Evaluation of Intervention/Prevention Strategy Year 12 Health, Unit Road Trauma
In Queensland young adult road users (aged 17-24 years) are almost three times higher than the risk of the average Queenslander to die road crashes each year, and higher still for young drivers in rural areas. Research has shown the biggest factor contributing to young driver road crash fatalities is inexperience, although other key factors include; overconfidence, coping with distractions whilst driving, tendency to drive at high risk times, alcohol and drugs and engaging in risk taking behaviour.
Sunshine Beach State High School senior health students recently completed a task which encapsulated and highlighted not only the main causes alongside the alarming statistics of fatalities involving young adult drivers on Queensland roads, but the effects these deaths have on the community as a whole. Realising the earnest of the issue, students put together a presentation intended to marginalise and promote the awareness of road safety and Fatality Free Friday, to Year 11 peers eligible to obtain their learner permits throughout this year. Ideally the presentation sought to influence the audiences’ behaviour on the road by increasing the awareness of road safety thus decreasing the number of preventable teenage road accidents in our local community. With the completion of the presentation, students noted the unsuccessful and successful strategies. In hindsight it is believed that more preparation time would have proved the presentation to be highly successful. It is also believed that a different approach with the presentation would have accomplished more attentive consideration from the audience. “Road safety education programs which aim to change the behaviour of participants need to be tailored to the specific target group. Young people need to feel that a program is relevant to them and, in
Bibliography: Driver education for senior school students * (Years 10–12) and young novice drivers, (2nd June 2010), (http://www.transport.qld.gov.au/resources/file/ebc13d4fb6e8924/Literature_review.pdf) * Queensland Road Safety Strategy 2004-2011, (2nd June 2010), (http://www.transport.qld.gov.au/resources/file/eb7ae5066e826ba/Pdf_road_safety_strategy_part01_smaller.pdf) * Reflections of Presentation Students, Senior Health class 2010, Appendixes 1-6.