An Analysis of Incident/Accident Reports from the Texas Secondary School Science Safety Survey, 2001

Abstract

This study investigated safety in Texas secondary school science laboratory, classroom, and field settings. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) drew a random representative sample consisting of 199 secondary public schools in Texas. Eighty‐one teachers completed Incident/Accident Reports. The reports were optional, anonymous, and open‐ended; thus, they are unique in capturing the strengths and weaknesses of safety practices in school science settings as perceived by the teachers. Pertinent findings include: a) incidents and accidents (mishaps) increased from 8% to 62% as the class enrollment increased from <14 students to >24 students (p < 0.05), b) mishaps increased from 11% to 66% as classroom space per student decreased from >60 ft 2 per student to <45 ft 2 per student (p < 0.05), c) mishaps increased from 11% to 47% as room size decreased from >1200 ft 2 to <800 ft 2 (p < 0.05) d) 35% of teachers did not have adequate safety training within the last year, and e) 69% of teachers had a written safety policy. The findings of this study can be used to develop science classroom, lab, and field safety guidelines on a classroom, school, district, state, and a national level.