Critical Incident Manual - Ministry of Education

Guidelines for Developing a Critical Incident Management Plan for a Safe School EnvironmentThe mentoring programme developed within the school should assist students by:• Providing opportunities for advice and counselling.• Identifying and linking students with youth friendly programmes.• Helping students to work out a personal plan of action.• Providing access to reading programmes and homework facilities.• Promoting personal growth, academic achievement and career development.Development and TrainingAppropriate training for students and staff is important in transforming school into a peacefuland safe place in which teaching and learning can take place. Thus annual ongoing in-servicetraining of school personnel is very important. Schools will identify their training needs andseek to incorporate participatory strategies in the delivery of the training.Participatory DevelopmentAchieving the goal of creating and maintaining a safe school climate will necessitate apartnership of school, home and community. The schools’ CIMP programme by necessitymust be extended to the family and community. This will allow for the reinforcement of theprinciples and skills of non-violence education as part of everyday life. Students will alsohelp adults to acknowledge the negative impact violence in the community has upon their lifechances and long-term mental health. School and community can form valuable partnershipsthrough the PTA, community based groups and community policing.Assessment: Formative and Summative Evaluation ofthe Overall PlanResearch has shown that a properly executed plan can serve to unite school, staff andcommunity for a common purpose and is the first step in a prevention programme. A needsassessment will help the school determine its priority needs, and determine availableresources.The needs assessment should help to determine the following:• The extent to which conflicts/violence interferes with teaching and learning.• The number and nature of conflicts.• Perception of school climate and safety at school plant and surroundings.• The type of conflicts that are student-student, or staff-student.• The effectiveness of disciplinary procedures.• Existing attitudes and practices that will facilitate/hinder programme implementation.• People who can provide training and skills in conflict resolution/staff development.Ministry of Education 2007 / 46