A tremendous amount of attention has been paid to school safety and the coronavirus as the new educational term begins this fall. There is no doubt that proper steps must be taken to keep children safe from contagious diseases while they are in school. The reality is that there are other types of items that can be hazardous to our children while they are in school. Six items that are most hazardous when it comes to students and which are responsible for the largest number of student injuries are discussed here. Before we dive into this discussion, it is important to understand the legal duty schools have to keep students safe while on school grounds.
Duty to Keep Children Reasonably Safe in School
Schools are not legally responsible for keeping children absolutely or perfectly safe while they are at school. Rather, schools have what is known as a duty to keep students reasonably safe when at school. This means that they have to take all reasonable steps necessary to prevent children from becoming injured while on the premises. The sad reality is that there are many occasions in which schools fail to satisfy their duty to keep children reasonably safe while at school.
Playground Equipment
Schools have focused a great deal of attention on attempting to make playgrounds safer. There has been some success in this regard. However, playground equipment remains one of the most common instrumentalities of injury in a school setting. The most common causes of playground injuries include:
- Lack of proper adult supervision
- Inappropriate use of playground equipment
- Poor maintenance of playground equipment
Stairs
Every year, hundreds of students are injured on stairs. Causes of such accidents include:
- Poorly maintained stairs
- Liquid on steps
- Roughhousing
- Lack of proper adult supervision
Carpets and Rugs
Rugs can also present a very real danger to students. Loose rugs on the floor are invitations to slip and fall accidents. In addition, carpeting (as well as other types of flooring, for that matter) suffers wear and tear and becomes dangerous. Defects in flooring are the primary cause of a good many student injury accidents each year.
Doors
People rarely think of doors as being particularly hazardous. With that said, during every school term, a considerable number of students are injured by doors. The most commonplace of door-related injuries involve fingers being crushed by a slammed door.
Pens and Pencils
People oftentimes overlook how potentially dangerous the lowly pen or pencil can be. Every year, an alarming number of children are injured by pens or pencils while at school. This can happen when children with a pen or pencil in their hands or when students are roughhousing while holding on to a writing instrument of this type.
Scissors
Although arts in education have become more limited in the past 20 years, most schools still maintain at least some type of artistic programming for students. Visual and other types of artistic endeavors can involve the use of scissors. Scissors remain one of the implements most commonly responsible for injuring students. The most common of these types of accidents involve a student running with scissors while not being supervised properly by a teacher or other educational staff.
If your son or daughter has been injured in an accident at school, The Doan Law Firm is available at any time to explain the rights of your child in the aftermath of that type of accident. You can reach The Doan Law Firm now or at any time that is convenient for you by calling us at (800) 349-0000. Our telephone is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year, including all major holidays.
A nationwide law firm, we have 40 offices operating from coast to coast across the United States. We can arrange an appointment for you with a school accident lawyer at any office as well as at your home. A virtual case evaluation can also be scheduled online for you. Keep in mind that there is no charge and no obligation to consult with a school accident lawyer from our firm
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