An innovative program designed by two Griffith educators has caught the eye of educational bodies state wide.
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Western Riverina Community School (WRCS) teachers Lauren Forner and Lyn Muntz developed the school's Road Safety Education program with the goal of giving their students every opportunity to work towards successfully and safely gaining their drivers licence.
"One of the most important things for students to be work ready is to have a licence," Ms Forner, Well Being Officer at WRCS said of why she developed the program.
"It doesn't just enable them to apply for jobs where having a licence is a criteria like most trades for example, it means they will also have the opportunity to work in a wider radius around Griffith.
"It also means they can support their families and communities being licensed and mobile."
The program which was implemented over Term 3 and 4 this year has now brought together state departments and bodies keen to see the establishment and longevity of the program long term. On November 18 representatives from NSW Health, NSW Police, NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, NSW Advocate for Children and Young People and the Association of Independant Schools (AIS) in NSW discussed the future potential directions of the program, including how this could be adopted state wide.
WRCS has secured funding from the AIS and the NSW office of Mental Health, Regional Youth and Women to the tune of $6000 to make the program a permanent feature of the school curriculum for future years.
The Road Safety Education program at WRCS is unique to what is the standard delivery in most secondary schools in road safety. The program garners the skills and experiences of the wider community to promote safe driving values and thorough knowledge of the process to achieve a driver's licence.
"We had community members who came in to speak to the kids who had been in car accidents or who had lost loved ones and whose lives had changed changed forever," Ms Forner said.
"For weeks after that day we had students saying how valuable it was to hear people share their experiences, it was really profound for them."
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Kat is a former English teacher to international students and has taught all over the world. She is beginning a new career as a journalist with the Area News. Got something you want to chat about? She's all ears.
Kat is a former English teacher to international students and has taught all over the world. She is beginning a new career as a journalist with the Area News. Got something you want to chat about? She's all ears.
