Fire inspectors have been visiting schools statewide to ensure compliance with the fire safety code, passed last year in the wake of The Station nightclub fire, which claimed 100 lives.
They've told teachers to remove some of the materials they've posted on their classroom walls, saying they violate the new law.
According to the code, artwork and teaching materials cannot be placed on more than 20 percent of the wall area in a classroom without sprinklers. With sprinklers, the code allows 50 percent of the walls to be covered.
``What's happened here is that the fire code is clashing with good educational practice,'' North Kingstown Schools Superintendent James Halley told The Providence Journal.
Teachers say the law is needlessly restrictive and interferes with their teaching. It also puts local fire inspectors in the role of the bad guy, ordering teachers to tear down what they have spent hours, and in some cases, a considerable sum of money, building.
``Unfortunately, I don't think any educators were consulted when the codes were being developed,'' Halley said. ``The state needs to set a different standard that's more realistic for education.''
Enforcement seems to be a matter of personal discretion, the newspaper reports. In Middletown and East Greenwich, the schools are cracking down on the plethora of paper in the classroom. Other districts are following the spirit, rather than the letter, of the law.
There is even dispute over how to interpret the law. Can teachers cover 20 percent of the total wall area or only 20 percent of each wall? Richard James, chief deputy state fire marshal, said the code refers to 20 percent of the total wall.
In Providence, where $3.8 million has been set aside to address fire-code violations, the School Department has been focused on bigger-ticket items, such as installing sprinkler systems in four schools.
Johnston Schools Superintendent Margaret Iacovelli says she's having trouble keeping up with the flurry of new regulations.
``I think we mentioned the 20-percent rule last year, but I don't remember,'' she said. ``The state says, 'Post student work, post rubrics, post expectations.' Then the fire department says you can only do it on 20 percent of the wall.''
