Student safety reports address physical, psychological, and structural safety

PRESS RELEASE

A new research publication titled “Piloting Safety Notice Reporting on Comprehensive Education Students” was published on November 14 in the Universal Journal of Educational Research.

The purpose of the study was to gain an understanding of the types of safety reports submitted by students in comprehensive education (grades 1–9) and the safety dimensions they concern. On a national level, student safety reports are not systematically collected. Since students constitute a significant part of the school community, it is crucial to gather safety reports from them as well. These reports provide valuable insights for developing a school’s safety culture. The study addresses the question: What kind of safety observations do comprehensive education students consider worth filing when using an online safety reporting form?

The safety observations reported by students primarily fell into the categories of physical, psychological, and structural safety. The most commonly reported safety incidents were related to structural safety (26% of the data), with the most typical observation being general structural safety issues, such as damaged school property. The study highlights the need for broader safety education in comprehensive schools, with a particular emphasis on strengthening student involvement in building safety culture. One essential tool for achieving this is enabling students to report safety concerns.

The study was conducted as part of the Success in school safety project (ONNI), which involved 20 comprehensive schools: 15 pilot schools and five control schools. The participating schools included primary schools, lower secondary schools, and comprehensive schools (grades 1–9). The schools were located in five different regions and were categorized based on student population size into three groups: small schools (fewer than 100 students), medium-sized schools (100–400 students), and large schools (400–800 students). The study was carried out as a multiple case study, where each safety report was treated as an individual case and analyzed through thematic content analysis.

More information:

University Lecturer Miika Leino, miika.leino@utu.fi

Leino, M., Lindfors, E., & Luukka, E. (2024). Piloting Safety Notice Reporting on Comprehensive Education Students. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 12(5), 114–123. https://doi.org/10.13189/ujer.2024.120503