Nanny, as has been reported on several occasions on this site, has a wee bit of a bee in her bonnet wrt swimming and swimming goggles, as pupils of Ysgol Bryn Coch in Mold have discovered to their cost.Nanny's chums from the school have banned the kids from wearing goggles during swimming lessons.
For why?
In case they "snap" onto their faces too hard.
Headteacher Lynne Williams says that the school was following advice from the British Association of Advisors and Lecturers in Physical Education (BAALPE).
"It has been recognised by BAALPE that goggles can pose a real risk to children, and this has been accepted by the governors."
BAALPE advice states:
"Head teachers should inform parents and carers that goggles can be a hazard and cause permanent eye injury.
Wet plastic is very slippery and frequent, incorrect or unnecessary adjustment or removal of them, by pulling them away from the eyes instead of sliding them over the forehead, can lead to them slipping from the pupil's grasp with the hard plastic causing severe injury."
Fair enough, if you just warn parents about the danger. However, BAALPE does not say they should be banned.
I would also note, if goggles are so dangerous why are they allowed to be sold?
Why does Nanny allow them to be worn in public pools?
Surely a "snap back" to some children is less painful than an eyeful of chlorinated water?
Surely this really a question of how to correctly, and safely, put the goggles on rather than an inherent safety flaw in the design? In other words why not teach the kids how to use the goggles safely, rather than ban them?
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I would have thought that a slight "thwack" from a pair of swimming goggles could teach our overprotected kids a simple lesson.....Be a little more careful next time as it hurts a bit....This whole idea could be applied to many situations in life, for example; don't poke your dog with a stick as it may bite and this can hurt. When riding your bike be careful not to slip off the pedals, especially if you are male and your bike has a crossbar. etc etc etc.
ReplyDeleteFunny that nowadays kids have to wear goggles in science lessons. Unheard of in my day!
ReplyDeleteThe councils could, at least, sing from the same hymn sheet....
See Ken the problem with your ideas about the school teaching the kids how to use goggles safely is the word 'teaching'.
ReplyDeleteIt's just not what most modern schools are for as the reading, writing and numeracy standards illustrate.
Quite how the kids will cope onece they get into the science lab or even should they be employable and be forced into using goggles for Health and Safety 'reasons' is anyone's guess.
I predict mass confusion and mental breakdown. Or maybe mass suicides? Odd that teenage suicides seem, according to press coverage, to have been rather more common than usual in recent years.
Or perhaps not?
Doesn't the presence of a couple to thousand gallons of water in close proximity to people constitute a drowning hazard?
ReplyDeleteWe should ban all swimming pools! (Rivers, lakes, oceans...bath time)
For goodness sake, Anonymous, don't suggest things like that, some health and safety jobsworth will want to do just that!
ReplyDeleteI agree with what has already been said on this issue by Ken and the other contributors to this site. This is nothing knew, however, as this same argument was used a few years ago, to 'justify' banning goggles. Although, personally I do not use goggles, through choice, if I or anyone in my family wanted to, I'm damn sure I'd let some jumped up health and safety jobsworth to tell me 'it's not allowed.'
Would't the fact that a parent had provided their child with a pair of goggles indicate their consent for the child to use them and an acceptance of responsibility should anything go wrong?
ReplyDeleteKoba:
ReplyDeleteI suspect in Nanny's crazy world, that would be seen as evidence of child abuse and therefore Nanny would need to take the kid into care....For it's own protection of course:-))
You can add to this something I found out from my children this weekend. When mentioning that I had a squash racket they said, "oh, that game you have to wear googles for.". I was baffled. I can understand some sort of protective wear over glasses, but they don't wear them for sport, but as normal wear? Apparently its to protect the eye.
ReplyDeleteNow I've played a bit of squash over the years and, despite being moderately unco-ordinated, I've never been hit in the eye by the ball. I have however, been hit by other rackets. Surely wearing goggles will reduce peripheral vision and therefore increase the chance of hitting someone with the racket.
How are we to develop world class sporting heroes befitting of this great nation if we play to a different set of rules to the rest of the world?
What about cricket balls? I am a fan of cricket and am certainly not suggesting any changes just to please some health and safety jobsworth. However, I am sure you would know about it, if you were hit in the face by one of those, yet helmets have only been a feature of the game for about 30 years or so, and normally only worn by batsmen.
ReplyDeleteAnother school at it with the Goggle ban.
ReplyDeletehttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/gloucestershire/8123819.stm
It's crazy to think of the stuff I was allowed to do at school. Science lessons often without goggles. Playing cricket with no face protection at all (and I did get smacked in the face a few times). Squash with no protection. Badminton even! (imaging that Shuttlecock hitting you in the face!). Rugby, full stop (and yeah, kids got broken bones playing it).
I even got to do caving. I mean underground in potholes and caves with a single guide, no ropes between the pupils, no climbing gear, and the old carbide style lamps. Good god, the amount they could have been sued with that lot!