Road Accidents are one of the major causes of death and lifelong disability among the school children. They are the most vulnerable road users: being pedestrian, passengers of different vehicles, cyclists and many times they are found using roads as a playing area. Their vulnerability to road accidents is based on two major points: their physical vulnerability and functional vulnerability. Physical vulnerability is due to being minor in age and physique whereas, functional vulnerability is associated with cognitive and perceptual development. Thus, a proper and well-planned education about the traffic rules and traffic signs is essential for the safety of school children. Psychologists say that the most important phase of brain development starts at the age of two years and ends at the age of seven. The children go through a variety of learning spurts during this age which leave lifelong impacts on their brain. The neurological reason is that the brain develops its connections with the nerves in this age. So, whatever they will learn in this age will have depth in their perception. Parents, teachers and the society play the pivotal role in the personality development of a child. Ensuring and evoking the road safety education is one the key factors during the said process.
In this article we will probe the ways to set grounds for road safety at this malleable stage. As the children grow, the process of learning takes its path through experience, analysis and revelation. It is further inveigled through the concept of punishment and reward. Parents are keenly concerned about the wellbeing of their children and sensitive to their idiosyncrasies and respond to the queries raised in their tender minds. This is the right time to introduce them to the concept of road safety. The concepts developed at this age will set the direction of their life. They will lead rest of their lives on the basis of concepts that they develop at this stage of brain development. Familiarising them with safe use of roads will help to reduce the risk of serious catastrophise. As, they are in the process of developing the set of habits, so abiding by the traffic rules and using the roads safely as a pedestrian, cyclist and driver will become their instinct.
According to the Cambridge dictionary ‘Road safety is teaching the people how to behave safely by driving or crossing the road’. The first and the most important point to keep in mind is that there is no special or separate road or plinth for the children. We have ‘Shared Roads’ where vehicles of all types have equal right of use. This sharing is the harbinger of many dangers and possibilities of road accidents. The physical vulnerability of children is the reason of their incapacity to identify the road perils. They cannot judge the pace and direction of distant vehicles. Thus, are unable to set the appropriate time and place for crossing the road. The knowledge about the zebra crossing and the traffic signals can be the best support in this regard. Minor children of Pre School are not comfortable to ride the bus or van and often get injured during it, even in some cases it has caused the death of few children. The most concerned aspect is the unsupervised journey to the school and playing with the mates on a roadside or sometimes in the middle of the road. Cycling, riding small scooters and using skateboards also increase the risk of accidents. Then the newfound self-independence of teen-age carries substantial risk not only for themselves but also for the people sharing the same roads.
A child who learns the traffic rules and importance of road safety will grow up to be the law-abiding citizens. The habit of following the rules of traffic will develop the sense of responsibility and empathy for others. Every child should grow up with the proper training of road safety. As it is the subject of not only his own life and well-being but also of many around him. In order to raise the children prudently educated in road safety, we need to track their perception. We have to teach them the importance of road safety and how to navigate the roads. In this way we will enable them to ensure their safety at their own.