This study aims to investigate the natural lighting performance of typical educational school premises in Cyprus and propose solutions to improve the visual comfort in classrooms. Natural lighting is an important factor in the design of education buildings as it creates a pleasant environment, it promotes healthier conditions and ensures energy saving. For the purposes of the present research, an in-depth lighting performance analysis was carried out in a typical classroom in Cyprus. A field study carried out through a questionnaire-based survey, as well as through static and dynamic simulations, assessed the lighting performance and visual comfort in educational buildings in Cyprus. The study shows sufficient lighting levels in classrooms in all orientations; however, high lighting contrast and bright visible light source in the field of view causes glare issues, especially in classrooms with east- and west orientation. Conclusions regarding potential improvements are proposed in order to achieve better visual comfort in typical educational school premises in Cyprus and in other areas of southern Europe with similar climatic characteristics and typologies in educational architecture. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.