Safety Case

The need to be safe is a fundamental right for all, whether you are at school home or just about anywhere. Recently, the call for safety and security for students has become necessary as students and staff in schools has been preyed upon. There have been incidents in which students inflict wounds on each other or were attacked by outsiders. Some of these incidents have resulted in death. Students' social emotional, academic and physical developments are interwoven with safety and order. Therefore the creation of a safe environment at school is of paramount importance as it helps the students to make maximum use of the education being offered. It has been noted that the use cell phones to commit criminal offences has cause the death of atleast four students within the past few years. Even though the school has been ranked as the safest place from home for students they are many areas that still needs to be improved within this system. The ministry of education working along with the Jamaica police force and the Jamaica fire Bridge to try an instill a certain level of discipline within the schools.

The Ministry of Education has embarked on a thrust to promote a culture of security and safety in the Jamaican school. This policy include: 1. Control access to school campus, 2. Control possession of weapons and 3. Contraband in schools. In the attempts to control access to school campus, principals are directed to establish entry and exit points, which should be legible and visible for all to notice. Areas that are not intended for entry or exit should be secured and monitored. The public, students, teachers and parents should also be aware of the policy through the appropriate medium preferably in writing.

The schools should have access operating times; such as opening time which marks the start of the school day. There should also be a designated time for exits at the end of the school day. Students should not leave the school campus within class period unless he or she received permission from the principal or other designated personnel. I believe that schools in Jamaica especially at the high school level can use this aspect of this policy to ensure accountability. If the student doesn't get permission to leave the campus and no one has knowledge of his or her absence, the school's credibility would be questioned.

The control of gangs, associations and anti-social cliques is another very important objective of the Ministry of Education's security and safety policy. One step taken to control this aspect is by creating time tables which would have reduced the time spent within the groups and cliques. When groups and cliques are formed, they tend to display anti-social behaviours and even become violent. The principals must be very observant and adamant in shaping the minds of these young children by setting rules that they should abide by. It would be very pleasing to see that schools take a more proactive