In December 2009, Janette Ferguson traveled to Corpus Christi, Texas, to participate in the Harbor Lights Festival boat parade. The day prior to the festival, Ferguson spent the night on her family's sailboat that was kept in a slip on the city marina's C pier. Upon waking the following morning, Ferguson walked to the marina's bathroom facility to…

Providing a safe classroom and laboratory environment should be the first priority of any career-technical and technology/engineering education instructor. Doing so not only increases the opportunity for student learning, but it also keeps instructors "out of hot water" with respect to legal issues of liability. In today's litigious…

Lists the components of an inservice program on school safety and liability: discussions of current trends, legal terminology, specific cases, tort liability, and a safety survey of the environment and teaching practices. (Author/JM)

Discussed are facts about tort liability in science education and strategies that can be used to avoid liability. Variables such as maturity, size, age, mental capacity of students, and the nature of the activities are addressed. Included are four cases in which teachers were held liable for accidents. (KR)

Although the definition has its limitations, a tort is generally defined as a civil wrong, excluding breach of contract, that results in injury to another. Torts include both intentional and unintentional acts, and the resulting injuries may range from actual physical harm to damage to the individual's tangible or intangible property. If it is…

Guidelines are offered here for school practitioners to follow in order to safeguard themselves against tort action, which can arise from student accidents occuring during school activities, on or off campus. (Author)

A tort is defined as a civil wrong, independent of breach of contract, that results in injury to another person who is entitled to collect damages. The array of cases handed down in 1977 indicates that the tort domain of education law remains heavily litigated. This chapter shows that student injury cases continue to dominate, although…

This article provides teachers with an overview on tort liability as it applies to their profession, especially in relation to student injuries. Such legal concepts as tort, negligence, and in loco parentis are discussed and guidelines are drawn from selected court cases. (SJL)

A brief look at the art teacher's legal liability for student accident or injury in the art room, plus tips for maintaining a safe classroom. (SJL)

In the United Kingdom, insurance is becoming harder to get and society is becoming increasingly more likely to demand criminal sanctions when accidents occur. Adventure educators can protect themselves by having a demonstrable, transparent system of risk assessment, safety equipment, training, and control, but they must also educate the public to…

Most litigation involving college students' alcohol consumption and related accidents claims negligence on the part of institutions or their agents. General trends may be predicted from past state court decisions. Colleges and universities may wish to reexamine their policies with regard to consumption of alcohol by their students. (MLF)

This guide focuses on the legal responsibilities of coaches and physical educators, but much of the content is equally applicable to those who teach sports skills in other recreational settings. The guide presents the legal duties of the coach or teacher. The content is drawn from a review of sport lawsuits (or sports injury litigation) over the…

Discusses various aspects related to negligence on the part of chemistry teachers. Areas addressed include negligence in tort law, avoiding negligence suits, proper instructions, proper supervision, equipment maintenance, and other considerations such as sovereign immunity, and contributory versus comparative negligence. (JN)

When considering the tort liability of school districts or their employees for injuries suffered by students, the court basically mentions two separate problems: first, whether under the facts of the case any duty of supervision was owed to the injured person; second, whether such duty, if owed, was reasonable and was satisfactorily conducted by…

On the premise that the benefits of adventure education far outweigh risks in any well managed program, this document provides such programs, which stand on relatively untested ground in the eye of the law in this litigious society, with strategies for reduction of risk by controlling the nature and frequency of accidents. The first section…