Creating a safe and welcoming school - INEE Toolkit

1. A welcoming environmentA child should feel pulled towards theschool, in the same way that they react whena mother’s face welcomes them with a widesmile and kind eyes. The school building andgrounds can be made to convey this samefeeling. We also welcome students intolearning with our enthusiastic and positiveattitudes toward them.Children are very visual. They delight and thrive in environments thatevoke pleasure, comfort and safety. An infant’s response to their mother’sloving face is a primal example.A school’s buildings and grounds announce a welcome to thestudents. As a child approaches the school grounds, does this areastimulate their natural playfulness and curiosity? A bright colour, anexpressive face or an interesting object naturally pulls a child towardit. Yet, most school buildings do not have these qualities.We so desperately want our children to embrace educationenthusiastically, yet we do not realise that emotionless, unwelcomingbuildings may be a child’s first impression of learning.Assess your school surroundings. If it doesn’t pull a child into theembrace of education, then work hard to create that look and feel toit. Does it convey a sense of adventure, curiosity, fun or excitement?A child should be pulled into the building, curious about what thepeople inside have in store for them.Changing the feel of your school building and grounds is notdifficult; nor would it take much, if any, money. Engaging the childrento help achieve this could be a wonderful school project for them andheighten their sense of ownership of their school experience. Have thestudents create artworks to adorn the outside of the school. They willshow you the colours and shapes that will attract them. The same ideacan be used for the school grounds. Let the students decorate thegrounds. A side effect from this increased student ownership will beless acts of aggression, less vandalism and less absenteeism. The schoolwill become a safe and welcoming place. The teachers and staff will alsofeel this new energy and this will lead to better work habits in them aswell.Another basic way that a school can convey this sense of welcomingand safety is by being clean and tidy. Children view the world from a7