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HOW NOT TO MAKE HEADLINES

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ONE DAY before this year's school term opened, a 5-alarm fire destroyed a Baltimore, Md., school. This same type of fire a day later might have taken many children's lives. SCHOOL LIFE presents this challenging article to alert you to the need for safe exit practices in your school before it may be too late. Author of the article is William H. Morris, Office of Education staff. The publication referred to in the article is School Fire Drills, by Nelson E. Viles, Office of Education Pamphlet No. 103. It may be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C., at 10 cents a copy. Also available is A Curriculum Guide to Fire Safety for Elementary Schools, by Helen K. Mackintosh, Office of Education Bulletin 1946, No. 8, price 10 cents, from the Superintendent of Documents. The photographs illustrating this article were furnished by the National Fire Protection Association, Boston, Massachusetts. The first photograph was taken by Acme Photo, New York City. It shows pupils looking at what remained of their 3-story school building in Bethel Township, Pennsylvania, after it was destroyed by fire. Forty children were led to safety by their teachers. The second photograph, taken by Bill Wilson, Atlanta Journal staff photographer, shows an Atlanta, Georgia, elementary school burning. The loss was $60,000.

ISASTERS that don't happen make no headlines. Sometimes they don't happen even though hazardous conditions have existed for decades. That's sheer luck. Sometimes they don't happen when danger does arise because proper precautions have been taken. That's good management. But in neither case do they make headlines. They should.

An exception to the rule was the incident in Texas City, Tex., last year. What happened in the Danforth Elementary School was only a footnote to the searing story of the disaster that struck the city. But the National Parent-Teacher Magazine thought it was worth the telling. When a merchant ship exploded in the harbor and detonated the industrial plants nearby, the walls of the Danforth School crumbled. Debris obstructed corridors and exits. Children were cut by flying glass. Yet, to the lasting glory of Principal Ray Spencer and his teachers, 900 children left the school in safety. The story of their orderly departure was told by the lines of blood along the hallways. Because they hadn't time to think, they acted through habit. There was no panic. It was the perfect fire drill.

Contrast that with the incident at another school, where 36 died one Christmas Eve. A candle set a Christmas tree afire. Everybody in the 1-room school tried to get out through the only door in the building at once. Because the danger of panic is ever present under such circumstances, School Fire Drills, a bulletin recently published by the Office of Education, commands the attention of school administrators in every State. The bulletin was written by N. E. Viles, specialist in school-plant manage

ment in the Office's Division of School Administration.

The fact that school attendance is compulsory places special responsibility on school administrators for preventing disaster through fire and panic. Present overcrowding of many schools gives the subject even critical importance. It can almost be put in a formula: (Undrilled pupils) (overcrowded schools) + fire = panic (death by suffocation, trampling, or burning). A few illustrations of crowded conditions selected from files of the Office of Education may point up the danger. A school in C built for 700 pupils, has over 1,000 enrolled. Rooms built for 25 are crowded with 40, two to a seat. In the same county is another school with 35 pupils in each of two dressing rooms off the stage. The

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rooms have floor space for 20. In a basement storage room, from which the only exit is up steep wooden stairs, are another 40 pupils.

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A school in a small town in the State of has over 600 pupils enrolled in an old building. The route to the girls' washroom, in the basement, is down wooden stairs and past an open furnace room. The furnace room has oilsoaked wooden floors, so old one can see through the cracks. The washroom windows are fastened tightly with heavy wire. screens. If a fire should break out in the furnace room, the washroom would make a perfect trap.

A university in the State of

uses the second floor of a building as an auditorium seating up to 600 persons. The only exits are two wooden stairways to a common landing on the first floor.

Unfortunately, these are not isolated examples. They can be found in almost every county and in most major cities in the United States. Today, as this article is being written, the Washington Post carried a story about crowded schools in one of our larger cities. Here are 1,800 pupils in one area of the city attending schools built for 1,200. In one of the schools, classes are held in a basement storeroom.

Crowding of our educational institutions, furthermore, is not a condition that may be soon corrected. We are far behind in construction. Yet the peak in school enrollment has not been reached. My same morning paper tells more about that city area. There are nearly three times as many children age 6 and under as are now in school; and nearly 3,000 additional

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housing units are under construction or planned in that area. Nearly 4 million babies were born in the United States in 1947. Unless construction takes place, therefore, at an unprecedented rate, we will have further overcrowding, rather than an easing of the present situation.

Fire safety measures for schools include proper construction and use of buildings, elimination of hazards, plans for fighting fires, and plans for escape when danger arises. School Fire Drills primarily discusses the last-named aspect. It is concerned with the saving of lives.

High lights of the publication follow:

School Fire Losses

School fires are not a thing of the past. The National Fire Protection Association estimates the number of school fires in the period 1930-46 at 35,000. Although few of these were major fires, nearly all were potential destroyers of life and property.

Basic Principles of Fire Exit Drills

No building is completely fireproof; no group of children is panicproof; no fire drill is completely foolproof.

Safety should not be sacrificed for speed. There is no substitute for actual drill. An uncontrolled drill may become a stampede; control of drills therefore must be absolute. Because both school officials and personnel change, the drill should be carefully planned and documented. Full participation should be required of all employees.

The supervising school official should discuss exit procedures with all teachers. and other employees at the beginning of the year. Teachers should post instructions in each room and discuss procedures with pupils. They should discuss drills immediately after they have been held. The principal, however, should be responsible for the plan and for the execution of the drill in his building.

Developing the Plan

In developing the plan, the principal and staff should prepare for all possible contingencies. The plan should be tailored to fit the building. Yet it must have flexibility. There should be similarity in plans for different buildings in the same district so that transferring pupils will not be confused. Plans should be discussed with local fire department officials. "Each drill may be made a teaching device in controlled concerted action."

"If the parents of American school children were to demand a maximum degree of protection before permitting their children to enter school buildings, many buildings and building exit practices would, of necessity, be improved immediately." -School Fire Drills

If exit facilities were not originally constructed to provide the safest exit procedures under present conditions of building use, school officials may now find it appropriate to request essential changes. Doors, for example, should swing out and should be unlocked when the building is occupied. Night bars and chains should be removed when the building is used for evening meetings. Outside fire escapes should be free of window boxes and other obstructions. Exit signs should be placed over each exit from the auditorium. In preparing the plan, younger children should have first-out privileges. Alternate

motors or equipment that might create fire hazards while they are out of the building. This applies to shops, cafeterias, boiler rooms, and the like.

Fire Alarm Systems

Mechanical systems are often preferred for small buildings; electrical systems are generally considered superior for large buildings. The latter, however, may be adapted to buildings of any size. Systems operated by power should be on separate circuits. Sounding alarms should be single repeated strokes of the gong. The gongs should be of distinctive sound and located in noisy spots like shops as well as in corridors. Flashing lights may be used in areas housing pupils with defective hearing. It is desirable to use similar signals for all buildings in a school system. The principal or his assistant should operate the alarm, but he should instruct all employees on the method of operation, in case of emergency.

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Frequency of drills should be based on local conditions. Probably fewer drills will be needed for older pupils. Drills should be held until perfection is obtained; they should continue to be held to maintain perfection. Drills should be held at various times during the day, including the period during class changes. The style should be varied to simulate fire conditions.

fighting squads and teach them use of
extinguishing devices.

The supervisor responsible for school
safety should require an efficiency report
on each drill. If a building is so unsafe
as not to assure reasonably safe evacuating,
the building should be made safe or no
longer used for housing school children.

ACTS OF CONGRESS
Continued from page 5

Public Law 796 listed under Higher Edu-
cation earlier in this summary.

Except for the first drill of the year, they Surplus Property For Education
should be unexpected.

Group gatherings in auditoriums and gymnasiums present special safety problems. A recommended practice is to designate certain teachers to be present at such gatherings and to train them in appropriate procedures. It may become necessary to obtain cooperation from fire department officials in enforcing safety regulations. Standing and sitting in aisles or around exits should be prevented. Exit drills should occasionally be held when pupils are gathered in assemblies.

Teachers, especially those of adjacent rooms, may be assigned to work in pairs during drills. Pupils in this case should be taught to follow the instructions of either teacher. Teachers should understand that teacher-panic breeds pupil-panic.

If plans for alarm systems, exit facilities, and the like, have been put into effect, the exit drill itself may be reduced to a minimum number of steps. These steps follow consecutively from the time the alarm sounds, when pupils stop work at once, until the principal and assistants make the final check for stragglers.

If outside fire escapes are to be used in an emergency, they should be used in drills. If the principal feels that the escapes are unsafe, that fact should not be an excuse for not holding drills by route of the stairs. until the escapes are made safe.

Putting Out Fires

The hanging of a blanket near hazardous spots like laboratories for use in wrapping around a pupil whose clothing catches on fire is recommended. A flood shower may be maintained in chemistry rooms for the same purpose. It is not necessarily wise for all persons to abandon a building and leave a small fire that might spread before firemen arrive. Some schools organize fire

Public Law 616 (S. 2277). This law amended the Surplus Property Act of 1944 to provide that the War Assets Administration may transfer to any State, including political subdivisions or municipalities (school districts implied), any surplus land, including improvements and equipment thereon which, in the opinion of the Secretary of the Interior, is suitable and desirable for use as a public park or recreational area. (Approved June 10, 1948.)

Public Law 652 (S. 1302).—This law amended the Surplus Property Act of 1944 to authorize the War Assets Administrator to dispose of, without charge except for shipping costs, to States, including political subdivisions (school districts implied), to public and governmental institutions, or to nonprofit or tax-supported educational institutions and nonprofit associations, any surplus personal property suitable for use in athletics, sports, or games. (Approved June 16, 1948.)

Public Law 889 (H. R. 5882).—This Act authorized the Secretary of the Armed. Forces to donate for educational purposes without cost other than for packing and transportation, such equipment, books, and other supplies as may be obsolete or no longer needed by the Army, Navy, or Air Force, and which any of the Secretaries or the Commissioner of Education consider usable for educational purposes. With a few exceptions, the approval of the Commissioner of Education is required as a prerequisite to donations to educational institutions. (Approved July 2, 1948.) See Public Law 796 given under Higher Education above.

Aid to War Defense Areas

Public Law 839 (H. R. 6527).—This law authorized the Federal Works Administrator during the fiscal year 1949 to make con

tributions for the operation and maintenance of school facilities to local school agencies that are overburdened with school enrollments caused by war activities or resulting from the reactivation or expansion of any defense establishment or the operation of any defense establishment. An appropriation of $6,000,000 was authorized. (Approved June 29, 1948.)

Public Law 785 (H. R. 6935). This law appropriated to the Bureau of Community Facilities, Federal Works Agency, $3,000,000 of the $6,000,000 authorized by Public Law 839. (Approved June 25, 1948.) On Federal Projects

Public Law 586 (H. R. 4201).—This law authorized payments to public-school districts serving Fort Peck Project, Montana, for education of dependents of persons engaged on Fort Peck Project. (Approved June 3, 1948.)

Public Law 835 (H. R. 6028).—This Act authorized the Secretary of the Interior to make provisions for the education of persons employed on the actual construction of projects engaged in by the Bureau of Reclamation in cases where construction activity places an undue burden upon the facilities of the public schools serving the construction areas. The Secretary is directed to enter into cooperative arrangements with local school districts where such construction activities exist and make a contribution from funds available for the project for covering the cost of furnishing educational services required for the dependents of project employees. (Approved June 29, 1948.)

Indian Education

Public Law 481 (S. 805).—This Act authorized and appropriated $250,000 for the construction of a high school at Roosevelt, Utah, to be administered by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs in cooperation with local and State school authorities. It stipulated that such school shall be available to all Indian children on the same terms as other children of the local school district. (Approved April 15, 1948.)

See summary of "Court Decisions Relating to Education" by Dr. Keesecker in November 1948 SCHOOL LIFE. During the year, SCHOOL LIFE will bring you other reports on legislation affecting education.

New Books and Pamphlets

American Children Through Their Books 1700-1835. By Monica Kiefer. Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1948. 248 p. Illus. $3.50.

The Challenge of Atomic Energy. A Resource Unit and Discussion Guide for Teachers and Group Leaders by Crary, Evans, Gotlieb, and Light. New York, Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University. 92 p. 90 cents.

Community Education in Action. A Report on Community Organization and Adult Education. Published through the Cooperation of the Institute of Adult Education, Teachers College, Columbia University. (Order from: American Association for Adult Education, 525 West 120th St., New York 27, N. Y.) 58 p. 50 cents.

For You... A Career in Home Economics. Washington, D. C., American Home Economics Association (700 Victor Building), 1948. 24 p. Illus. 50 cents.

Free Teaching Aids in 14 Subjects. Compiled by Lili Heimers. Upper Montclair, N. J., New Jersey State Teachers College, 1948. 53 p. (1948 Series, No. 1.) Processed. $1.

Gymnastic Handbook. By Major J. G. Thulin. Published by Sydsvenska Gymnastikinstitutet, Lund, Sweden. Cloth binding, 488 p., 3,300 illustrations, $5.50; paper-bound, $4.50.

Indoor Climate. A Science Reader for the Junior High School. By Elsie Padgett. Gainesville, Fla., University of Florida, Sloan Project in Applied Economics, College of Education, 1947. 40 p. Illus. 35 cents.

Let Us Pay for the Kind of Education We Need.

Report of a Study of State and Local Support of Mississippi's Schools. William P. McLure, Director. University, Miss., Bureau of Educational Research, University of Mississippi, 1948. 151 p. (Studies in Education, Vol. 1, No. 1.) Public Relations Primer. Especially adapted for schools. By Lew E. Parmenter and Otis A.

Subscription Blank

SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTS,

Crosby. Published by the National School Service Institute, 307 Palmer House, Chicago 3, Ill., in cooperation with National Education Association, National Association of State Teacher Association Secretaries and the School Public Relations Association. 24 p. 25 cents.

A State-Wide Nutrition Program Sponsored by the West Virginia State Nutrition Committee. Charleston, W. Va., 1948. 156 p. Illus.

Teaching the World to Read; A Handbook for Literacy Campaigns. By Frank C. Laubach. New York, Friendship Press, 1947. 246 p. $2.

Wealth Through Education. By V. L. Cox. New York, Stephen-Paul Publishers, 1947. 331 p. $3.75.

SCHOOL BUILDING CRISIS
Continued from page 12

type plans rather than massive structures, and (7) maximum provision for adaptabil. ity to changing conditions.

Educational Plant Needs.-In the fall of 1947 the Office of Education, in cooperation with the National Council of Chief State School Officers, studied the needs for edu cational facilities land, buildings, and equipment to replace or modernize unsafe and obsolete educational facilities and to provide new facilities to accommodate present educational programs and enrollments predicted for the immediate future. The total estimated cost of these school and college plant needs, both for public and nonpublic institutions, is 11 billion dollars. The break-down is: Elementary and secondary public, 6.6; nonpublic, 0.8, higher education, public and nonpublic, 3.6.

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By type of facility, the break-down is: New buildings and additions, 7.9; remodeling and rehabilitation, 1.3; equipment, 1.2; and sites, 0.6.

Costs and Financing.-The average building cost index for the first 6 months of 1948 was 331.21 on a 1913 base of 100, as compared with 228.75 in 1943, 239.14 in 1945, and 307.68 in 1947. There seems to be no indication that costs will come down any time soon. Thousands of localities cannot provide urgently needed school facilities. from local sources and bonding capacities. State financial assistance will be necessary. Many reports coming to the Office of Education indicate that there are several States that will not be able to provide their minimum school plant needs without Federal financial assistance.

State School Plant Assistance.-There are 32 States that have State school plant regulations and/or require State approval of plans for all or certain types of districts. Only 27 States, however, provide school plant specialists in the State departments of education. There is a definite trend toward State aid for capital outlay. Nineteen States now provide some financial assistance to local school districts for capital outlay. Ten of these State aid programs are significant in the amounts of money provided. Several States not now providing this assistance are contemplating legislation for this purpose in 1949.

Confer on
Statistical Reporting

An over-all plan for statistical reporting to be done by higher education institutions. for national reports was considered at an Office of Education conference held just before the end of the 1947-48 school year.

Conferees were mainly university and Government agency officials who represent those in the field who will be called upon

to supply data and who in turn find reports prepared from such data useful in their respective institutions and fields.

It was the consensus that the Office of Education should be the focal point for higher education statistics that colleges and universities could save time and energy by referring statistical information requests to this Office.

U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1948

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Office of Education Publications Scheduled to Come From the Press in the Months Ahead

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WRITE to the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. Give the name of the publication desired, the number or designation, and the issuing office or branch of government. Enclose your check or postal money order with your order. Send currency at your own risk. Do not send stamps or foreign money. Remittance must accompany the order. If a requested publication is temporarily out of print, the Superintendent of Documents will fill your order when the publication again comes from the press.

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BUY coupons in advance from the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C. (20 for $1), and enclose a sufficient number of such coupons with your request for publications to cover payment. These coupons are accepted as cash payment for any Government publication. Many Government. publications are inexpensive.. Use of the coupon method of ordering saves time and expense of sending a check or money order to cover a small cost. Coupons can be handled more conveniently than coins.

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USE the deposit system of ordering. You deposit $5 or more with the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C. Washington 25, D. C. The Superintendent of Documents furnishes a deposit number which you use in ordering publications thereafter. You do not have to enclose payments of any kind if this system of ordering is used. Neither do you have to know the specific price of a publication in advance. You can order by title and ask that it be charged to your account at the Government Printing Office.

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