Just how safe is your child when out on school trips?

The drowning of seven pupils in Kwale this week has added to a string of recent tragedies involving school trips, raising the question of how much care schools and teachers are taking when they take children on educational or recreational tours.

In May, police in Narok County intercepted three Probox cars in which a total of 80 pupils have been crammed for a school trip. Transmara Traffic Commandant Saudi Ochiengo said some of the pupils were very young and the way they were packed into the cars amounted to torture.

In August last year, a Form Two girl drowned as she swam at the Jomo Kenyatta Public Beach in Mombasa. The student at Friends Secondary School Bwake in Trans-Nzoia County was attending music festivals.

In July 2013, 12 students died when an overloaded bus carrying learners from various secondary schools in Kisii County overturned while the driver tried to navigate a sharp bend at Nyambunde on the Itumbe-Nyamache road. The bus was taking them for a ball games competition.

In March 2012, two students of a youth polytechnic drowned while swimming in Lake Baringo while on a tour. The students aged 20 and 24 were enrolled at Comboni Youth Polytechnic in Gilgil, Nakuru County.

In August 2011, two Form Four students drowned at Masinga Dam when their boat capsized as they toured the Seven Forks dams. The students were students at St Christopher Day Secondary in Embu County.

The above are among tragedies that have met learners while on trips. In the latest incident, the Standard Eight pupils were taking a swim at a facility in Diani.

CUTTING COSTS

In light of the Wednesday incident and previous happenings, a parents’ lobby on Saturday accused teachers of cutting costs, which puts the lives of learners in jeopardy.

However, an official of the primary school heads’ association said it is time Kenyans started viewing accidents for what they are and ceased blaming teachers for every misfortune that befalls learners.

Mr Musau Ndunda, the secretary-general of the Kenya National Association of Parents, told the Sunday Nation that St Martin Primary School should compensate parents of the seven pupils who died on Wednesday.

“We would want to hold the teachers to account. They must be responsible for whatever transpired. Parents should be compensated because when a parent hands over their child to teachers, the teachers need to take care of that child,” said Mr Ndunda.

He added that the current legal framework is not stringent enough to ensure teachers are accountable for any tragedies that befall learners.

“The Basic Education Regulations 2015, currently going through Parliament, talk about safety; but the safety measures are so casual and do not address the larger picture,” he said.

He added: “It would be advisable that all school trips be cleared by the National Transport and Safety Authority, which should confirm that the vehicle is mechanically fit. Children also need clearance before they go to certain areas. The maritime authority needs to have more say in the control of the students.”

NOT TO BLAME

But Mr Charles Odida, an official of the Kenya Primary Schools Head Teachers Association (Kepsha), noted that it is not teachers to blame but the overall education framework.

“It is not true that teachers set up learners for disaster. A misfortune is a misfortune. Like in the Wednesday incident, you know how children are. They can get out of their way when in places they want to have fun,” said Mr Odida, who is the vice chair of Kepsha’s Kisumu County branch.

But an English teacher at a public secondary school in the western region, who sought anonymity because he is not allowed to talk to the media, admitted that it is time schools considered providing more adults to accompany students while on trips.

“I remember a time when two of us took 62 students to Mbita Islands. I can’t imagine what would have happened if anything got out of hand,” he told the Sunday Nation.

Mr Odida said that the trend where students travel unaccompanied by professionals like nurses can only be stemmed by a change of the education policy.

“It is different in Israel. I was there last year and observed that a school has all professionals it needs. In Kenya, where would you get money with which to hire a nurse to accompany students?” he asked.

Leaders of beach management units in Kisumu and Mombasa, areas with water bodies that are frequently visited by students, said a lot needs to be done to ensure learners don’t drown.

Mr Eusephio Nyaga, the chair of the North Coast Beach Management Committee, said teachers need to understand the importance of seeking a trained professional before they allow students to swim in the ocean.

“The problem is usually the failure to follow instructions. We feel bad when a terrible incident happens and we will do anything in our capacity to avert it. All this can be avoided by teachers simply consulting with the beach management,” he said.

And Mr Michael Opiyo, who is the chair of the Kichinjio Beach Management Unit in Kisumu, noted that learners need to be extra cautious because the government’s emergency response it not the best.

“There is lack of coordination in the emergency response and many are the times we are forced to devise our own ways to execute rescues,” he said.