Common sense isn’t a bad thing to use once in a while but then again that might involve putting two and two together…
Jesse Michener of Tacoma, Washington received a very nasty shock when her two daughters, 11 year old Violet and 9 year old Zoe returned from a school field day battered by extreme sunburn from head to toe. Asked why they hadn’t applied sunscreen lotion the sister’s replied they weren’t allowed to by school teachers.
According to a very little known rule, state policy bans schools from allowing students to apply or carry to school suntan lotion because it is deemed an over the counter medication that requires medication. It seems that with the many additives found these days in lotions some students are at risk from experiencing allergic reactions, forcing many school students who should be using sunscreen protection to go without and possibly exposing themselves to very serious risks.
Appalled by this practice is Mrs Michener who wrote in her blog the following:
‘…While I can sort of wrap my brain around this in theory, the practice of a blanket policy which clearly allows for students to be put in harm’s way is deeply flawed.’
Yet where things really became unwound is when one of the sisters who has a form of Albinism (which the school was aware of) began to break out in blisters and by then both sisters were now experiencing headaches and chills. The school for reasons not understood instead declined to administer the sisters suntan protection. Although one hopes that at least they thought to remove the sisters from direct heat exposure at the time of the outbreak, or at least to have thought to cover the girl’s exposed body and at the very least be given a hat or a sun visor to wear, something from the images above which would allude was not the case.
Although before one walks away with the impression that all teachers are stupid, lacking in common sense or perhaps just fearing the repercussions of not abiding school policy (as ridiculous as it may appear) one commentator, a teacher herself, from Mrs Michener’s blog had this to offer:
AK – First I’ll say that I’m sorry your kiddos are burnt. It stinks that that happened. However, as a teacher, after reading comments from other readers, I had to put in my 2 cents. It seems as though some of the commenters feel that “all” teachers lack common sense. I think that is extremely offensive, to say the least. Yes, I know that there are some teachers that are not good at what they do. Yes, I know that our country’s education system is very broken. But you know what? There are a lot of teachers out there that would go to the ends of the earth for their students. I know that I would give my own life for mine. In the short amount of time that I’ve been in the schools, I have seen beautiful and amazing things happen. I have seen a little boy who struggled with math finally count by tens to 100. I’ve never seen bigger smile then the one he left with that day. I’ve seen a little girl who came to this country speaking NO English whatsoever learn to carry on a fluent conversation in a matter of months. And you know what I’ve seen the most? Caring, compassionate teachers that truly love children. To make a blanket statement, saying that “all” teachers are “uncaring” or lack common sense, is extremely unfair.
People have been getting sunburned for thousands of years, this does not look to be so severe as to require emergency treatment. Lighten up people. Just because one mother freaked out and took her daughter to the ER does not mean anything was done. Further, I guarantee the ER Doc and nurses were less than impressed.
THIS IS NUTS!!!!!! What has happened to COMMON SENSE???? Were the teachers and chaperones COLOR BLIND????????
NO WONDER we are headed for the crapper!!!!