Nakornpayap International School sent its entire student body, from ECC to High School, outside to the Kris Pavilion and football field to practice evacuation readiness in the case of a fire. The October 8th drill is both a WASC accreditation requirement as well as an overall good thing to do for keeping all Stallions safe and sound.
While the drill was an overall success it was not without a hitch or two. A trial alarm sent a few classes outside before the pre-determined drill time. Another point of confusion, according to anonymous sources familiar with the planning of the drill, was who held responsibility for opening the space once occupied by ECC. Doing fire drills, admin reminds students, is how we work out the kinks in the system. M
ost observers agreed however that the drill was both a success and an important activity.
One of the more humorous (to some) or annoying (to others) was the muddy football field that high schoolers had to trudge through. Students’ shoes got caked in mud and it ended it up in the hallways and classrooms. Jerry Yang, G11, argued that “we need a better place for the drill”. Mona, another G11 student, was a bit annoyed with the whole thing as she had just cleaned her shoes.
Many students see drills like this essential to safety. Zoey G12 called the event “thought-provoking” and “inspiring”. Some students, however, lamented the loss of class time. Vicky G12 said “it’s totally not understandable because we missed an AP class”, she would go on to argue that the drill should change to the last period of the day.
Teachers had their say as well. Physics teacher Dr. Naji saw the importance of the drill saying “it was useful” and that experiences like thisallow students to be prepared when “something actually happens.” Dr. Naji did however argue that high school lost too much time on the trek to and from the football field. Art teacher Ms. Debbie echoed that sentiment by calling the start of the drill a “bit chaotic” but she did say high schoolers did great reacting to the drill.
Still, NIS being a high school and all, humor ruled the moment. Senior Zhifei said it would be better “if there is an actual fire we will know how to survive and be safe.” A teacher who wished to remain anonymous joked that cars should have ferried us up to the assembly point. Another group of students had a laugh saying they were not super concerned if there was a real fire because at least “we will all die together”.