Apr 2008
In this issue:
National Playground Safety Week
Cyberbullying and Acceptable Use Policies
Health Emergencies in Schools
Working in the Heat
We're Moving!
School Safety Quote of the Month: School Security
Mold Problem Kept Quiet
Children with Healthier Diets Do Better in School, Study Suggests
Online 'Cyberbullying' Hurtful for Children
Other Relevant School Safety News Stories -- Links Only
National Playground Safety Week
National Playground Safety Week, April 21 – 25, is a time to focus on children's outdoor play environments. It’s also a time to pledge to use good judgment when playing and a time for gratitude to all the adults who work tirelessly on maintaining our playgrounds.
What You Can Do
Playgrounds don't become safer all by themselves. They need people like you to take some initiative and do something! So what can you do? Here are some suggestions from the National Program for Playground Safety:
- Design and distribute surveys to discover favorite and least favorite equipment, as well as recurring playground problems and injuries.
- Send letters to your state governor encouraging him/her to recognize National Playground Safety Week.
- Create and hang posters in schools and community areas outlining S.A.F.E. playground practices.
- Complete playground equipment safety checks and evaluations.
- Challenge your school to an injury-free week on the playground.
- Host a guest speaker to discuss safety on the playground.
- Check out your local playgrounds. If there is hard surfacing, such as asphalt, concrete, dirt, or grass underneath play equipment, call the owner and politely voice your concern. Ask if there is anything you can do to help.
- Write to the editor of your hometown newspaper commenting on any playground safety issues in your local community. Give credit to those facilities with safe playgrounds as well.
- With children, make a maximum of five playground rules that they can remember and follow.
Cyberbullying and Acceptable Use Policies
It’s an age-old problem that is posing new challenges for educators. What was once limited to face-to-face encounters has moved to the internet, where the damage from insults is greater because of the anonymity provided by computers. Bullies hide behind their keyboards and feel invincible when making threats or hurtful remarks. But what can you do as a school employee? Many administrators and teachers say they feel constrained because most cyberbullying occurs away from the classroom.
An "Acceptable Use" policy (AUP) is a contract among the school, the students, and the students’ parents. Parry Aftab, one of America’s leading specialists in cyberlaw, has suggested that schools update their Acceptable Use policies to specifically prohibit the misuse of computers, cell phones, and all other communication devices used by cyberbullies away from school. As a result, the school gains a legal foundation to discipline cyberbullies no matter where the bullying originates or which device is used.
SafeSchools’ Online Safety: Cyberbullying covers the ways in which students exploit technology in order to harm others. The course begins with an overview of the many ways kids communicate online. The instruction centers on the three criteria of bullying, legal limitations faced by schools, and how to handle a cyberbullying situation.
If you would like to preview any of the SafeSchools.com courses please email us at info@SafeSchools.com or call 800.434.0154.
Health Emergencies in Schools
According the Center for Disease Control, the percentage of students with some form of chronic condition is increasing. For example, the occurrence of asthma increased significantly from 6.8 million cases in 1980 to 17.3 million cases in 1999.
As health emergencies become increasingly prevalent in our schools, it’s necessary for school employees to learn how to help a student – or possibly a fellow co-worker – in such an event. Since a quick response can sometimes mean the difference between life and death, it is crucial to understand how to recognize symptoms and help an individual suffering from a potentially life-threatening health emergency.
SafeSchools’ Health Emergencies: Overview is designed for all school staff and focuses on the four major chronic conditions prevalent among students. The course provides a brief overview of asthma, life-threatening allergies, diabetes, and seizures. For more information take the SafeSchools Health Emergencies companion courses.
If you would like to preview the Health Emergencies: Overview course, just give us a call at 1.800.434.0154 or email info@safeschools.com.
Working in the Heat
Many school employees work in an environment that subjects them to excessive heat. Perhaps you’re a coach, a playground supervisor, a groundskeeper, a maintenance worker, a bus driver, or a marching band director. All of these jobs, as well as others, can put you at risk for overheating in hot weather. School districts in warmer climates often have to deal with the harmful effects of heat for much of the school year.
The effects of heat illness range from simple discomfort to heat stroke. Heat stress reduces work capacity and efficiency on the job. Signs of heat illness include tiredness, irritability, inattention, and muscle cramps. If you or someone with whom you’re working is suffering from the effects of heat stress, you need to take action immediately!
- Rest in the coolest available place
- Drink cool rather than cold fluids
- Get help from a school nurse or district health official if the patient does not rapidly improve after fluid replacement and removal from the heat
- Call 911 if you don’t have access to a school nurse
SafeSchools’ Heat Illness Prevention course is designed for school employees who work in the heat and are at risk of experiencing heat illness. The course emphasizes precautions that workers can take to minimize heat stress, while detailing the various types and symptoms of heat illness.
Interested in learning more about Heat Illness Prevention? Give us a call at 1.800.434.0154 or email info@safeschools.com.
We're Moving!
Not only is our customer base growing, but our facilities as well! The SafeSchools team has outgrown our current location, and will shortly be expanding to a bigger and better facility. As of April 1, 2008, you will be able to reach SafeSchools at the following address:
SafeSchools LLC
7434 Montgomery Rd.
Cincinnati, OH 45236
We look forward to hearing from you!
School Safety Quote of the
Month: School Security
Ken S. Trump, President of National School Safety and Services says, "Parents will forgive school officials if their test scores go down. They are much less forgiving if something happens to their children that could have been prevented or better managed."
Mold Problem Kept Quiet
Growth Never Tested for Toxicity before Abatement
http://www.centredaily.com/news/local/story/467189.html
Children with Healthier Diets Do Better in School, Study Suggests
A new study in the Journal of School Health reveals that children with healthy diets perform better in school than children with unhealthy diets.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320105546.htm
Online 'Cyberbullying' Hurtful for Children
Recent advances in technology have given kids new ways to communicate, but also new ways to be hurt.
http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080406/LIFE/804060311
Other Relevant School Safety
New Stories -- Links Only
A Group of Georgia Third Graders Plot to Attack Teacher: http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/topstories/news-article.aspx?storyid=106016
Probe Expanded of Junior High Students' Exchange of Pics by Cell in Utah: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,344433,00.html
Teens Attack Australian High School; 19 Injured: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,347188,00.html
Columbine 9th Anniversary: School Safety Lessons and Legacies: http://www.expertclick.com/NewsReleaseWire/default.cfm?Action=ReleaseDetail&ID=20994
Girls Record Attack on Teen to Allegedly Post on YouTube: http://www.wftv.com/news/15817394/detail.html
School District Confronts Mold Concerns: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-school-mold_08apr08,1,6940106.story
New Student Privacy Rules Proposed: http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/2008/04/02/new_student_privacy_rules_proposed
District Tests Third Brake Light on School Buses: http://www2.highlandstoday.com/content/2008/apr/08/district-tests-third-brake-light-school-buses/
Virginia 1st State to Require Internet Safety Lessons: http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=8127995
Girl Fight Trend Growing Online: http://www.local6.com/news/15831787/detail.html
Survey: Cyber-Bullying Affects U.S. Teens: http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Health/2008/04/09/survey_cyber-bullying_affects_us_teens/3823/
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