RESEARCH BASED ACTIVITY – SAFETY AND SANITATION AUDIT

CONTENTS

Research based activity – Safety and Sanitation Audit ........................................................................................... 1

Expected Outcomes – ............................................................................................................................................... 2

Time Required – 60 Minutes ..................................................................................................................................... 2

Material Required – .................................................................................................................................................. 2

Activity: ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2

Audit Tool .................................................................................................................................................................. 4

Evaluation: ................................................................................................................................................................ 7

TEACHER’S SECTION

INTRODUCTION

(Pic source - https://www.staylegal.net/focus-on-health-and-safety-audit-questions/)

In their formative years, children spend more time at school than anywhere else, other than their own

homes. At school, children need a secure, positive, and comfortable environment to help them learn and

grow.

Children of our country have been constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights to live with dignity and

to have access to education in an environment that is safe, protective and conducive to growth and

development.

Many documents including RTE Act, 2009, and MHRD circular to the States talk specifically about toilet

standards to be maintained in schools.

 Toilets must be located on the school premises

 There must be separate toilets for girls and boys

 Separate toilets for children, staff, support staff

 There must be separate toilets for visitors

 Every school needs to maintain a certain number of toilets as per the prescribed norms (according

to affiliation bylaws of respective boards)

 Toilets must be kept open for the use of children

 Separate toilets, as per the norms, must be available/accessible for children with disabilities

 All the toilets preferably need to have running water facility

 Availability of soaps etc. for washing hands should be ensured by the schools

 All the toilets must have doors to ensure the safety and privacy of the children

 The school needs to have a clean and working method of disposing of waste materials, especially

for girls.

 Toilets must be cleaned on a daily basis.

Let the month of dignity, be the scientific month for our students, and let them experience the safety and

sanitation measures available in their own school, and let them suggest ways to improve the facilities,

with the following Audit Activity -

EXPECTED OUTCOMES –

1. Students will be sensitized on issues with regards to their school’s safety and sanitation facilities,

and whether or not there is a lack of facilities within their school.

2. Students will be encouraged to develop their own ideas for improving the facilities.

3. It will develop the scientific approach amongst students to analyze any situation, and propose

solutions.

Time Required – 60 Minutes

MATERIAL REQUIRED –

Paper, pen, chart

STEPS FOR THE ACTIVITY:

1. Make small groups for audits and take permission from school Management. If your school has

multiple storeys and each floor has toilets, then it is better to assign the toilets on different floors

to different groups. Segregate the group’s gender base to assign separate toilets both for girls and

boys. Supply the material to all groups.

2. Conduct a small brainstorming session with all groups -

a. What do you think is required for good sanitation facilities that your school must have?

b. What do you think is required for a safe toilet in your school?

c. What makes sanitation facilities bad or unhygienic?

d. If a toilet facility was to be ranked from 1 to 5 (with 1 being hygienic and 5 being

unhygienic), what characteristics would each ranking have? (Agree on a ranking system as a

class)

e. What has to be done in your school to improve the safety and sanitation of toilets and the

state of the existing facilities?

4. Present the table “Audit tool” given below to your students and explain the meaning of each cell.

5. Explain to the students that they are on a scientific mission, where they have to find out as much as

they can about the safety and sanitation facilities within a defined area, basically the toilets. As they

carry out the research the students should fill in the “Audit tool” below with information they gain

through their observations and experience.

6. Have the students to prepare a poster/chart/Ppt that reflects their findings, and conclusions they

made during their study on safety and sanitation facilities in their school. Students can present to the

class/DA teacher and the Principal.

STUDENT’S/ PRINT S ECTION - AUDIT TOOL

Floor selected for the Research –

Number of Students on the floor -

1. The school has separate toilets as prescribed, for girls and boys – Yes/No

2. Are there attendants for children in the age group for 3-6 years to assist them – Yes/No

3. Are there separate toilets for children with disabilities? - Yes/No

Number of toilets available –

For Girls

For Boys

Common

For Staff

In total

4. Water audit in the toilet –

1. Wash Basins

Wash Basin availability

Yes/No, if yes number

Water facility during the

audit

(At least 3 checks per day in

frequent intervals)

Leakage in taps/wastage of

water

(At least 3 checks per day in

frequent intervals)

For Girls

For Boys

Wash Basin availability

Yes/No, if yes number

Water facility during the

audit

(At least 3 checks per day in

frequent intervals)

Leakage in taps/wastage of

water

(At least 3 checks per day in

frequent intervals)

Common

For Staff

In total

2. Other facilities –

Toilet seats – Clean

and dry (Give rating

0-3, 3 for cleanest)

Dustbins –

availability

(Yes/No)

Toilet paper –

Yes/No

Doors have

locks and

working –

Yes/No

Comment, if any

particular

For Girls

For Boys

Common

For Staff

In total

3. Rate hygiene from 1 – 5 ( 5: Hygienic to 1: Unhygienic)

4. Safety Measures –

Is CCTV monitoring

system available and

working outside –

Yes/No

Switch

Board/main

switches

working

properly, are

the

switchboard

covered and

cautioned –

Yes/No

Fire

extinguisher/

s is/are in

place –

Yes/No

Whether

ceiling tiles or

plaster

hanging from

the wall/roof,

broken

window

panes/privac

y–Yes/No

Are there any

uncovered live

wires – Yes/No

For Girls

For Boys

Common

For Staff

In total

Write, if any particular safety measures have not been considered and you think is most important.

EVALUATION:

• In groups discuss the findings and summarize them in a couple of main points.

• Together as a class, formulate a letter to the Principal that gives an overview of the study’s

findings.

• In the letter explain your main results and suggest actions that the school inspector can take to

improve the situation.