Oral Presentation 11 (3 min)
Kindergarten
through High School: Sensorimotor Driving Skills
(Taken from pages 197-199)
By: Nick Dvonch
These three sections focus on the Driving Psychology Curriculum that Dr. Driving thinks should be in place for future generations to grow up to be good drivers.
· Students at this level will learn how we create stress for drivers by our behavior in and around cars
· To observe our natural competitiveness for space and how to voluntarily reduce it
· To activate natural feelings of compassion and sympathy for the basic rights and needs of strangers in public places, and to appreciate community feelings.
The List goes on and these points are not designed specifically with driving in mind, but are there to create more compassionate and understanding adults. It is the first step in a long process.
The following is just a sample of what is to be taught to children in middle school, these behaviors tend to deal more with driving situations, but still focus on the attitude of the individual as a whole.
· To become more aware of habits of thinking while walking or riding.
· To practice group discussions on the importance of civility in public behavior (respecting mutual rights, inalienable rights, fairness, character, community, and so forth).
High School
In High School students learn about emotional attitudes when driving. This is when most children first learn to drive a car and therefore what they’ve been learning through school must now be put to the test.
Among other things, students will learn to:
· Practice hands-on coordination skills with a driving simulator and supervised highway experience.
· To develop ability to monitor and control one’s risk-taking tendency under various driving circumstances.
· To stay alert by acquiring attentional checking routines.
I think that this program if implemented will work, but the real question is, is this feasible? Schools are already bogged down by other subjects that need attention. Should this replace Math? Reading? Or should we just extend the school day. I have no doubt in my mind that if this was instituted there would be less rage in this world and driving would be a lot safer, but how would we do it? Where would we get the money? But overall if a person could just have a one-hour class every semester, it might help a little. In this case I think that compromise is the name of the game.
Reference: Dr. James, Leon, & Dr. Nahl, Diane. Road Rage and Aggressive Driving: Steering Clear of Highway Warfare. pp. 197-199, 2000 Prometheus Books NY.
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