This quote is sort of general to me and I am having difficulty relating it to emergency procedures for the youth. But, I guess when you think about it, it is true that students are already members of society. When you are born you become a member of the society. However, I still agree that one of the roles of schools is to produce good citizens and productive members. Through their years in school the students become more and more developed and begin to give back more things to society.
For students to be able to be part of society, we must protect them. Emergency procedures protects the youth in the case of an emergency to be able to make it to the next day as a citizen. I think that Deb’s presentation showed us how important it is to practice these procedures. It was heartbreaking hearing some of the history on this topic. I also couldn’t believe the stat from the Preparing for Emergencies article. 18 states don’t have requirements for written emergency plans. I feel like this is something that could easily be so universal. I love the little red flip book we passed around class. Having that in a visible spot by the door of every room of every building would be great! It is universal so substitutes or anyone in the room could easily find what to do. (I was thinking back to the other day when I was visiting a school to tutor a child. A teacher I know asked me to just pop in and watch her kids while she ran to the restroom. What if at that moment the fire alarm went off? With a universal plan I could just grab the flip book and go.)
I was thinking about how emergency situations can be different and the same in varying environments. I have worked in many special education settings where behaviors in the classroom could result in an emergency. I think that MOST teachers do everything with a good intention and the good of the student in mind. But I know at times we can be fearful to react to situations in certain ways. I worked at a school for students with cognative delay and an alternative school for students with behavior difficulties. In both places I received training for Non-violent Crisis Intervention for working with this population. (Appropriate holds to protect the student or staff.) At the alternative school the supervisors trusted that you would only use these methods when you felt it was necessary for the safety of the staff/students or when needed to control behaviors. At the school for students with CD you could really only use specific holds with specific children who had behavior plans. This was nerve racking as a teacher because I didn’t know when it was ok and when it wasn’t. And then people walking through the halls could get the wrong impression. So then I didn’t want to use the holds at all, even though they were necessary at times. In the Mo. House article they found a way to protect teachers from lawsuits so long as they were following policies in place. I think this protection shows the teachers that the administration trusts them. Now I do know that some may not following these policies, but should they really be teachers anyways?
Overall, we have to protect our members who bring the smiles to our classrooms and will hold the hope of our future!
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Every school district should have emergency plans drawn up and written out, so that no one has any doubt what procedure to follow in an emergency situation. However, these plans should be practiced in order for them to be implemented correctly. Debbie stated in her presentation that 1 of 18 states has suggested emergency plans be created. This is a very sad figure. Does anyone know where Ohio stands on this issue? Are there plans and procedures drawn up for schools to follow?
ReplyDeleteI think it is up to the individual school district to develop their own plan, because all schools are different and have their own set of unigue situations.The “Resolve to be Ready” page on the ODE website that Deb had in her presentation gives ideas to promote preparedness, for example,what to have in an emergency kit, but it takes someone in each school district to be willing to be the lead person in pushing the issue. Often these responsibilities fall onto someone who already has a full-time position and responsibilities, so the issue doesn’t get the attention it deserves, unless a disaster strikes too close to home. Our local fire department and township provided educational meetings about emergency preparedness just after 9-11, but I haven’t seen this carry-over into the schools. We talked about pandemics in our ED500 class, but I have not heard about this topic in our local school. Maybe it is just too hard to get our minds wrapped around; the idea that the outside world would be unsafe due to infectious or contaminated air. Who can fathom it? When I worked at a local hospice, we were involved in the county preparedness plan, along with the Red Cross and the hospital. Their big concern was a flu-like pandemic. We had to say if we would be willing to come to work or not during a pandemic. I think our schools would just shut down during a pandemic and wait it out, because I do not think my co-workers and I would risk our lives or our families’ lives to report to school. Would parents even send their children?
ReplyDeleteYes, it is up to each district to develop their individual plan, but the state does mandate that a plan be in place--and that it be coordinated with local emergency response agencies. (Now whether that directive is actually being implemented in all districts is another questions...)
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