2023-05-02 14:05:11
The school, as a rule, should be one of the safest places for the population. However, the events of the last few days show that the feeling of security can make the school environment a vulnerable place, reinforcing the need to reassess procedures to increase protection in Brazilian schools and the safety of students and teachers.
Traditional monitoring measures have long been insufficient to ensure the safety of students and faculty. According to a survey by Unicamp (State University of Campinas), Brazil recorded 22 attacks on schools between 2002 and 2023, 13 of which were concentrated in the last two years.
After the last events of this year, governments of several states organized task forces to carry out preventive measures to increase security in teaching units, such as the presence of police officers and the creation of conflict mediation programs.
Adherence to electronic security systems is another increasingly solid trend in the area of education, with the aim of monitoring, mitigating and preventing incidents. Since October 2020, bill 4858/20 has been pending in the Chamber of Deputies, which determines that public and private schools of basic education maintain a permanent electronic surveillance system, throughout its period of operation. The proposal is that the cameras be installed in all areas that comprise the school structure, with the exception of bathrooms, individual or collective.
Smart Monitoring
The incorporation of video cameras among the mandatory requirements for educational institutions represents a great advance for safety in schools, as it is a fundamental resource to inhibit possible transgressions, as well as for evidentiary purposes. However, it is worth noting that the recording of images alone is not very effective in carrying out preventive actions. For this, there is a need to apply intelligent monitoring technologies.
The artificial intelligence added to the camera systems allows the issuance of preventive alerts autonomously, according to the identification of behaviors outside the programmed pattern, such as abuse of staying in the place, invasion of perimeters, detection of crowds or animosities, thus forming a system with computer vision that automatically identifies any non-compliance.
“It is important to keep a risk management plan for the school environment active and up-to-date, as this will map the bottlenecks that require enhanced security measures. Technology, especially with intelligent monitoring systems that are managed by an independent company and separate from the internal school environment, is an ally in this scenario, as it allows expanding coverage points and unifying alerts of non-standard events, making decision-making easier. and quicker action”, says Antônio Egypt, business manager at Avantia, a company that integrates and develops new technologies for electronic security, in Brazil.
More technology initiatives for student safety in schools
The panic button is an alternative that has been studied by government institutions as an option to speed up assistance in case of attacks. It can be in the form of an application to be downloaded onto cell phones, or even be physical, installed in loco at teaching units. “Intercoms with panic buttons are already used in some parts of Brazil. When triggered, it is possible to establish important communications, such as with internal school groups, police units or with the monitoring center itself, for quick measures”, highlights Egypt.
Joint protection actions in the school environment
In April, the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, began Operation Safe School, which operates 24 hours a day and includes a series of measures to prevent and curb new episodes in teaching units. The actions are being coordinated in partnership with investigation stations and intelligence agencies of the Civil and Military Police.
One of the initiatives is the Reporting Channel, which will act exclusively by receiving information on threats and attacks once morest schools. Through this channel, publications on the web with suspicious content are also being monitored.
Other measures are also being discussed by an interministerial group coordinated by the Ministry of Education, which will have participants from state governments. Among them, in addition to policing in schools, monitoring by cameras and panic button, there are also turnstiles and metal detectors at the entrances of school units, work of psychologists in schools and community support groups.
“There is no one-size-fits-all solution to prevent further events. Technologies add up a lot, but integrated and multisectoral measures are needed in order to prevent, contain and act in the event of attacks, without forgetting to maintain the school environment as a place that develops, values and humanizes relationships between people”, concludes Antonio Egypt.
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