Children are particularly vulnerable road users and there is a peak in child pedestrian accidents at the age of 12. The rise in accidents for children age 12+ coincides with the age at which most children transfer to a new secondary school. The move to a new school is one of the most important and eventful times of a child’s school career. The purpose of this research was to “to develop and evaluate a road safety training/awareness resource/programme to ensure that children have developed the skills required to match the independence they are given when they move to secondary school.” It was recognised that “critical to the success of road safety education and training for this age group is the active participation of parents/carers and [that] any training should directly address the issue of getting them involved.” A review of existing road safety education resources revealed that, although many resources existed for the transition age group, very few placed any emphasis upon or highlighted the transfer from primary to secondary school. It was clear from discussions with teachers that any road safety education initiative for children transferring from primary to secondary school must take into account both the differing structures and organisation of primary and secondary schools and the transfer arrangements existing between them. A survey of 725 parents of transition age children was undertaken to find out how they perceive their own and the school’s role regarding road safety education. This was supplemented by focus group discussions with 14 parents and over 120 Year 6 (primary) and Year 7 (secondary) children. In terms of dangers threatening children, parents were most concerned about children’s actions (for example, their failure to concentrate), the actions of other road users (bad driving), the level of road traffic and non-road safety issues such as [fear of] strangers. Both parents and children saw the move to secondary school as a major life change. The children expected to be given greater independence and most parents accepted this whilst striving to achieve a balance between protection and encouraging independence. The children indicated that parents had been their most important advisers on road safety and travel matters. Parents were clear about accepting responsibility for road safety issues but drew support from schools and the media to provide information and advice. All the parents in the focus groups thought that teaching road safety in terms of strict adherence to rules and codes was not appropriate for this age group. They considered it more important for children to be able to assess each situation. Both children and parents also expressed clear preferences for resources to consider real road situations rather than the ‘perfect’ crossing places so often depicted in safety literature. Based upon the results of these preliminary surveys, a draft educational programme was developed Making Choices. It consisted on five resources: a leaflet for Year 6 parents (issued in the autumn term at the time of selecting a secondary school), a booklet for Year 6 parents and a safer journey planner for Year 6 pupils (distributed via the school’s pupil post in the spring term), activities for primary schools for use with Year 6 during the summer term and activities for secondary schools for use with Year 7 pupils in the autumn term. To evaluate the effect of the use of the resources upon children’s awareness of road safety issues, their decision-making responses and their change in travel patterns, a pre-test posttest design with a control and experimental group was used. Over 900 children from 37 primary and 12 secondary schools throughout Britain took part. The evaluative measures were a 16 item attitude scale and a set of 17 questions based on seven photographs of typical road situations. The situations presented to the children required them to consider strategies. In addition, children were asked about their travel patterns. The Out and About travel survey was unique in that the same children were surveyed twice – once at primary school and then a few months later at secondary school. Their travel patterns altered significantly and, not surprisingly, walking to school with an adult showed the sharpest decline. For journeys other than to and from school, there is further evidence of greater independence including in the use of public transport. Half the items in the attitude scale showed significant differences between pre- and posttest. The experimental group tended to show a greater level of personal responsibility than the control group. In response to the strategy questions, the experimental group tended to show a greater awareness of personal safety issues, not only in road situations, but, for example, when using public transport. Reviews of the teaching activities were received from 23 primary and 34 secondary teachers. Most primary teachers had integrated the activities within Geography, PSHE and to complement the existing transfer process. Few teachers stated that they would like to see anything added to the materials. Those that did requested photographs or a video. Other issues raised by primary teachers included the lack of curriculum time and the need for longer term planning. In nearly all secondary schools, the teachers used the materials in timetabled PSHE or Social Education lessons. Again, there was little demand for additional material. Other comments made about the resources were generally positive although some teachers thought that the language used was sometimes too difficult – a view not commented on by any primary teachers. It should be recognised that evaluations of this type are fraught with difficulties. The degree and quality of the intervention could not be controlled by the researchers but depended, as in real life, upon many other individuals including the pupils themselves. Within the context of the transition from primary to secondary school, the issue of road safety is but one of many concerns felt by parents, teachers and children. A educational initiative of this type, which can be integrated into the transfer process with minimal additional work, can help to raise the profile of road safety at this critical point in a child’s life. It is strongly recommended that Making Choices is published and promoted nationally to schools and road safety professionals. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting