A LESSON IN SCHOOLBUS ETIQUETTE, SAFETY
Thomas Edelmann, founder and managing director of RoadSafetyUAE, is a huge advocate of introducing road safety awareness into the school curriculum. Here, he speaks to Khaleej Times about why it is important, especially for those doing the daily schoolbus commute. Q. You’re championing the introduction of road safety into the school curriculum. Why? According to official data, road traffic fatalities are the number one cause of death for children below the age of 15 years, and about one child dies on the UAE’s roads every week (2015 data). Hence, it is of paramount importance to anchor mandatory education elements in the UAE curricula for all years/stages, from pre-school/ kindergarten all the way to year/ grade 12. This is important for three strategic reasons:
We must educate our children, so they can protect themselves now. For example: Every child must understand that the use of seat belts is a must.
Educated children turn into ambassadors and they influence others, like their parents, siblings and friends, for example: think about the power of this statement: ‘Daddy, I learned at school, that it is dangerous to drive in a distracted manner. Please put your mobile phone away when you drive your car’.
Nurture the next generation of responsible motorists, meaning: Once we instil the proper behaviour in the kids of today, they will behave better when they get behind the wheel. Q. What feedback have you had from parents/schools in the UAE with regards to introducing road safety into the school curriculum?
Nurture the next generation of responsible motorists: Once we instil the proper behaviour in the kids of today, they will behave better when they get behind the wheel.” We received very positive feedback from influential parts of the education system and we received concrete signals, indicating the big interest to move forward with the critical matter. Parents throughout are positive and they are very supportive of this move. It is also noteworthy to mention the introduction of these curriculum elements has no impact on school budgets. Q. Whose responsibility (at the moment) is it to brief children about health and safety on the schoolbus commute? The core responsibility at the moment lies with the schoolbus driver and the schoolbus attendants. Q. Whose responsibility should it be and how can we ensure this shift happens? The responsibility needs to be broadened to the entire ‘ecosystem’ of kids, meaning to all the contact points of children: Parents, teachers, as well as schoolbus drivers and attendants. The beauty is, that children can be exposed to proper behaviour in theory sessions in classrooms, and then in real live sessions while on the schoolbus. We like to refer to this as the ‘extended classroom’. Q. What are some of the biggest risk areas for students during the schoolbus transit? The biggest risks are linked to the proper use of seat belts, safe behaviour while on the bus, the proper embarking/disembarking from the bus and safely reaching and leaving the pickup and drop-off points. Q. When it comes to schoolbus conductors, are parents’ expectations too high? If so, why? Schoolbus drivers and attendants are trained with regards to all related aspects of road safety. They are true experts and parents can and should expect a high level of professionalism from them.
kelly@khaleejtimes.com
(In partnership with School Transport Services (STS) — the UAE’s biggest schoolbus operator — Thomas Edelmann recently launched a campaign called ‘The Extended Classroom’ to boost road safety and teach young students how to become responsible drivers once they get behind the wheel.)