Sie sind auf Seite 1von 5

Ford Driving Skills for Life Investigator: Brandon Lewter blewter8@gmail.

com

Practice Title and Abstract


Ford Driving Skills for Life (FDSL) This E-Learning tool is designed to use active learning to instruct and train teenagers, beyond standard driver education programs, on the skills needed to become safer drivers, with the hopes of reducing teen deaths caused by auto accidents.

Subject Area and Population


Ford Driving Skills for Life is primarily designed for newly licensed teens in the United States, but anyone can use it, including parents and educators.

Description of Best Practice


Designed by the Ford Motor Company Fund, the Governors Highway Safety Association, and a panel of safety experts in 2003, the goal of FDSL is to reduce the number one killer of teens in the United States, auto accidents. Their belief is that because of inexperience, many teens lack the skills and knowledge required to be safe drivers (1). The medium in which FDSL tries to most effectively reach their audience is through an E-Learning website, www.drivingskillsforlife.com. From the website anyone can
1|Page

access FDSLs tools for free. Within the website there are specially designed areas for students, educators, and parents, so the user can quickly find the tool that will be most effective for their needs. Registration is required to access most of the websites tools, but the registration process is simple. You are asked to fill out a short form which asks for your name, age, and occupied state, and then all you need is a valid email address and the creation of a unique password and username.

Background
The first order problem addressed by FDSL is that most newly, licensed teens are not experienced enough to be safe drivers. In order to be a good driver you need to have more than just knowledge of the rules of drivingyou need experience. Statistics demonstrate that teen involvement in crashes declines considerably as young drivers gain experience. Furthermore, the distractions drivers face today are more numerous than they have ever been, and only experience and driver education can help reduce the risk of these distractions. The second-order problem addressed by FDSL is that standard driver education isnt enough to properly educate new drivers about driver safety; nor is it enough to adequately give teen drivers the experience they need behind the wheel to start driving as safely as they potentially could. Additionally, teenagers who take drivers education are usually around the age of 14 or 15, and they take the course through their secondary school. The classroom setting usually involves 50+ students who are listening to one drivers education teacher speak while using outdated videos as a teaching aide. This is simply not an effective way to teach teenagers.
2|Page

Conceptual Framework
FDSLs website uses two methods to improve teens driving in what they believe are the four areas that are the most significant factors in more than 60% of vehicle crasheshazard recognition, vehicle handling, speed management, and space management. The first method uses study modules that teach through short, easy to read passages of text, accompanied by short animated videos with commentary that help back up the information in the text through visual representationsthese representations give the learner the visual experience of dealing with obstacles while driving, therefore increasing experience. The information learned in this first method is reinforced using an assessment in the form of a quiz at the end of the learning modules. The second method is the use Animated Video Screenshot of two interactive games to reinforce information learned during the study modules. The first game is a memory game that helps increase concentration stamina levels and reinforces some rules of driving. The second game is a highway driving game that uses contextualized learning where score is assessed based on how well, or poorly, the player obeys the speed limit, changes lanes, and merges on and off the highway.

Technology and Management Plan


The presentation of FDSL needs to attract teen drivers and keep them engaged, as well as be accessible and navigable to parents and educators. The latter is accomplished by making a website that can easily be found using a common search engine, such as Google. Once a parent or educator accesses the website they simply need to create an account using a valid email address. From there they can view tips for educators and parents, a Best Practices Guide, and videos that feature professional stunt drivers giving

Click the Link Above to View Clip

3|Page

safe driving tips. These videos can be viewed in-site with a flash player or downloaded and played using Windows Media Player. On the students end of FDSL the technology includes flash games, the same type of video Safety Tips as shown above, and animated video. These are effective tools because they teach through experimental learning. The games are used to help enforce lessons learned and increase concentration stamina. The lessons are learned through fun and entertaining modules.
Highway Driving Game Screenshot

Critical Assessment of the Project


Overall I believe Ford Driving Skills for Life can be extremely effective in helping new, teen drivers become safer on the road. Being easily accessible on the web and the ease of creating an account for the site make it more likely that teens will use it. The interactive games and the presentation of the informational text are really driven home by the accompanying animated videos. Additionally, I think this would be a great tool for drivers education teachers or parents who have access to computers with internet. All they would have to do is direct their student or child to the site and monitor their progress in whatever way they want. With as effective as the FDSL site can be, I do see some room for improvement. First of all, there is no plausible way to see the effectiveness of the site. How do its creators know FDSL works? How do they monitor progress? Yes, there is a quiz at the end of the learning units, but that is the only form of assessment. Also, aside from being assigned to complete learning modules by driving instructors or parents, what would motivate teens to use site? Yes, the games can be fun, entertaining and educational, but what is in place to keep the kids interested and motivated?

Thematically-Related Web Links


Governors Highway Safety Association o http://www.ghsa.org/ Saving Teenage Lives o http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/newdriver/saveteens/sect1.html Keys to DriveThe AAA Guide to Teen Driver Safety o http://teendriving.aaa.com/NC/ Teen Driving Course (Pay Site) o http://www.teendrivingcourse.com/

Conceptually Related Web Links


E-Learning
4|Page

o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-learning Active Learning o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Active_learning Assessment o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educational_assessment Contextualized Learning o http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/envrnmnt/stw/sw1lk3.htm Experimental Learning o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Experiential_learning

5|Page

Das könnte Ihnen auch gefallen