Road Safety Awareness Among School Teachers: A Training Requirements Assessment Involving Schools in Kelantan

Background

Road safety is a critical public health concern affecting educational institutions, particularly schools where children — as one of the most vulnerable road user groups — travel to and from school daily. In Malaysia, road traffic injuries remain a leading cause of death and disability among young people, and school-zone safety has been an area of growing concern for policymakers, educators, and public health professionals alike.

School teachers play a pivotal role in road safety education, serving as both educators who can impart knowledge and attitudes about safe road behaviour and as authority figures who can model and enforce safe practices within the school environment. However, the effectiveness of teachers as road safety educators depends fundamentally on their own level of awareness, knowledge, and confidence regarding road safety principles and practices. If teachers themselves have gaps in their understanding, these gaps may be transmitted to students through inadequate or inaccurate instruction.

This study was conducted to systematically assess teachers’ awareness of road safety issues and to gauge the training requirements necessary to equip teachers to deliver effective road safety education in Malaysian schools. The research focused on Kelantan, a state on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, and involved a comprehensive survey across the state’s school system.

Study Design and Methods

A quantitative survey design was employed, using a structured questionnaire distributed to 400 school teachers drawn from 111 schools randomly selected across all 10 District Education Offices in Kelantan. This sampling approach ensured representation across the state’s diverse geographic and demographic contexts, from urban centres like Kota Bharu to rural and semi-rural districts.

The survey instrument assessed multiple dimensions of road safety awareness, including knowledge of traffic rules and regulations, understanding of risk factors for road crashes, awareness of vulnerable road user protection, familiarity with road safety educational resources, and perceived training needs. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) to identify patterns, knowledge gaps, and priority areas for training intervention.

Key Findings

Teacher Awareness Levels

The survey revealed that while teachers generally recognised road safety as an important issue, their specific knowledge varied considerably across different domains. Areas where awareness was relatively strong included basic traffic rules and the importance of seatbelt use. However, more technical aspects of road safety — such as understanding the relationship between vehicle speed and injury severity, knowledge of pedestrian right-of-way principles, and awareness of the specific vulnerabilities of different road user groups — showed greater variation and more frequent gaps.

Training Needs Assessment

The training needs analysis identified several priority areas where teacher capacity building would yield the greatest improvements in road safety education delivery. These included practical skills for conducting road safety activities with students, methods for integrating road safety content into existing curriculum subjects, techniques for assessing and reinforcing student knowledge and behaviour, and knowledge of current road safety initiatives and resources available from agencies such as MIROS and the Road Safety Department.

Teachers also expressed interest in training that would help them assess and improve the safety of their school’s physical environment, including traffic management in school zones, pedestrian crossing facilities, and drop-off/pick-up procedures — areas where teachers’ observational position within the school community gives them valuable insight into safety challenges.

Road Safety Education in Malaysian Schools

Malaysia has implemented Road Safety Education (RSE) in schools since 2007, initially adopting a curriculum adapted from Australian models. In 2018, following identification of limitations in the original syllabus, MIROS collaborated with the Road Safety Department (JKJR) to develop a revised RSE module better suited to Malaysian road users. The DéGuru RSE teacher training module was subsequently introduced to enhance teachers’ capabilities in integrating road safety education into Bahasa Melayu lessons.

Between 2018 and 2020, a large-scale teacher training initiative was implemented using the DéGuru module, reaching thousands of primary and secondary school teachers, preschool teachers, and kindergarten educators nationwide. This study’s findings from Kelantan contributed to the evidence base supporting these national training investments by identifying specific areas where teacher knowledge and skills required strengthening.

Implications for Policy and Practice

The findings underscore the importance of systematic, ongoing professional development for teachers in road safety education, rather than one-off awareness campaigns. Road safety knowledge is not static — it evolves with changes in traffic patterns, vehicle technology, road infrastructure, and the emergence of new threats such as distracted walking and personal mobility devices. Teachers need regular updates and refresher training to maintain their effectiveness as road safety educators.

The study also highlights the value of engaging teachers as partners in school-zone safety assessments and improvements. Teachers’ daily presence in the school environment gives them unique insight into safety challenges that may not be apparent to external assessors. Formalising this role through structured safety audit training could enhance both the quality of safety assessments and teachers’ sense of ownership over road safety within their school community.

Limitations

The study was limited to Kelantan and may not be fully representative of teacher awareness and training needs in other Malaysian states, which differ in urbanisation levels, traffic patterns, and educational contexts. The reliance on self-reported awareness may not perfectly correspond to actual knowledge or behaviour. The cross-sectional design provides a snapshot at one point in time and does not capture changes in teacher awareness over time or the impact of training interventions.

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