In developed countries, the first class in the academic year would invariably be about safety. Representative image: OnmanoramaJust as we were recovering from the deaths of five children who were crushed under a tree that fell on their school bus at Kothamangalam, another tragedy struck in Kozhikode. A student of the Government Vocational Higher Secondary School at Meenchanda died when a coconut tree fell over the school building.
We immediately set out felling trees on roadsides to prevent any such accidents.
When a large group of students drowned in a boat accident at Thattekkadu, the civil society’s rage targeted boat owners and drivers.
There is no point in searching for reasons after accidents happen. We have to take measures to avoid any unfortunate accident by understanding the problems our children face at the school, during their commute to school or during a picnic.
In developed countries, the first class in the academic year would invariably be about safety. Starting safety lessons from the school has several benefits. Students would be made aware of the safety issues they could face at the school, during their commute to school or during the activities including picnics and sports events.
Secondly, the lessons travel to every house through the children.
Thirdly, these lessons ensure that the next generation grows up with a better sense of safety and security.
We too can train our children through some very easy activities in the schools. Manorama can make safety the next theme of its ‘Nalla Padam’ project in schools.
Safety corner: Each school has to mark a safety corner and exhibit publicity materials like posters stressing the need to be safe. Newspaper clippings about any accident involving a school student should be pasted here. Read out that item in the school assembly. Explain to students how that tragedy could have been avoided.
First aid: Do our schools have the medicine and materials necessary for first aid? Each school has to buy and keep those without fail. At least the teachers have to learn the basics of first aid. Try to get the nearest hospital involved to take a class on first aid for older children.
Safety examination
Students in higher classes can be given a project to conduct an examination of the safety issues at the school. Each school would have some threat or the other, including the probability of a fire accident from the kitchen, the storage of chemicals in the laboratory, trees leaning over class rooms, abandoned ponds or wells on the campus, electric line passing overhead, adjacent road, canal, river or seashore. Mark the safety threats on Google Map shots and paste it in the safety corner. These can even be taken up with the authorities concerned.
Safety in extracurricular activities
Safety issues can crop up when students travel to a picnic destination or for a sports tournament. Teachers should discuss safety issues with students before each journey.
Safety equipment
Drowning cases are very frequent during picnics. Students should be discouraged from boarding a boat without safety precautions. The school bus should store lifebuoys and ropes if the trip involves a visit to water bodies. Students may be encouraged to organise a fund-raiser to buy safety equipment for the school.
Seasonal topics
Though accidents can happen any time, they happen with a kind of seasonality in Kerala. For example, road accidents increase in the rainy months. Lightning accidents increase during the north east monsoon. Many students drown during the summer vacation.
If safety is chosen as a theme for Nalla Padam, a particular topic can be picked for discussion in the school assembly every three months. Materials related to the topic can be displayed at the safety corner.
(The writer is the Chief of Disaster Risk Reduction in the UN Environment Programme.)
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