Education quandary

In the old days, we used to drink and drive, allow people to smoke on trains and buses, and not use seat belts. When we realised these things were bad for us, we changed them. The same will one day be true of drinking in schools. Not only will it be allowed, it will be insisted upon. People will look back in astonishment to a time when, even though we knew all about how dehydration causes tiredness, irritability and lack of mental alertness, not to mention all kinds of physical problems, we chose to ignore it.

Nickie Brander, co-ordinator of the Water is Cool in School campaign, describes teachers who block children's access to water as "control freaks". How would they like to go through a day without access to the tea, coffee and water available in the staff room?

But aren't water fountains enough? No, she says, they're just a let-out for schools, who by law must provide drinking water for pupils. Children don't like them, and it's almost impossible to get a decent drink out of them. As for water being available in the cloakrooms, who wants to go to the toilet for a drink?

The campaign has found that the best way to keep children hydrated is for them to sip water at their desks, via reusable bottles with a non-spill cap and somewhere for children to write their names. Although teachers may fear that this will mean more mess and disruption, those who have tried it say that doesn't happen. Instead, children work better and tend to behave better, because they know the school is looking after their needs and giving them more responsibility.

Be persuasive rather than confrontational, says Nickie Brander. Point out that experts from Professor David Hall, the president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health downwards say current drinking-water arrangements in schools are"barbaric". Raise the issue with other parents, the head and the governors. Offer information about hygiene and disruption worries (see www.wateris coolinschool.org.uk). Lobby local doctors and health officials, the education department and your MP. If you get nowhere, tuck a subversive water bottle into your child's bag and tell him or her to sneak drinks when no one's looking.

READERS' ADVICE

It would be a brave man who tried to separate the teenage girls I teach from their bottles of "designer water". It's great to see kids doing something healthy. In fact, they lectured me so often about it that I now keep a bottle on my own desk. My next task is to persuade the boys to follow suit.

Andy Mazard, Norfolk

When I was at school 50 years ago, there was only one water fountain for a school of nearly 200. It was so tall that the younger children couldn't reach it. We also had to queue, so you often didn't get a drink before the bell went. I can't believe that things haven't improved, especially now we know so much more about how dehydration can lead to headaches and kidney infections.

Amy Hetherington, Eastbourne

At my children's primary school, parents asked for water to be available in classrooms, especially in the summer when the south-facing rooms got roasting. The school said it wasn't practical. Now it is considering introducing water coolers as part of a new "healthy school" programme, which is also looking at what they eat. Maybe schools are at last starting to realise they have to play their part in encouraging children to acquire healthier habits.

Diane Jessop, London

NEXT WEEK'S QUANDARY

My daughter has just started sixth form, but seems completely demoralised by this row about A-level results. She says why should she bother to "kill herself" to get good results, if the system doesn't work and everything is rigged anyway? I am at a loss as to what to say to her. Do the people responsible realise just how many students are affected by what has happened?

Send your letters or quandaries to Hilary Wilce by next Monday, 7 October, at 'The Independent', Education Desk, 2nd Floor, Independent House, 191 Marsh Wall, London E14 9RS; by fax 020-7005 2143; or by e-mail at h.wilce@btinternet.com, with details of your postal address. Readers whose letters are printed will receive a Berol Combi Pack containing a cartridge pen, handwriting pen and ink eraser. To share your views with other teachers, log on to www.eteach.com and click to get into its Staffroom