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A comprehensive range of activities is organised in primary schools with the Road Safety staff acting as organisers and advisors. Some of the projects have been in existence for many years and on the other hand new projects are continually being developed and researched. The following is a summary of some of the major projects organised in primary schools.
Resources in Schools
In 2001/2 in conjunction with the Education Dept. every school was visited by a member of the Road Safety staff and an inspection of existing resources carried out. Outdated resources were removed and new resources placed in the school. Additional resources are available on request to support general or specific topic work.
Where a school or an individual teacher is involved in Road Safety work the Road Safety staff can support this by giving an illustrated talk to the children. It is not the policy to give one-off talks where there is not some on-going road safety work.
In-Service days and PAT times
The Road Safety staff can attend these sessions to display materials, and give guidance on the effective use of resources. A specially made video is available to show how Road Safety can be incorporated into the school curriculum. These sessions relate particularly to the 5-14 Health Education Guidelines.
Cycling Training
Cyclists
Most children these days own a bicycle and increasingly adults are taking up cycling for health or other environmental reasons. The government is promoting cycling and is investing money in the infrastructure to enable more people to take up cycling. Most local authorities also have a policy of promoting cycling and cycle racks have been installed in a number of schools. Information and advice can be provided for children taking advantage of this method of travel to school. Information is also available for parents whose children are learning to cycle.
Cycling Training in Schools.
The value of cycle training should not only be seen as a scheme to reduce the number of young cyclists killed or injured on the roads but as laying a foundation for future road usage as a driver.
All the basic elements of the course prove valuable in future years when most of the children will go on to drive a motor vehicle. The training which targets children in Primary 6 involves basic cycle maintenance, Highway Code knowledge, cycle control and cycling manoeuvres. Normally the school nominates a teacher responsible for the training and the Road Safety staff provides the resources for pupils, teachers and parents. In-service courses are held for teachers and The Road Safety staff organise and carry out monitoring of the children's progress throughout the training and a final assessment at the end of the training. Each child who completes the training receives a badge and certificate.
We also offer a service for a cycle repair specialist to visit the school. They are able to check the safety of the bikes, carry out any minor repairs and advise on major faults. This has proved to be a huge success and increases the safety standards for children participating in the training.
Theatre in Education
Research has shown that theatre, drama and role-play is an effective way to communicate road safety messages to young people. A range of plays is offered to schools on a regular basis, aimed at various age groups. A play called 'The Journey' is offered annually to a number of primary schools. It is particularly aimed at P6 pupils and includes themes relevant to the transition to secondary school. The play is 'forum style' where the children are encouraged to interact with the actors during the play.
Any school wishing to develop their own performances can be given guidance on this.
Calendar Competition
Road Safety lends itself to various types of quizzes and competitions. One of the best known of these is the Calendar Competition that dates back to the 1960s. Every year around 50 – 60 schools take part in the competition and prizes and certificates are awarded. The winning entry is printed on the top of the calendar and around 6,000 copies distributed to schools and other public buildings.
Practical Child Pedestrian Training
It has been recognised through extensive research that Road Safety lessons are more effective if taught in a real traffic environment rather than in the classroom. Efforts are therefore taking place to pilot these methods to assess their viability in terms of school curriculum time and the willingness of parents to assist in the training. A number of different types of schemes are being considered and we would like to hear from any school interested in taking part in the trials.
Junior Road Safety Officer Scheme
This is not a new concept, however with the progress in technology it is seen to be more viable than in past years. The project is based on a small number of pupils taking ownership of Road Safety issues for the school and cascading information to other pupils. Elections are held for the posts of JRSO following which training and support materials are issued. Projects will be co-ordinated by the Road Safety staff and support given in the form of regular newsletters and a JRSO website.
Streetsense
This is a road safety education resource for all primary schools in Scotland. The resource is an important part of the national strategy for road safety education in Scotland. The aim of the strategy is to ensure that all children and young people in Scotland receive a minimum amount of road safety education at school - covering specific topics at certain times.
Streetsense covers Levels A to E and aligns to the Health Education 5-14 National Guidelines, to be taught in Personal and Social Development. Other curricular links, for example Information and Communications Technology 5-14 National Guidelines, are highlighted. Streetsense also links to Citizenship and to the concept of a Health Promoting School.
Streetwiseguys
Streetwiseguys is aimed at 8 to 14 year olds in primary and lower secondary. In particular, it targets children in the transition period from primary to secondary, when they are most at risk.
The website uses interactive games to educate young people about road safety in a fun way. It can be used in the classroom, whilst teaching road safety. There are curricular links to Information and Communications Technology and Health Education 5-14 National Guidelines.
Belisha, Sprocket, Amber, Bumper and Gutter (the dog) are the Streetwise Guys. They have been designed to be cool, funky and appealing to young people. You visit them first at their gang hut. Once inside the hut, you can find out interesting things about keeping safe. There are also games like 'dog on the run' and 'on yer bike'.
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