Abstract:

It is of great importance to carry out various practices related to occupational health and safety (OHS) in order for schools to be safe educational institutions and to prevent various possible danger situations. The primary responsible persons in this area are the school principals, who are the administrators and heads of the schools. As a matter of fact, they have more experience about these activities than teachers and other personnel. Therefore, this research was conducted to examine the opinions of school principals on OHS practices carried out in schools. The research was carried out according to the qualitative method and holistic single case study design. The study group of the research consisted of 17 school principals working in public primary and secondary schools in the Biga district of Çanakkale in the second term of the 2022-2023 academic year. The data were obtained through the responses of the school principals to the structured interview form prepared by the researchers, and were categorized by analyzing with the deductive content analysis technique. As a result of the research, in line with the opinions of the school principals, it was determined that “determining the risk factors and taking the necessary precautions” is the most common practice in schools within the scope of OHS. “Predicting and eliminating the situations that may endanger human life” identified as the most beneficial of the practices at the school within the scope of OHS. It was determined that "problems in the provision of funds" are the most negative aspects of the practices on OHS in schools. The view of “lack of financial support” was determined as the most encountered difficulties/obstacles regarding the practices in schools within the scope of OHS. Finally, in the practices carried out in schools within the scope of OHS, it was determined that the highest expectation from upper units was the view of "material support". It is suggested that OHS trainings should be given with applied and repetitive trainings rather than theoretical and information stacks, and the equipment and financial needs required for OHS practices in schools should be met by upper units. In addition, it is suggested that new school buildings should be designed in accordance with legal criteria within the scope of OHS, responsibilities should be shared with other staff and higher units in order to reduce the responsibility of school principals for possible risk situations in schools, and school principals should be insured for legal sanctions for dangerous situations.

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