Dd having top up swimming lessons at school, no goggles allowed

[Longdistance]

Hello
My dd is now in Year 5, and was going to swimming lessons throughout year 4. Dd already can swim 50 metres, dive really deep and retrieve items from the bottom of the pool, but they’re not allowed goggles, hence her not passing.
I wear goggles when I swim, as I hate water in my eyes. Is there any reason why they won’t allow goggles? The chlorine makes her eyes sting, so she finds it difficult. We’ve just got back from holiday where she was constantly in the pool with goggles. Is there a reason behind not wearing goggles?

I think it's because you're not likely to be wearing goggles if you accidentally fall into the water.

They ping them into their eyes.

Yes, that was my first thought - school lessons are not about swimming elegantly, they are about making sure kids are safe around water, and an emergency "I've fallen in" situation is unlikely to involve goggles.

Think pool safety should be about taking care not to fall in. They should be allowed goggles. That's unfair.

At first I couldn’t understand why she had not passed, I was thinking ‘do they want her to be an Olympic swimmer?’ Then she told me that because she doesn’t like the water in her eyes and it makes them sting she had to have ‘top up lessons’.
I can see where you’re coming from about pool safety though, I understand that.

DS2 was allowed his goggles on, but he's visually impaired so I had to ask for special permission

As an adult I hate swimming without goggles so I think it’s unfair to make them. It sounds like there is a specific standard to demonstrate rather than the lessons being lifesaving ones? I can see why no googles for the latter but not the former. Could she just do breaststroke to get the length standard.

I do understand the safety issue, but it seems strange to focus on 'no goggles' in a swimming pool unless they also do outdoor swimming and are well prepared for those differences too....

I was a competitive swimmer in the 70s. No goggles. It was torture. My eyes stung and really hurt. I cannot understand the mentality that would require no goggles. Really, because if you fall in you won't be wearing goggles? This in my mind is just silly. Learn to swim and recover without hurting your eyes! I truly cannot see how forcing children to make their eyes sore is somehow a survival skill. I would suggest someone needs to rethink the rule.

So the teachers don’t have to look for 30 missing pairs of goggles every week.

We had this rule for ds1. By the end of the course the teachers had relented - enough parents had gone in to ask why and say it was ridiculous. Here is the national curriculum and wording, point out that your daughter can meet it with goggles "Swimming and water safety
All schools must provide swimming instruction either in key stage 1 or key stage 2.

In particular, pupils should be taught to:

swim competently, confidently and proficiently over a distance of at least 25 metres
use a range of strokes effectively [for example, front crawl, backstroke and breaststroke]
perform safe self-rescue in different water-based situations"

To be honest most schools just want kids to meet targets quickly as taking kids swimming is expensive and disruptive.

When my son had swimming lessons they were told no goggles, because when children have goggles on they just want to duck under the water 'to see' and then stop concentrating on the lesson. It was a blanket rule to stop any parents moaning that some could and some couldn't wear them. It made sense and my son got used to the chlorine. He's a very strong swimmer now

We had to sign a disclaimer, which pretty much said if you let your child use goggles they will hurt themselves and/or die when they fall into a lake.

They started using the No Goggles rule in a local swim school, then they realised how ridiculous it is and goggles were allowed back again. Speak to them and find out the exact reason why and go from there.

team unicorn 😂 I wonder what scientific studies have been done for them to give you that disclaimer! Oh, you wore goggles when learning to swim did you? Let us just drop you in the middle of this lake and see if you survive....!

The swim school my son attends actively encourages goggles. They say when kids aren't wearing goggles they just close their eyes under water and crash into things /each other so it's dangerous, and as for the 'falling in a lake' argument, that's only valid if the kids are having lessons in the local lake.

s there any reason why they won’t allow goggles?

Because the kids spend 99% of the time farting around with the goggles, not listening, pinging them, losing them and fighting over them.

They were only allowed on medical grounds at my kids various schools not sure why

It’s such a ridiculous rule. My dd actually jumped accidentally into a very small pond as it was so mossy it looked like grass when she was 5 She was already a good swimmer with goggles and surprise surprise managed to get herself straight out. She didn’t hit the water then start panicking she didn’t have goggles, she just wanted to get out! In a murky lake you wouldn’t see much under of the water anyway and I think most kids reactions would be to get to the surface not swim around underwater!

Chlorine can be quite damaging to sensitive eyes, I’m also a teacher and used to take kids swimming with goggles and even then a few of the kids would have red eyes for the rest of the day. As I do when I swim without goggles. Unfortunately if it is one of their rules they may not be willing to change it but I would just tell your dd to try her best and maybe close her eyes as much as possible but if she doesn’t pass not to worry. You know she can swim anyway.

Lakes aren't chlorinated though. Chlorine is surely damaging to bare eye balls?

Swimming – never wear contact lenses while swimming, and wear goggles to protect your eyes if they're sensitive
From the NHS website, on eye safety

Pools are Tough on the Tear Film
A thin layer of tears called the tear film coats the surface of our eyes. This tear film keeps our eyes moist, smooth and clear. Chlorine and other chemicals used to keep pool water clean can wash away the moist layer of tear film, leaving eyes uncomfortable and red

People who swim frequently may develop dry eye, where they don’t produce enough tears or the right quality of tears. It can feel like they have grit in their eyes, or their vision becomes blurry.

Without the protection of a fully functioning tear film, eyes are exposed to harmful pool chemicals and lingering bacteria. Chlorine itself can cause a reaction, leaving the surface and edges of your eyes red, itchy, watery and uncomfortable. And bacteria that survive the chlorine can lead to an eye infection, such as pink eye (conjunctivitis).

Protect Those Peepers
Here are 5 ways to keep your eyes healthy while swimming.

Photograph of a person wearing goggles while swimming

Wear Goggles
Wear a pair of swim goggles every time you swim. Goggles keep pool chemicals out of your eyes, helping to keep your tear film healthy*
From American Opthalmology website

I think it's ridiculous, our school let them wear goggles provided they didn't muck about with them.

No you won't have goggles if you fall in a lake, but a lake doesn't have chlorine.

I irony is I work in a school that not only has a pool, we let it out to local schools and I’m involved in sorting that. I am forever collecting goggles, swim shorts, towels etc. So, I am a bit as to why she’s not allowed goggles.
She’s a strong swimmer too.

I also think that if the aim is learning to swim, the lessons should facilitate that. You’ve got a much bigger chance of getting out of trouble if you’re a strong swimmer and you’re much more likely to become a strong swimmer if you enjoy the lessons. There is nothing comparable really between a normal swim lesson and falling into cold water fully clothed. Do they ban the use of floats to because you wouldn’t have them in a river?