullivan said.

The research included 94 students at five central Illinois high schools. Students were randomly assigned(随机分配) to one of three kinds of classrooms—windowless, with a window looking out onto built-up space, or with a window looking out onto green space. Each kind of classroom had almost the same size and layout(布局). The students took part in one-on-one experiments in which they did 30 minutes of activities that included a proofreading(勘校) exercise, a speech and a math exercise. Following the activities the students were given an attention test which asked them to repeat a series of(一连串) numbers. 

The findings: Students did better on both study activities and the attention test if they were in a classroom with a green view, Sullivan said. 

The researchers suggest their findings can help planners and policymakers improve students' health and learning. For example, planners can choose places for new schools that already have trees, or they can plant many trees on the site; architects can design classroom windows so they look onto green spaces.