While children and youth are generally closely supervised in the school classroom, it appears that many students have been left to fend for themselves in the far less safe environment of the school playground and in some school activities. This situation seems to be resulting in far too many avoidable injuries and/or to the improper recognition and handling of injuries that may or may not have been avoidable. For over four decades I assisted school districts and recreation agencies with their playground liability concerns regarding injuries to both children and youth. When plaintiff’s attorneys called, I generally indicated that I worked professionally in the education and/or recreation fields and did not wish to take a position finding fault with these agencies even where there might be a situation of negligence that resulted in an injury.
My attitude changed a decade after receiving my doctorate in Educational Administration when I received a call from the best man at my wedding, an attorney. He asked that I just review an injury situation and reach my own conclusions as to what should be done in the best interest of school children and the public. As I listened, read the complaint and later read the depositions regarding the incident and injury. I found inexcusable and readily avoidable the unsafe situation that resulted in an injury and permanent eye damage to a child.
In this case, construction was taking place on a school site adjacent and open to the school playground. While most of the faculty remained in their classrooms or adjourned to the teacher’s room between classroom teaching hours (as contracts or other reasons allowed), the students were released to the expanse of a huge playground with very large paved blacktop areas, play fields and multiple play equipment areas...with only a fraction of the supervision afforded in the classroom. Some children were unsafely playing, unsupervised, in the area of the new construction. After two days of recess and lunch periods of dirt clod throwing fights not observed, supervised or controlled, a young boy was hit in the eye as he stepped out from behind the protection of a “ball wall” where he had taken refuge from the flying dirt clods.
Following that case (resolved by a pre-trial settlement in favor of the plaintiff), I returned to my practice of giving the best advice I could to school districts, child care providers, their insurers, JPA representatives or attorneys regarding playground injury claims...wherein the institutions were charged with negligence due to unsafe play facilities, inadequate supervision or both, resulting in injuries. Most frequently, when hazardous or unsafe conditions were clearly recognizable and present at the time of the accident and injury, I recommended that the district or agency pay the medical bills and to try to settle the situation or claim out of court for as “little” as possible. I encouraged the agencies to try to avoid the added expense of plaintiff attorney costs, expert witnesses, court, etc., particularly when it appeared that the agency was clearly negligent.
Some months later another plaintiff’s attorney called me, a friend of my best man. He understood my professional position and asked only that I read the depositions regarding his case of the plaintiff vs. an elementary school district. I did and found hard to believe the situation and the inadequate supervision on the playground...to the extent that part of the playground was unsupervised and even the school’s written playground rules were not understood or being enforced by those supervising the playground, resulting in a major head injury to a young girl.
Still not fully committed to be the plaintiff’s “expert” witness in court, I visited the playground whereon the accident occurred. I was appalled that, over an expanse of outlying multiple playfields, two separate play equipment areas a hard court games and a basketball area, children from many classes were turned loose to play throughout the entire area with only two untrained adult “aides” employed as “rovers,” with no “specific” responsibilities, to supervise the entire area. The jurors visited the playground and found this to be a situation of negligent supervision.
Since the above cases, I have been contacted by numerous attorneys pursuing a variety of lawsuits against school districts and providers of child care...most of which involved serious deficiencies regarding playground area safety and supervision of children and youth. Many of the situations wherein serious injuries occurred were hard to believe regarding the negligence of the school district, school or agency in not providing a safe situation. This caused me to realize that something must be done to reduce situations of, in my opinion, blatant neglect and disregard for the care and safety of children and youth in situations wherein an agency is acting “en loco parentis” regarding the stewardship of children. It is “time for a wake-up call.” While claiming that “the safety of the children entrusted to our care is our highest priority”...in reality, too often, this is just lip service and what is done does not constitute even a reasonable “standard of care.”
In Defense of School Boards, Districts and School Personnel
In defense of school district boards, administrators, faculty and staff, it must be noted that virtually all are greatly concerned with the physical safety of children and youth on the playgrounds and in the activities for which they are responsible. Many school districts and schools have good safety programs and practices, unfortunately too many do not. One of the most positive experiences I’ve had was working as an expert witness for the defense (of an out-of-state school district) in a serious playground injury case wherein the school had an exemplary safety program. There was (1) a safety committee that met monthly, (2) a program to identify playground and activity supervision needs, (3) training for playground and activity supervisors/teachers regarding playground supervision, first-aid, protocol for handling and reporting accidents and emergencies, (4) clear and monitored supervision areas, stations and assignments, and (5) the first thing each a.m. there was quick, inspection of the playground facilities (including landing surfaces) to be sure they were in safe condition (full, no glass, broken equipment or other unsafe or undesirable items). The supervisors even had radios whereby they could communicate with one another and the school office. The positive, pro-active safety program was exhilarating to experience. This school district, although very limited in funds, took the responsibility of playground and activity supervision very seriously and made this a high priority. Needless to say, the school district was not found negligent in its playground conditions or supervision.
Research and Writings Pertaining to Playground and Activity Supervision
In addition to my prior research, reading virtually every writing and every published lawsuit I could find regarding this subject, I examined the texts and training manuals I could locate covering this topic that were available to school administrators and educators. There are current books, pamphlets and even videos on virtually every subject imaginable, from “Aids” to “Zits.” However, I could find no clear, direct, succinct and complete safety guidelines re school playground or activity supervision.
I surmised that writers in education either: (1) did not have this information; (2) believed the matter was too subjective; (3) felt deficient in covering the topic; (4) feared they might become involved in lawsuits; (5) might be professionally ostracized for putting more responsibility on the schools or agencies; or (6) that there was information where it is not readily available for those researching this topic. Too often, I hear references that infer an “ignorance avoids responsibility” approach to such safety concerns, i.e., “if we have no safety rules or guidelines, we can’t be responsible for the lack of their enforcement.” It is as though professional educators or child care providers fear that “if” we publish and acknowledge such safety guidelines, rules or standards that we’ll have to live by or up to them...and that “we can’t afford such safe standards for playground or activity safety in the care of students.” Nothing could be further from the truth.
The Need for Guidelines and Change Regarding Supervision of Youth Activities
After working with, supervising, administering and teaching various aspects of playground and youth activity safety and risk management for over forty years wherein the safety of children and youth is held to be of the highest import, I feel compelled to give the matter of playground and activity supervision its due respect. Having conscientiously worked with or for government in education and recreation for almost the entirety of my career, I am appalled, in many instances, by the apparent lack of understanding and/or callous disregard for the provision of adequate safety for school activities and areas. While schools and public agencies have advanced “light years” in the provision of safer playground equipment and play equipment fall surfaces over the last two decades, little has been produced re safe supervision of school playgrounds and activities. There is an apparent or actual void of information regarding safe supervision on school playgrounds and at/on school activities. Therefore, I will attempt to make the responsibilities of educational administrators relative to this concern clear...point by point.
