School district personnel are obligated to exercise ordinary care for the safety of students.

Failure to do so may cause the distr4ict to be the target of lawsuits.

Physical education is particularly vulnerable to accidents and injuries

More than 50% of injuries occur on playground and gymnasium

All students have right to freedom from injury

Teachers owe students a duty of care to protect them from harm

Liability – the responsibility to perform a duty to a particular group

Tort-  concerned with the teacher-student relationship and is a legal wring that results in direct or indirect injury to another individual or to property

As the result of a tort, the court can give a monetary reward for damages that occurred.

Four points for establishing negligence

Duty – compare conduct of other teachers to establish duty

Breach of duty – failing to conform to required duty

Injury – injury must occur if liability is to be established

Proximate cause – failure to conform to required standards must be cause of injury

Foreseeability – predict and anticipate harmful situations and take appropriate measures to prevent them

Negligence-  conduct that falls below a standard of care established to protect others from unreasonable risk or harm

Types of Negligence:

• Malfeasance
  • Teacher does something improper
  • Committing an act that is unlawful
  • Committing a wrongful act, with no legal basis
• Misfeasance
  • Teacher follows proper procedures
  • Fails to perform according to required standard of conduct
  • Sub par performance of an act that would otherwise be lawful
• Nonfeasance
  • Lack of action in carrying out a duty
  • Teacher knew proper procedures but failed to follow them
• Contributory negligence
  • Student is partially or fully at fault
  • Student fails to exercise sensible care
  • Student fails to follow safety directions
• Comparative or shared negligence
  • Injured party can recover only if found less negligent than the teacher

Common Defenses

• Act of God
  • Places cause of injury on forces beyond teacher’s/school’s control
  • Impossible to predict an unsafe condition
• Proximate cause
  • Accident was not caused by negligence
  • Accident would have occurred under any circumstances

• Assumption of risk
  • Participants assume risk accompanying the activity
  • Not used in physical education because students usually must participate
• Contributor negligence
  • Injured party acted in a manner that was abnormal
  • Injured party acted in an atypical manner

Areas of Responsibility

Two levels of responsibility should be considered when delegating responsibility because:

1. They identify different functions and responsibilities of the teaching staff and administration.
2. They provide a framework for reducing injuries and improving safety procedures.
3. They provide perspective for following legal precedents.
4. In the described responsibilities that follow, both administrative and instructional duties are presented.

Supervision-  All activities in a school setting must be supervised

Two levels are identified in supervision:

• General supervision refers to broad coverage, when students are not under direct control of a teacher or a designated individual (playground, before or after class/school).
• Specific supervision requires that the instructor be with a certain group of students (class).

Five recommendations to ensure that adequate supervision occurs:

1. The supervisor must be in the immediate vicinity.
2. If required to leave, the supervisor must have an adequate replacement in place before departing.
3. Supervision procedures must be preplanned and incorporated into daily lessons.
4. Supervision procedures should include what to observe and listen for, where to stand for the most effective view, and what to do if a problem arises.
5. Supervision requires that age, maturity, and skill ability of participants must always be considered, as must be the inherent risk of the activity.

The major area of concern involving instruction is whether the student received adequate instruction before or during activity participation.  Adequate instruction means:

• Teaching children how to perform activities correctly and use equipment and apparatus properly
• Teaching youngsters necessary safety precautions

The following points help ensure safe instruction:

1. Sequence all activities in units of instruction and develop written lesson plans.
2. Scrutinize high-risk activities to ensure that all safety procedures have been implemented.
3. Activities used in the curriculum must be within the developmental limits of the students.
4. If students' grades are based on the number of activities in which they participate, some students may feel forced to try all activities.
5. Include in written lesson plans necessary safety equipment.
6. If a student claims injury or brings a note from parents asking that the student not participate in physical activity, the request must be honored.
7. Make sure activities included in the instructional process are in line with the available equipment and facilities.
8. If spotting is required for safe completion of activities, it should always be done by the instructor or by trained students.
9. If students are working independently at stations, carefully constructed and written task cards can help eliminate unsafe practices.
10. Have a written emergency care plan posted in the gymnasium.

Equipment and Facilities

School responsibility for equipment and facilities is required for both noninstructional and class use.

The principal and the custodian should oversee the fields and playground equipment that are used for recess and outside activities. 

Administrators should have a written checklist of equipment and apparatus for the purpose of recording scheduled safety inspections.

Indoor facilities are of primary concern to physical education instructors.

If corrective action is needed, the principal or other designated administrator should be notified in writing.

Arrange facilities in a safe manner.

Proper use of equipment and apparatus is important.

Equipment should be purchased on the basis of quality and safety as well as potential use.

The Sports Program

The following areas often give rise to lawsuits if not handled carefully:

• Mismatching Opponents based on size and ability
• Waiver Forms
  Participants n extracurricular activities should be required to sign a responsibility waiver form.
• Medical Examinations
  Participants must have a medical examination before participating.
• Preseason Conditioning should be undertaken in a systematic and progressive fashion.
• Transportation of Students
  Whenever students are transported, teachers are responsible for their safety both en route and during the activity.

Safety

The major thrust of safety is to prevent situations that cause accidents.  It is estimated that over 70 percent of injuries in sport and related activities could be prevented through proper safety procedures.

Guidelines for Safety:

• In-service safety training for teachers
• Review medical records at the start of the school year
• Safety orientation should be conducted with students throughout the year
• Safety rules for specific units should be discussed
• Train student aides
• Monitor instructional practices for possible hazards
• Safety checklist for equipment and apparatus
• Record and report all injuries
• Up-to-date first-aid and CPR certification for teachers

Teachers need to learn the schools emergency plan.  The emergency care plan should consist of the following steps:

1. Administer first aid to the injured student as the first priority.
2. Notify parents as soon as possible when emergency care is required.
3. Release the student to a parent or a designated representative.
4. Promptly complete a student accident report while the details of the accident are clear.

Examples of safety and liability checklists as well as an accident report are available on pages 179 - 181.