– How children get to and from school matters and affects well-being and performance in school. The best option is to let children walk, cycle, or take the bus to school, says Jessica Westman Trischler at the Service Research Center (CTF) at Karlstad University, who has studied schoolchildren's commuting habits. Her research is now being presented as part of a traffic safety campaign in Germany.
Jessica Westman Trischler is currently featured as an expert in the traffic safety campaign "Merci Dir" which aims to promote more sustainable travel habits, better cooperation and increased safety on the streets of Munich Germany, by informing and inspiring the city's residents to switch to more sustainable modes of transportation.
– A part of the campaign is a documentary series about children's school journeys, and this is where my expertise comes in, says Jessica Westman Trischler, Senior Lecturer in Psychology. The project manager has read my research and thinks that my researcher profile fits well.
Jessica Westman Trischler has studied schoolchildren's commuting habits and how the choice of transportation and activities during the school journey affects children's well-being and performance in school.
– My research shows that many children don’t want to be driven to school but prefer to walk or cycle, preferably with friends. When children walk or cycle to school, they feel more alert throughout the school day, which can affect performance since it is easier to focus and keep up in the classroom when we feel alert. Children who travel by car are the most tired.
In the documentary series, viewers will follow several families for six months, where parents will stop driving their children to and from school and instead walk to school together with their children.
– How do children and parents experience this change? How do they handle psychological barriers? What do parents experience with their children on the way to school? These are some questions we will get answers to. The hope is to reduce adults' reservations about letting their children cycle or walk to school. By getting to know the school route and the surrounding environment better, parents will hopefully also begin to feel more secure in letting their children travel to school on their own. The campaign is in full swing, and I’m eagerly following how the families change their travel patterns.
What advice would you like to give to parents or others who have an impact on children's school journeys?
– When possible, leave the car at home! Let the children walk or cycle to school. It brings so much goodness! It creates good routines, contributes to essential physical activity and better well-being, and is better for the environment.
Links:
- Jessica Westman Tischler´s doctoral thesis Drivers of Children's Travel Satisfaction
- Documentary series muenchenunterwegs.de
