Today I was in Chemistry class when the fire alarm rang. I made a post about it before, but I’ll mention again that it was loud and obnoxious. It was in every room in the school, even the workshop where kids would be working with their hands inches away from a blade spinning 3000 rpm. It was in the Chemistry room, where a kid would be carefully mixing acids and chemicals that would burn the skin with a single drop.
We walked out to the track. I left my backpack and laptop behind. I only had my glasses with no case. We waited about 10 minutes before we were told nothing else but to walk over to the elementary school, as far away from the high school as possible. Along the way I say fire trucks and police cars. Thankfully I found one of my friends in the crowd so, unlike last year, I wouldn’t be stuck in a room reading a science textbook by myself and learning about planets.
We were sent to the library. Just us and about 48 other kids crammed in the class. Sit down, no iPods, no phones, no laptops. Eventually they lifted the ban on the iPods and laptops, but phones were to be confiscated if seen. God forbid a parent knows that their child is all right. You can listen to music, take out books, but please, don’t, under any circumstances, tell your parents that you’re still alive.
By this point we still had no clue what the problem was with the school. My friend told me that if it were a fire, people would go back inside to get their stuff. However, we were in the elementary school, so that wasn’t possible. If they don’t tell us what’s wrong, it’s fair game for speculation. Then the kids can go home and tell their parents that the school failed to fix the gas leak that put us in the same situation as last year. Parents can complain about that. Why won’t they fix the danger that lurks in our pipes?
We have a right to know why we were evacuated to another school. Especially since we pay for the school to run. We pay for them to keep us in a safe school environment.
Yup! I was in math and I found a friend just after I went outside, oh and I lost hearing in my right ear, but it's all okay now.
ReplyDeleteIf that's me you're talking about, that isn't what I said. This is basically what I did say:
ReplyDelete"If the school made an announcement that there was a fire or gas leak or bomb threat or something that required an evacuation, the kids would rush back to their classrooms to retrieve their cellphones, laptops, backpacks, jackets, etc. before leaving. The school's primary objective is to evacuate everyone quickly. They do not want kids being in the school any longer than they have to and risk being trapped by fire, poisoned by gas fumes, or, God forbid, getting blown up. This is why they set off the fire alarms - to get everyone out ASAP."
So I guess that that policy makes some sense. However, when it comes to the no cellphone policy, that is just unbelievable. They say that we would send the town into a panic if we call our parents, but that is false. I'm not going to call my mom and say, "There's a bomb in the school. We evacuated. Tell everyone in town and make sure they panic." What I would really say is, "We had to evacuate the school for some reason. We evacuated to the elementary school. I'm fine. Don't worry." Seriously, what is wrong with letting your parents know you are okay?
I didn't really want to quote you by the word, but I guess since the quote's here I'll ask to use it. Can I use it?
ReplyDelete