Secondary lesson plans launched to bridge road safety learning gap

The DTLR has launched a collection of thought-provoking new lesson plans to help teachers raise road safety issues with teenage pupils.

The Secondary Lesson Plans, available at www.schools.dtlr.gov.uk, suggest areas for classroom discussion including:

• excuses for driving too fast
• assessing how celebrities behave when involved in court cases for speeding
• how to develop an effective ‘teaser’ media advertising campaign highlighting death on the roads
• road safety role-play in French and Spanish, including reporting accidents and expressing disapproval at unsafe road behaviour.

The lesson plans - aimed at secondary PSHE (personal, social and health education), media, citizenship and modern foreign languages lessons - aim to help bridge the awareness gap between young children and teenagers.

"Last year 70 teenage pedestrians were killed and over 9,000 were injured on the roads," said transport minister, David Jamieson while launching the lesson plans. "While most of these teenagers were taught the principles of road safety at an early age, these lesson plans aim to give teachers stimulating ideas for engaging more mature students in ways that are relevant and interesting for them.

"For too long road safety has been perceived as an issue for the very young or very old. Through these lesson plans and with our recent advertising campaign we hope to raise awareness and cut accidents among this vulnerable but hard to reach age group."

Three posters that form part of the lesson plans can be viewed at http://www.think.dtlr.gov.uk/teenagers