Road safety goes to school

Auckland City is funding a cycle safety education programme in six selected primary and intermediate schools to help improve children’s road safety skills. Schools selected are located in areas where there are above average numbers of road accidents involving children.

Auckland City’s road safety co-ordinator, Claire Dixon, says the programme encourages children to be more aware of road safety. The specific skills taught include, riding safely, wearing helmets, and road intersection rules.

“The programme has been developed with Bike Wise manuals and information tailored for children aged eight to 12 years.

“The programme has had fantastic feedback so far, with schools indicating they would like to see the programme run again next year,” says Ms Dixon.

When the programme finishes in June 2005 more than 1000 children will have been taught road safety skills.

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>