89% of parents fear heavy school bags will injure children
Up to 89% of parents of primary school children are concerned that heavy school bags could be injuring their children’s backs, according to the National Parents Council (Primary),
The weight of school bags was the “single biggest issue that parents contact the NPC about”, said National Parents Council (Post Primary) director, Paul Beddy.
Nearly one-third of the 3,000 parents who responded to the NPC (Primary) survey said their children’s schoolbags were so heavy that their children couldn’t walk with them on their backs.
The NPC also told the joint Committee on Children and Youth Affairs that 38% of parents were extremely concerned about the weight of the bags and 31% were somewhat concerned.
Four out of five parents would like information for children on how to best lift the bags and how to carry them.
The committee was yesterday discussing the impact of heavy schoolbags and the possibility of introducing weight guidelines, as exist in other countries.
However, assistant professor of physiotherapy, Dr Sara Dockrell, said that guidelines in parts of Europe, the US, and Australia, which state that a full schoolbag shouldn’t weigh more than 10% of a child’s weight, were “without merit”.
“This isn’t a fair method of assessment for a child who is obese,” she said, adding that there is “a lot of evidence that heavy school bags are not the main factor when considering musculoskeletal pain in children”.
Dr Dockrell recommended an education campaign for parents and children about how bags are best carried and about what type of bag to buy.
Paul Beddy, of the NPC, recommended that a forum be established on the issue, “involving all of the stakeholders”, including teachers unions, management bodies, student representative bodies, and the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD).
“We need a process and someone driving this, as we’ve been talking about this for 19 years now and getting nowhere,” Mr Beddy said.
Fianna Fáil deputy in Mayo, Lisa Chambers, called for legislation to ensure that the problem would eventually be solved, but Dr Dockrell said that legislation would require an acceptable guideline and she didn’t see how “guidelines could be established that could be stood over”.
But the CEO of the NPC (Primary), Áine Lynch, said that any forum about schoolbag weight had to be preceded by a discussion about over-reliance on school books in the classroom at the expense of other methods of learning.
Dr Dockrell said that e-education (or the use of iPads in the classroom) was not the solution, either, as research had shown that there was “no difference in the weight of bags of children using iPads”.
“Technology,” she said, “was more harmful to musculoskeletal development than schoolbooks”, as children could damage key muscle groups through the continued use of phones, tablets, and games consoles.
Game theory: play improves your child’s concentration by 58%
Irish primary schools reported a 58% improvement in children’s behaviour and concentration during a pilot project that teaches good behaviour through play.
Principals also reported fewer children being sent to their office for poor conduct, and a drop in detention rates.
The primary school children learn how to regulate their emotions, express emotions, and manage behaviour, as part of a series of fun activities played in the classroom up to three times a day.
Classes are divided into teams that are rewarded for behaviour that encourages learning.
The PAX Good Behaviour Game (GBG) programme can be used on all school children, not just children who have diagnosed behavioural problems.
GBG was piloted in 11 schools in the Midlands and in North Dublin, in 2015. Pupils from junior Infants to fourth class took part.
Dr Margaret O’Donnell, of St Patrick’s College, Drumcondra, said, following the introduction of Pax GBG, that teachers reported lower stress levels, while children enjoyed school more. The relationship between teachers and pupils improved.
“Pupils became more respectful to others, more skilled at resolving conflict, and were experiencing more feelings of happiness, both in themselves and in the classroom environment,” she said.
The PAX GBG has been developed internationally, and has 30 years of research and evidence of children’s behaviour and learning.
Midlands Area Partnership manager, Conor Owens, said: “The findings were highly significant for Irish schools and the programme is highly cost-efficient and could be expanded”.
