It seems that Nanny has got herself into a bit of a muddle over safety in swimming pools.Specifically, she is confused about the use of goggles.
On the one had Nanny believes that they prevent eye irritation, from the chlorine in the water. However, she has issues with regard to the drowning risk posed by the goggles.
Drowning risk?
Yes, drowning risk.
It seems that Nanny's chums in Gloucester Local Education Authority are advising head teachers to ban children from wearing swimming goggles on safety grounds.
They are worried that the goggles present a "drowning hazard" to other pupils. The LEA fears that teachers could be distracted by having to adjust goggle straps on one child and, in so doing, fail to notice another child drowning.
Let's not even mention the risks of the elastic snapping, and causing a nasty little bruise!
Precisely how many children drown each year because of goggle adjustments?
Another example of rules being made, without any form of statistical data to back them up.
Aren't there supposed to be more than one member of staff, including a trained lifeguard, supposed to present at school swimming lessons anyway?
ReplyDeleteAlso, judging on this logic is the teacher supposed to leave one child drowning on the basis that they could miss another child drowning? I've got a better idea, why don't we just ban swimming lessons for the little treasures.....oh wait a minute - some LEAs already have.
ARGH!
I am a parent with a child at primary school in Gloucester and we did get the "no goggles" letter. At this time of year, it would be nice for my daughter to wear goggles because she has such dreadful hayfever and chlorine is just another irritation. The ban puzzled me, but I was told by a friend it was because of a worry over potential eye injuries when the children don't undo the goggles properly to take them off and they snap back on the face. I would imagine the likelihood of an jnjury is small and anyway, it's up to me and my husband to have taught our daughter how to put on and remove goggles properly - how on earth can the school be seen as responsible for this? Finally we were told that on production of a doctor's note (can you imagine facing a busy doctor with that one?), a child could wear goggles - but that doesn't get over the problem of potential drownings because of distraction, any distraction.
ReplyDeleteI believe in teaching children to swim without goggles. This way they will not worry about not having goggles should they fall into a pool. It's absurd that kids are so dependent on them and freak out if water gets in their eyes.
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