A welding lab in a vocational high school

I. Backgrounds

Vocational school students are educated for a considerable amount of time and professional teachers teach them in laboratories. However, the vocational high school laboratory is regarded as having a “general” learning environment and is not managed by the Korean School Health Act or the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to address this gap and prevent occupational diseases in teachers and trainees. The study prompted a proposal for a safety and health management system for teachers and students in vocational high schools. The proposed measures to address safety and health were based on investigating the actual conditions of the work environment at vocational high school labs.

II. Main results

1. Legislative review


In accordance with the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the educational service industry has many areas that are exempted or excluded, but it is necessary for schools to carry out health and safety education, to appoint a health officer, and to operate the Occupational Health and Safety Committee (OHS committee). In addition, Occupational Safety and Health Act sets exposure standards for evaluation of the working environment. Considering the characteristics of adolescents, it is necessary to prepare appropriate exposure standards. It needs to consider special health examinations for teachers to protect their health. At least, safety education for vocational high school students should be strengthened by including ‘occupational’ safety and health education, and occupational safety and health personnel should be included in the school health committee.

2. Review of foreign cases


The implications of the safety and health management in overseas vocational education are as follows. The legal roles and responsibilities of the national, local, educational administration agencies and schools should be clarified; therefore, administrative responsibilities in safety and health management in vocational education should be clearly maintained. It is also necessary to include safety and health education in core curriculum. To support this, elaborate manuals for safety and health education must be produced and distributed.

3. Results of visiting research of schools


Although the interests in and awareness of safety within vocational schools have increased, they have not been extended to occupational safety and health. In order to improve the environment of the laboratory and to promote safety and health, it is necessary to allocate a separate budget for laboratory safety and health.
Since there are huge differences in the level of hazard exposure and laboratory environment by department or school, it is necessary to think about improving the laboratories with high levels of exposure to hazardous substances and those with highly toxic substances first. In addition, it is necessary for the Office of Education to provide schools guidelines for laboratory improvements and to carry out the plans for improvements rather than entrust individual schools with the improvement of labs.
Occupational safety and health education for teachers and students should be monitored and strengthened, and laboratories should be included in the school risk assessment. Furthermore, we suggest that the Office of Education should consider appointing a professional officer who can oversee, manage, and support the lab’s safety and health to drive the plans.

4. Follow-up studies


Follow-up studies should be performed to promote safety and health in the school laboratory and to secure the right to health for teachers and students. A study should be conducted to evaluate the environment of the laboratory and the exposure level of hazardous substances in the sample schools and to propose a model for evaluating the hazardous environment in the laboratory. Also, the guide for special health examinations should be proposed based on the pilot examination for teachers of representative sample schools. A standard model of laboratory pertaining to design, construction, equipment installation, ventilation, and maintenance by each department – such as mechanical, electrical, automotive, and beauty – should be developed and applied to individual schools.

III. Research Application


Although the level of the hazardous environment in each laboratory by subject was not measured, this study revealed the health status of teachers and students through field investigation and risk assessments done by experts. The results can be used as basic data for the programs for environmental improvement and management of these schools by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education in the future.
In addition, it will serve as an example for other regions’ Offices of Education when establishing and operating a comprehensive OHS system in the future if the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education establishes an occupational safety and health system considering the situation of the training lab according to the policy proposals derived from this study.