Primary school teachers' perceptions and practices regarding pedestrian safety education

The purpose of this study was to examine primary school teachers' perceived role in pedestrian safety education. A four-page instrument consisting of a combination of closed-ended (circle all that apply) and fill-in the blank question was developed to assess primary teachers' perceived role in pedestrian safety education. A total of 630 surveys were sent to primary school teachers and 54% responded. The results of the study found that 85% of primary school teachers believed it was extremely important or important to teach pedestrian safety. Forty percent of the teachers identified that they had been teaching pedestrian safety for more than 1 year (maintenance stage). Whereas 1 in 3 teachers had never thought about (precontemplation stage) teaching pedestrian safety to their students. An examination of how pedestrian safety information was presented found that 39% of the teachers who taught pedestrian safety presented information through classroom discussion and 26% presented information through demonstration/practice. Also, 46% of the teachers who taught pedestrian safety identified the following as the most common curriculum content: when to safely cross the street (46%); how to safely cross the street (45%); and where to safely cross the street (43%). Eighty-eight percent of primary school teachers were very confident about teaching students how to safely cross the street; where to safely cross the street (87%); when to safely cross the street (86%); and how to safely walk along streets with sidewalks (83%). A statistically significant difference was found between primary school teachers who taught pedestrian safety and those who did not regarding the importance of teaching pedestrian safety. Teachers who taught pedestrian safety perceived it to be more important than those who did not. The majority of primary school teachers perceived barriers to teaching pedestrian safety. Primary school teachers with graduate degrees perceived fewer barriers to teaching pedestrian safety compared to teachers with only bachelors' degrees. The study also found a statistically significant difference between location of school and primary school teachers' perceived barriers to pedestrian safety education. Teachers who taught in rural schools perceived fewer barriers compared to those who taught in inner city schools.;The results also found that there was a statistically significant difference between primary school teachers' age and their perceived barriers to teaching pedestrian safety. Younger primary school teachers (20--39 years) perceived more barriers to teaching pedestrian safety than older teachers (50+ years). A statistically significant difference was again found between years of teaching experience and primary school teachers' perceptions of the barriers to teaching pedestrian safety. Namely, teachers with 21 years or more of teaching experience perceived fewer barriers to teaching pedestrian safety compared to teachers with 20 years or less of teaching experience. In addition, a statistically significant difference was found between primary school teachers who taught pedestrian safety and those who did not. Teachers who taught pedestrian safety perceived fewer barriers than those who did not.