Lab+Safety

**REFLECTION – RESPONSIBILTIES OF THE SCIENCE TEACHER**

A teacher has ultimate responsibility in ensuring a safe and effective learning environment. A teacher must be well familiar with guidelines for lab safety and must do continual monitoring to ensure compliance for these guidelines. A Science program has certain potential dangers yet careful planning and implementation will keep unwanted incidents to minimum. As safety is an integral part of planning, preparation and implementation, a teacher must help students develop attitudes towards safety by means of activity based approach and motivation.

**PLANNING FOR A SAFE LAB**

Careful planning and proper execution of experiment is necessary for laboratory safety which must include how to prevent an accident as well as what do in such incidents.

Making safety a priority, me as a teacher would plan out my laboratory safety procedure dividing into four sections – Pre Lab Setting, Students’ Orientation, During Lab Activity and Post Lab Activity. I would design my plan writing out the best strategies so that students can learn safely and effectively keeping following points under consideration for each section:

**//Pre Lab Setting//**


 * 1) Organizing and Label Equipments so that these are easily available.
 * 2) Check to ensure that safety and protective devices are working properly and are easily accessible.
 * 3) Inspection of all apparatus and equipments in the lab.
 * 4) Ensure that adequate space is available for students to perform activity.
 * 5) Performing the activity myself before assigning it to students.
 * 6) Provide containers to ensure safe disposal of chemicals and waste products.
 * 7) Ensuring that lab is arranged in such a way that equipment, supplies and disposal containers are well placed.
 * 8) Keeping emergency phone number list near phone.
 * 9) Reviewing the Checklist for safety measures related to particular task.

**//Students’ Orientation before Task//**


 * 1) Providing Safety Contract to the students that outline the safety measures and rules to be signed by them and ensure that they must follow these rules.
 * 2) Review safe use of chemicals and equipments.
 * 3) Discuss with students proper handling of apparatus and appropriate execution of experiment.
 * 4) Informing students about the location of specific safety items and educate them on use of all safety and emergency equipments.
 * 5) Educating students about all possible risks involved with the task, how to prevent such risks and what to do in case of emergency.
 * 6) Discuss safe use of disposal of chemicals and other wastes by providing guidelines in written.
 * 7) Assigning duty to a group of students helping the teacher in cleaning and inspecting the lab after activity.


 * // During Lab Activity //**


 * 1) Ensuring all students is working in group and is disciplined.
 * 2) Ensuring that students are wearing the appropriate protective equipments required for the task.
 * 3) Reviewing again safety rules and necessary precautions to be taken for the particular activity.
 * 4) Observing, Instructing and supervising students during the activity.
 * 5) Ensuring that students are following proper safe lab techniques related to the activity.

**//Post Lab Activity//**


 * 1) Ensuring that students have disposed chemicals and other wastes properly following disposal regulations.
 * 2) Inspection of lab with the help of students using the checklist.
 * 3) Ensuring work place and equipment are clean after the activity.
 * 4) Ensuring that students have placed apparatus and supplies back to there designated place

Besides this, I would be monitoring the lab periodically with different groups of students for safety measures and would keep a record of this. I would also try my level best to review strategies with new ideas, innovations and measures to ensure that a safe lab is restored.