Traffic literacy

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Under traffic expertise that understands traffic education the proven ability and skill , as road users , practice good, cooperative, security-oriented and independently in the public transport area to move. The technical term describes on the one hand the destination and on the other hand the result of traffic education and driver training .

The status of traffic literacy

Traffic competence is not innate, but must be acquired in a long learning and experience process by each individual traffic participant in dealing with and reflecting on practical traffic life. Ideally, it is achieved through a training course and a successful final examination . To this end, the pedestrian diploma was introduced as confirmation of a successfully completed pedestrian training course lasting several weeks, the cycling test as a certificate of successful cycling training or the driving test as legitimation for driving a motor vehicle in road traffic . These certificates of competence have a different obligation: While the non-motorized participants in road traffic are offered voluntary qualification options, motorized traffic participation is subject to strictly binding legal requirements in all countries.

In the end, however, the actually achieved traffic competence is only proven in everyday practice through longer accident-free traffic participation, which corresponds to the rules of general partnership. In addition to following the traffic regulations, this also includes fair treatment and consideration for weaker road users.

The acquisition of traffic skills

Child on the way to traffic literacy (photo from 1942)
Practice area to acquire traffic skills (youth traffic school Rheinaue)

The guidelines

The conveying of traffic competence and thus the education to a responsible, safe, independent and cooperative thinking and acting road user is the top priority of traffic education. For this purpose, traffic education according to Warwitz provides for the training of four of these supporting key qualifications:

should help the young road user to be able and willing to take responsibility in traffic life and to make himself as independent as possible from the caution, consideration and forbearance of other road users with regard to his safety needs.

grows out of a thorough practical and theoretical training in dealing independently and as daily as possible with the realities of everyday traffic. The questions of technical self-security, the choice of the cheapest mode of transport or the knowledge and willingness to use transport that is as environmentally friendly and health-friendly as possible are of essential importance.

refers to the development of a fair attitude towards the other road users, whose possibilities must be correctly assessed and whose needs must be taken into account.

is the actual field of probation that proves whether the findings can be converted into practical action and behavior. It indicates whether traffic education has got stuck in abstract thinking or has become effective in everyday use.

The learning sequence

The formation of the personality with a mature traffic competence takes place step by step. It requires a longer learning and maturing process and should start with the parenting. The traffic didactic specialist Siegbert A. Warwitz identifies him in four training phases, which are sensible to go through from the traffic psychological and pedagogical point of view:

Just as the ball player needs a "feel for the ball", the swimmer needs a "feeling for the water", the downhill skier needs a "feeling for the edge" and the rider needs a "feeling for the saddle" in order to feel comfortable in his element, in his sport and to be able to act appropriately in it, so the road user needs a "feeling for traffic" " (P. 72). Traffic sensation enables intuitive detection and smooth adaptation to movements, people and circumstances in traffic. They have to be sensed, which requires regular practical handling.

The “traffic sense” or “traffic instinct” gradually develops from the feeling of traffic, which allows for the anticipation of dangers and the ability to draw correct conclusions from them. It is increasingly possible to correctly decode the speeds of vehicles and the behavior of other road users and to behave accordingly.

The highest level of cognitive development is reached with traffic intelligence. It makes it possible to independently and critically anticipate potential dangers, to develop your own mitigation measures and even to be creative in a positive sense, e.g. B. mitigating the consequences of errors or even avoiding influencing the traffic flow. You don't need to have had an accident to get smart. Thinking foresight is enough to act sensibly in new, not yet experienced situations.

Appropriate traffic behavior is the desired, but not always mandatory consequence of the previous learning and development stages due to human inadequacy. The so-called " dragging-in effect " in the peer group or inattentiveness sometimes make consistent implementation more difficult, even against better knowledge. Examples of this are the notorious tests of courage that are still looking for a field of activity in the dangerous traffic area right into adolescence.

The school starter achieves the traffic competence appropriate for his age if he proves to be able to safely cope with his way to school and the changes of location close to the house to the neighbor or baker as an independent pedestrian . The adult road user must also have learned to deal with the much faster and more dangerous vehicles in a partner-friendly and safety-conscious manner and to pass on such behavior as a role model.

Traffic and mobility competence

While "traffic competence" describes the complex overall goal of successful traffic management in the literal sense of "traffic" as "dealing with one another", "mobility competence" is conceptually limited to the design of appropriate movements in the traffic area and primarily to the use of vehicles . The path to personal and application-oriented traffic competence is already started in the safe rooms of the parents' home, kindergarten and school, i.e. outside of public transport and before participating in real traffic . Mobility competence is particularly important when it comes to handling vehicles in terms of traffic, choosing the means of transport and being environmentally friendly . It is an important sub-goal of the road safety education objectives.

While parents, preschool educators and teachers are primarily responsible for accompanying traffic skills, driving schools and driving instructors have a decisive educational role in developing mobility skills. In any case, it is important not only to have a reliable knowledge of the traffic rules and the technical control of the respective vehicle, but also to adequately take into account the risks of road traffic and the limits of one's own ability. In media use and in everyday use, the established, more comprehensive term “traffic competence” is generally given preference when determining the target of traffic-educational offers.

See also

literature

  • Roland Gorges : Life situation "road traffic". In: A. Krenz (Hrsg.): Method competence in kindergarten. Olzog Verlag, Munich 2006, pp. 1–23.
  • Siegbert A. Warwitz : Traffic education from the child. Perceive-play-think-act. 6th edition. Schneider-Verlag, Baltmannsweiler 2009, ISBN 978-3-8340-0563-2 .

Web links

Wiktionary: Traffic skills  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Roland Gorges: Life situation "road traffic". In: A. Krenz (Hrsg.): Method competence in kindergarten. Olzog Verlag, Munich 2006, pp. 1–23.
  2. ↑ Peter Hentschel (Greetings), Peter König , Peter Dauer ( Editing ): Road traffic law (= Beck's short comments. Volume 5). 43rd, revised edition, CH Beck, Munich 2015.
  3. ^ Siegbert A. Warwitz: Traffic as a learning area. In: Ders .: Traffic education from the child. Perceive-play-think-act. 6th edition. Schneider, Baltmannsweiler 2009, pp. 21-28.
  4. ↑ ibid, pp. 22-24.
  5. ^ Siegbert A. Warwitz: The systematic structure of traffic education. In: Ders .: Traffic education from the child. Perceive-play-think-act. 6th edition. Schneider, Baltmannsweiler 2009, pp. 72-75.
  6. ^ Siegbert A. Warwitz: Are traffic accidents 'tragic' coincidences? In: thing-word-number. 102, 2009, pp. 42-50 and 64.
  7. ^ Siegbert A. Warwitz: The pedestrian diploma. In: Ders .: Traffic education from the child. Perceive-play-think-act. 6th edition. Schneider, Baltmannsweiler 2009, pp. 221-251.
  8. ↑ Traffic competence with music and movement , action day of the state traffic watch Mecklenburg-Vorpommern for small children, accessed on 6 September 2016.
  9. ↑ Children should acquire traffic skills , campaign of the Touring Club Switzerland, accessed on 6 September 2016.
  10. ↑ Safe in traffic at the age of 14 to 18 , Interview Network Traffic Education Vienna v. April 18, 2016, Retrieved September 6, 2016.