Alford Academy

Tuesday 25^th June – S6 Driving awareness and safety

Today we had a very successful Horizon event for our S6 students. The theme today was for young drivers and focussed on:

• Driving Safety – a session delivered by the Fire service and Police Scotland with a hard hitting message regarding dangerous driving.
• DVLA – Highway code theory test delivered by local driving instructor
• Car  Maintenance –  a practical session from John Reid, working on a car: Changing a tyre, looking at brake pads, oil filter, how to fill your car with petrol.

All the sessions were very informative and the pupils recognised the relevance to them as they think about or have started driving lessons.

An S6 pupil who attended the sessions shared:

The fire service delivered a presentation to us about staying safe on the road. We participated in group discussion identifying which factors may contribute to collisions and how these may be avoided. For example, we identified the reasons that people may speed to be; you could be running late, you could be trying to impress someone, or you could be seeking an adrenaline rush. We watched a case study and listened to the story about a road accident in Ayrshire. We learned about common hazards on the road and how exceeding the speed limit can have worse consequences than expected.

We participated in an activity with Jim Reid car sales and services. This saw us learn about the basic maintenance of a car and take a hands-on approach, getting involved with the changing of a tyre and being shown the essential parts of the engine such as the windscreen wiper fluid intake. Jim explained that for a car to remain in good condition its engine must be maintained and checked often. This includes monitoring the oil, coolant, and brake fluid level. Jim and Craig were very friendly and our active participation kept everyone eager to learn more.

We also talked to a driving instructor about theory and practical tests. He gave us tips and explained the necessary components for someone to receive their licence. He talked us through what we could expect in a driving lesson. As well as resources we could use to prepare ourselves for our theory tests. We enjoyed taking an online mock theory test, which turned out to be more difficult than most of us were expecting.