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WITH THE HOT WEATHER here for another couple of days, at least, there have been calls for water safety training to be made compulsory in our schools.
Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway says it is time to introduce a compulsory water safety module into our education curriculum as young people need to have knowledge on swimming safely.
He says students should be taught about the risks associated with open water, the dangers of currents, rip currents, undertows, high tides and rip tides.
As Ireland is an island nation and many people live near the sea, there needs to be a greater understanding of the tide cycle and respect among young people for the water in general, he said.
So, what do you think?
Should a comprehensive water safety training programme be a compulsory part of the curriculum in schools?
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100%. Use transition year for all the actual life lessons you need to know including water safety, driving lessons akin to what they have in the states etc. there’s more to the standard academia thought in school.
@David Linehan: not every student does ty. Should be primary in my opinion with reminders in sphe
@Gert McNulty: Should be a parent’s job in my opinion.
@Ashling Fenton: both…..
@Ashling Fenton: Water safety, sun safety, dental hygiene, healthy eating, environmental awareness etc is already on the curriculum from junior infants. Journal should be doing some research before asking a click bait question.
@Ashling Fenton: it would just standardise it and could only be beneficial. I know adults that can’t swim and have a fear of water. This will be passed on to the child, so a bare minimum in schools would eliminate most domestic variables
@David Linehan: spot on and always thought basic cpr should be taught in schools,these are life skills that you never know when you could need them
@Ashling Fenton: our teachers used to roll in the telly and show real life situations such as farm safety, road safety water safety and what to do. Really good to engage you people. Teenagers mat require something a bit different. Certainly parents have a role but not all parents have the skills or experience. How would someone from offaly know about riptide only for education. Also up offaly
@Ashling Fenton: exactly Ashling. Every single issue in society put onto schools with an already bursting curriculum.
@antisocialbarber: not always. My dad isn’t a strong swimmer, my mum is worse. I’m not great, but I’m better than both of them. I loved swimming as a kid, and regularly took lessons twice a week.
As an adult, I’m not likely to go swimming, regardless of how much I’d like to. I don’t generally like the beach, so swimming in the sea is rare for me. And I pretty much just have to look at a swimming pool, and I break out in verrucas. Sure, there are swimming shoes I could use, and I did as a kid, but as an adult I just don’t hop in.
I would, if someone was in difficulty, and no one else was willing to help, but that would be it now.
@David Linehan: it’s too late by transition year. Needs to be done much earlier.
@Elaine Malone: get rid of religion and Irish and you’ve time for useful things then
Feels a bit like pass the parcel, it should be a parenting issue, not on teachers programs
@Garreth mc mahon: it already is
@Declan Edward: we were lucky enough to be able to afford to send kids to swimming lessons to at least has the basics. Understandably some people aren’t in that position but maybe people forget fo bring their kids to swimming pools often enough when younger to at least make them aware of dangers and learn large water environments
@Garreth mc mahon: i wouldnt agree. Let’s face it. For a few reasons. Lack of knowledge of water safety from a parents point of view haven’t not received it themselves/ or a fear of water etc. Then let’s face it some parents are lousy. So I don’t see why the state couldn’t intervene in the protection of its people and impose water safety lessons in school as they can’t force parents to do it. Maybe a guest speaker could do it if teachers don’t want to be responsible for it. It’s not going to be a year long lesson.
@Declan Edward: we were lucky enough to be able to afford to send kids to swimming lessons to at least have the basics. Understandably some people aren’t in that position but maybe people forget fo bring their kids to swimming pools often enough when younger to at least make them aware of dangers and learn large water environments
@Garreth mc mahon: swimming lessons are great and everyone should learn how to swim but they don’t teach about rip tides and how to deal with them.
@Garreth mc mahon: not either or..both
@Garreth mc mahon: like the class “Physical
Education..?”
@Ciaran: not every school has a pool for the practical side
@Garreth mc mahon: you are presuming every kid has a parent who’ll take the time and interest.
@Shane McGrath: not presuming, hoping
@Shane McGrath: not every parent cam swim or swim with confidence to teach. The lack of swimming pools in Ireland in the 80s and 90s means ma y parents can’t. Also being.able to swim does not mean you understand water saftey
I definitely feel the idea should be floated..
@Stu Cullum: and first aid
@Stu Cullum: relax for the rest of the day…profound thinker like you needs rest
@Great White Hope: I will thanks… it’s exhausting
Bloody Hell! How much more stuff can possibly be foisted onto schools? Do parents have ANY responsibility towards the development and education of their children anymore?
@sean o’dhubhghaill: parents are responsible for getting the kids to school .. teachers are responsible for doing all the rest there well paid for .. maybe instead of 12 weeks off in summer they could do 6 weeks swimming lessons and still have 6 weeks paid leave in the summer ..
@John Kavanagh: parents are the PRIMARY educators of their child. Read your constitution. It’s not a teacher’s role to teach students life skills. Your attitude is a stinking abdication of a parent’s primary responsibility and a lousy indication of the kind of child you’re responsible for. I would never outsource my parental responsibility to prepare my children for life. Your attitude is reprehensible.
@John Kavanagh: you do realise that teacher are not qualified swimming instructors nor is there a requirement to even k ow how to swim. Primary schools do however facilitate swimming lessons water safety road safety and various other life skills by engaging with experts. If you paid any attention to your child’s curriculum instead of teaching bashing you would understand that.
Primary Schools participating in the Active School Flag initiative are already doing the PAWS programme-Primary Aquatics Water Safety, which is a compulsory element of Active School Flag. https://activeschoolflag.ie/
Every school in Ireland should teach CPR, water safety and how to drive. They should be given every opportunity to succeed in life!
@Mike Ruddy: Apart from CPR sounds the job of a parent to me.
@Mike Ruddy: Apart from CPR sounds like a parent’s job to me.
@Mike Ruddy: and money management
@Ashling Fenton: you’re assuming all parents have the time and understanding themselves to teach it.
@Ashling Fenton: you must have 12 hours professional lessons to sit your driving test and given the amount of bad drivers on Irish roads I’m not sure all parents are qualified to teach their kids driving.. water safety is also something that should be taught by a professional so they learn the correct way
@Ashling Fenton: you must be a teacher
@Rmaybe: you have to be a approved driving instructor to teach to drive.
@Alan Richard Scott Jr.: that was my point
I totally get that students should be taught safety measures & interventions … but teachers are paid to teach a set curriculum *to complement the education they should be receiving by their primary educators – parents*!
We are specialists in our chosen subjects – yet are expected to cover all social ailments, civic responsibilities, developmental stages, transient fads, mental health positivity, racial/homophobic/social status acceptance …
…. more and more responsibilities – more with less! There’s a problem in society?? Surely that’s within the teacher’s remit!!
Where do the parents feature in this scenario?
Swimming in rivers, lakes and the sea will always be dangerous with unpredictable currents, that’s something water safety training cannot account for.
@Andrew Giles: It will always carry an element of risk but that risk could be reduced with training, make it less dangerous and maybe save a few lives.
@Andrew Giles: That’s exactly what water safety training is for, to help people understand the dangers of waters.
@Steve: yes andrew didn’t quiet get that bit .. maybe it’s not safe for him to get into the bath at home
@John Kavanagh: I get it, but maybe you don’t get, that if you can’t predict an unpredictable current, there’s always going to be that element of danger, but I do enjoy a shower, baths are so last century.
And good manners and respect to others.
@Peter Kelly: that goes for anyone. that comes with experience
Yes. Students should be in school from 8am to 9pm and learn everything for life. We cannot expect that parents will teach or train their children for life. It’s unfair and unrealistic.
100% also basic first aid should be thought and refreshed every year you shouldn’t have to pay €200/300 for a first aid course, everyone should know basic skills that could save someone’s life
@Victoria conroy: it’s 2 yearly
As well as navigation and ocean literacy. For any island nation, this would be a minimum.
Yes. Also, time needs to be found in the school year to teach swimming, cooking, changing plugs etc. That must become a normal part of education.
Is there anything that schools shouldn’t have to include in curriculum
@Suzanne Phelan: Religion.
And every bit as important – a first aid course together with cpr training.
On an ISLAND in the OCEAN… why is this even a question?
We live on an island so yes obviously it should be taught at an early age
Post Covid there is a huge responsibility to get school lessons back running, lessons are expensive and not everyone can afford private lessons. Public & Private pools should be on a massive recruitment drive to get swimming teachers back and children in the water – as early as 5 … it’s as important or more important as road safety and children learn that in preschool !!!
Shouldn’t be left until ty that’s way to late.
kids loose interest in these skills if they don’t pick them up very young.
Try ability if you can start swimming at example 4years that’s the time to start water safety
They shouldn’t be a one fits all approach.
Alot more work is needed on this rolling out a new water safety programme will be wasted on everyone it’s like the Irish language here taught ass ways for generations and no one calling it out
FIRST AID Should be compulsory for every student, teacher etc
Where’s grandad?
It’s a parents responsibility
I did Years ago when I a kid of 17.
Unfortunately I don’t have the qualification any more but it’s a vital skill to have.
But saying that you need to be fit to be a lifeguard.
the theory is one part, being fit is another.
@Alan Richard Scott Jr.: Exactly, and I remember my school’s attitude when a child was sick – ring the parents, send them home quickly. I can’t help but wonder how children are expected to cope whwn resuscitation attempts occasionally fail. That’s a lot to put on young shoulders. Good for you that you went for the chance to learn. I’m convinced that any such training should be available to all children but I don’t believe it should be mandatory.
Part of water safety training includes emphasizing the unknowns and understanding potential risks. Like how to identify a rip, locations that should be avoided, who to consult before swimming somewhere new. And it also covers a lot of rescue techniques for those who can’t swim. I trained to water safety instructor level before the day job took over. Around the coasts surfers and surf instructors are often the people doing rescues when the lifeguards aren’t working. It’s gotten so common in Lahinch the local surf instructors are pushing the council to increase the lifeguard cover to year-round. It’s already been extended to full time in June(it used to be weekends only) and weekends to mid September (they used to finish at the end of August).
Absolutely yes! Like in the Netherlands
I think water safety and swimming lessons should be offered, absolutely. Not made compulsory, however. Some few children will always have a fear of water and to force them into pools at a young age will surely only put them off learning for life. If the ‘compulsory’ training is anything like some mandatory classes we had, it could easily ruin the subject for a minority of people who might otherwise have enjoyed it.
@Fiona Fitzgerald: water safety training can be done without swimming. For kids with a major fear of the water they can be taught the principles of water safety and what can be done from the shoreline, like how to throw a ring buoy, which emergency services should be called for in which situations. I had 2 classmates in college who were total non swimmers, one trained to iws safety 4 level (highest point where no swimming is needed) and while also learning to swim and the other was taught to swim by our classmates on holidays but also got plenty of lectures about conditions he hadn’t experienced so he wouldn’t be over confident.
have your say