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Frequently Asked Questions:
1. What is Think First for Kids (TFFK)?
2. What is the purpose of the project?
3. Do teachers continue to teach the regular safety curriculum?
4. How much teacher time does the research project require?
5. How
are the program group and the pre-program group different?
6. What is the Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences (ICES)?
7. How
is privacy ensured?
8. What are the inservices about?
9. How often are inservices held?
10. What if a teacher needs additional program materials?
11. Where did you get those bags?
12. Where can I get more background information about this project?
13. How can I become involved in this project in my community?
What is Think First for Kids (TFFK)?
The Think First for Kids (TFFK) Program is an educational curriculum developed by the Think First Foundation of Canada. It is aimed at elementary school students in grades 1, 2, and 3, and serves as an educational resource to the Ontario Health and Physical Education Curriculum. The TFFK curriculum focuses on brain and spinal cord injury prevention, covering themes such as bicycle safety, vehicular safety, violence & conflict resolution, water safety, and sports & recreational safety. It has been shown to be a valuable resource for teachers across Canada and meets the important curricular expectations for health and safety in Canada.
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What is the purpose of the project?
The project is a three-year evaluation of an injury prevention program. We will administer the program to 50,000 students across Ontario, and at the end of the three year project we will evaluate and publish the results. We are studying the relationship between injury prevention education and actual injury occurrence.
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Do teachers continue to teach the regular safety curriculum?
Yes. The Injury Prevention Program is meant as an enhancement to the regular health and physical education curriculum. Along with the
TFFK curriculum, teachers carry on with what they would normally teach.
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How much teacher time does the research project require?
Each week, one half hour lesson is taught for a total of six weeks. Pre- and
post-questionnaires take students about 20 minutes to complete and are administered before and after the six week period.
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How
are the
Program
Group and the Pre-Program Group different?
The study employs a “lagged-implementation design” which is a two
stage approach to introducing the program and allows for the evaluation of the
curriculum's effectiveness:
Program Group:
Students complete a pre-questionnaire, wait 6 weeks, and then complete a post-questionnaire.
Students receive the TFFK Program during those 6 weeks.
Pre-program Group:
Students complete a pre-questionnaire, wait 6 weeks, and then complete a post-questionnaire.
The regular safety curriculum is taught throughout the year.
It is anticipated that after 18 months of participation, the pre- program group
will also receive the TFFK Program.
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What is the Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences (ICES)?
The Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences (ICES) is a non-profit organization
is involved in epidemiological research addressing group patterns, trends and
issues in health care. The source of ICES core funding is the Ontario Ministry
of Health and Long Term Care. Many of the aggregate statistics that you see quoted by the media regarding health issues
involve analyses from ICES. At the end of this three-year study, ICES will be analyzing all of the data that we collected, and will provide us with results on
group injury rates. You can visit the ICES website at www.ices.on.ca.
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How
is privacy ensured?
The research team only sees reports on group injury rates, which can never
be linked to individuals. ICES is one of
a few government funded research facilities with limited and regulated access to
provincial health statistics for medical research and epidemiological studies.
ICES encrypts and analyzes this group information, thereby ensuring anonymity.
When ICES completes their analysis, they report on aggregate trends, such as
the number of broken legs in southern Ontario.
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What are the inservices about?
The inservices are presentations that are scheduled annually with each participating school board, right at the beginning of the project schedule.
Representatives from each school attend, subsequently passing on information that they receive to the teachers at their
school, acting as “teacher trainers”.
The first inservice introduces the project and the program, as well as the
dynamic field of injury prevention. The second and third inservices update teacher trainers on the status of the project, present any results,
and provide a forum for injury prevention issues relevant to the school board's
region.
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How often are inservices held?
Inservices are held annually for the three years of the project, and can take place in the fall, winter, or spring. Half-day
supply teacher costs are covered by the project on these inservice dates.
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What if a teacher needs additional program materials?
We would be pleased to send additional copies of project materials (e.g. questionnaires) to any school or teacher upon request. Please refer to the Contact Us page to get in touch with us.
Alternatively, schools can photocopy additional materials.
Please ensure that papers titled “Pre-Questionnaire” are administered only at the beginning of the project period, and that papers titled “Post-Questionnaire” are administered at the end of the project period.
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Where did you get those bags?
The red-white-and-black polypropylene bags were purchased from a man who has a shop in Kensington market, near
the intersection of Queen Street and Spadina Avenue in Toronto, Ontario.
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Where can I get more background information about this project?
If there is any aspect of our research project about which you would like more information, we'd like to hear from you. The Contact Us page provides several ways for you to reach us.
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How can I become involved in this project in my community?
There are a variety of ways that you can get involved:
1. Help with the planning/participation of community safety events (e.g. bicycle rodeos).
2. Submit content for our newsletter or web site.
3. Make a presentation on injury prevention efforts that you are involved with at one of our teacher training inservices.
4. Raise awareness of the need for injury prevention through your community newspaper or other publications.
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Contact Us with your comments and suggestions.
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