Traffic safety education for child pedestrians: A randomized controlled trial with active learning approach to develop street-crossing behaviors

Child Pedestrians are among the most-at-risk populations for road traffic injuries. The authors' aim in the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of an active learning-based educational intervention on street-crossing behaviors of seven-year-old children. In this randomized controlled trial, 149 first-grade students were selected from two male elementary schools in Mehriz City, Iran, to participate in the study. The participants were randomly assigned into two experimental groups (n = 103, Active-Learning based training group [A.L] (n = 52) and Active-Learning based training with Parental Involvement group [P.I & A.L] (n = 51) and a control group (n = 46, without training group). The instructional program was based on active learning theory and parental involvement approach. Street-crossing behaviors of the students were assessed in an actual traffic environment in three phases: before training, one week after training, and six months after training. The behaviors of students in the experimental groups were significantly improved within one week, and later the six month time frames. Their performance was linearly improved by time (looking for vehicles on the street: F = 3.35P < 0.01; crossing from safe places: F = 10.5, P < 0.0001). No behavioral difference was found among the students in the control group. After six months, there was a better improvement (P = 0.0001) in the street-crossing behaviors of children in the P.I & A.L groups, compared to the A.L group. The authors' results confirmed the positive effects of active learning-based education with parental involvement approach on improving the street-crossing behaviors of 7-year-old children. Parental involvement is recommended as a useful strategy while designing active learning-based educational programs aiming at the improvement of street-crossing behaviors among school-aged children.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trf.2018.10.021
• Record URL:
  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847817305132
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/13698478
• Supplemental Notes:
  • © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Abstract reprinted with permission of Elsevier.
• Authors:
  • Zare, Hamide
  • Niknami, Shamsaddin
  • Heidarnia, Alireza
  • Fallah, Mohamad Hossein
• Publication Date: 2019-1

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 734-742
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour
  • Volume: 60
  • Issue Number: 0
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 1369-8478
  • Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/13698478

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Behavior; Children; Learning; Parents; Pedestrian movement; Pedestrian safety; Pedestrians; Traffic safety education
• Uncontrolled Terms: Active learning
• Geographic Terms: Mehriz (Iran)
• Subject Areas: Education and Training; Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01691401
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 25 2019 10:34AM