Scavenger Hunt at Valley Oaks Elementary
Questions Three
Question Three: Physical Safety and Health Related to Technology
What are the safety and health policies related to technology at Valley Oaks?
At Valley Oaks Elementary technology is present in every classroom on campus and safety is highly regarded among all of the staff at Valley Oaks. Safety rules for the students include no drinks or food in the computer labs. In addition, she has instructed them not to have magnets around the computers because of the damage they can cause.
In your classroom, what are some safety issues that need to be solved?
In the classroom that I am currently in there are a few safety issues that should be addressed. First of all there is a group of wire that hang down from the ceiling near the air conditioner. The wires are all capped but it still looks like a safety issue that should be solved, I did not see this problem in any other classrooms that I have been in. In addition in this room there are several fire hazards. The first being that the fire alarm is covered with a poster, this could pose a problem because if there were a deaf student in the room they would not hear the siren and because it is covered they would not see the flashing light either. Second, further down the wall the small box that protrudes from the wall that contains the device to set off the firm alarm is also covered by a poster.
What are some possible solutions to solving these concerns?
These issues could be easily solved by a few simple steps. First, the school electrician should be called about the hanging wires and the teacher needs to remove the posters that currently block two of the classrooms' fire safety devices. I was surprised to walk into a classroom and find several cases of compromised safety that could so easily be changed. The Fire Marshall is coming to the campus in the next couple of weeks, therefore I am sure that the problem will be fixed soon.
What rules, procedures, and special equipment are being used to maintain a safe environment?
At Valley Oaks Carle Klam is the instructional technology coach for the staff. In a brief conversation with her she informed me of some of the schools safety policies regarding technology. In the computer labs the staff has taken several steps to insure the students safety. First, the cords are all tucked up under the desks so as not to present a tripping hazard; second, the primary computer lab has a red cup at each computer station so that if a student has a question all they need to do is put the cup up on their monitor. This prevents the students from wandering around the room and helps to keep them on task. Special accommodations have been made for several students at Valley Oaks via technology. For example, there is a student who has a hard time seeing text from books and worksheets so they have made accommodations for him so that his work is on a computer screen where the text is enlarged.
To visit Valley Oaks Website and see pictures of the school and staff click here.
