Reference no: EM13791364

Part 1-

What should be done about senior citizen drivers?

I Define Terms

A. Senior Citizen: an elderly person, usually older than 60-65 years of age ("Senior Citizens").

B. Cognition: refers "to the mental processes involved in gaining knowledge and comprehension. These processes include thinking, knowing, remembering, judging, and problem-solving" (Cherry).

C. Electronic Stability Control: a system "designed to reduce untripped rollovers and mitigate severe understeer or oversteer conditions that lead to loss of control by using automatic computer-controlled braking and reducing engine torque output" ("Electronic Stability Control").

D. Forward Collision Avoidance Systems: monitor traffic in front a vehicle and warn the driver of potential collision. It senses relative speed and distance between vehicles and will alert the driver if it believes a collision could happen. Some systems have autonomic brake systems that will brake to reduce the severity of the crash or prevent it all together ("Crash avoidance features by make and model").

E. Adaptive Headlights: active lights pivot the beam in the direction the driver is traveling to help them see better on dark, curved roads ("Crash avoidance features by make and model").

II Analyze the Problem

A. Who is affected by senior citizen drivers?

1. Any driver or passenger on the road

2. However, in terms of fatalities, senior citizen drivers are more of a danger to themselves and their passengers than they are to others on the road ("Older Drivers").

a. Senior citizens are more vulnerable to injuries ("Older Drivers").

B. What are the causes ofaccidents with senior citizen drivers?

1. Physical, cognitive, and/or visual impairment

a. Several studies have shown that the types of impairment mentioned above are associated with an increased risk of crash involvement ("Older Drivers").

b. Eyes need three times as much light at age 60 to see as they did at age 20 ("Light Requirements").

c. Some medication or a combination of medication can impair a driver's ability to drive safely do to side effects ("Medical Conditions & Medications").

d. Hearing loss is a common condition in older adults according to the National Institutes of Health ("Hearing").

(1) 1/3 of Americans over 65 years of age are affected by hearing loss ("Hearing").

e. As people age, their brain needs more time to process information and people tend to forget things as they age ("Mind & Cognition").

(1) Since the brain need more time to process information in older people, this also slow reactions time especially while driving. Older drivers are unable to process information from different sources fast enough to make a good judgment call while driving. This creates dangerous situations on the road ("Reaction Time").

2. Senior citizen drivers are more likely to be involved in angle crashes, overtaking or merging crashes, and especially intersection crashes ("Older Drivers").

3. The most common error of senior citizen drivers is a failure to yield the right-of-way ("Older Drivers").

4. According to Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Highway Loss Data Institute, drivers 65 and older have a higher percentage of multiple-vehicle intersection crashes than drivers 65 and younger. However drivers 65 and older had a lower or mid-level percentage of other multiple-vehicle crashes, single-vehicle intersection crashes, and other single-vehicle crashes than younger drivers ("Older Drivers").

a. This could be because older drivers are less likely to be driving under the influences or have distractions such as cell phones, friends, and loud music.

C. What methods are in place for solving the issue of senior citizen drivers?

1. Restrictions generally occur when drivers apply for license renewal ("Older Drivers").

a. They may have to have evaluations by licensing agencies based on referrals from police, physicians, or families ("Older Drivers").

b. States may also have policies for further testing such as vision screening, road tests, knowledge tests, and/or evaluations by medical advisory boards ("Older Drivers").

2. Advanced technology has help protect older drivers and help them drive more safely.

a. Bigger and brighter displays and controls ("Older Drivers").

b. Electronic stability control has helped to reduce single-vehicle fatal crashes ("Older Drivers").

c. Forward collision avoidance systems and adaptive headlights have proved to be effective in reducing insurance claims ("Older Drivers").

3. Nineteen states have accelerated renewal for driver's license.

4. Some states have other requirements such as not being able to renew electronically by a certain age but only by mail if a physician certifies they are mentally and physically competent to drive ("Older Drivers").

5. A study has shown that cheap modifications to intersections (including making traffic signals more visible and adding a dedicated left-turn lane) has a 13% reduction in injury crashes per licensed drivers for drivers 65 and older compared to drivers ages 25-64 ("Older Drivers").

6. Another study showed that intersections that were converted to roundabouts reduced injury crashes by 76% ("Older Drivers").

D. How severe are the problems with senior citizen drivers?

1. In 2011, deaths involving at least one driver 70 or older were 62 percent compare to deaths involving at least one driver age 30-39 which was 47 percent ("Older Drivers").

2. According to a graph provided by Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Highway Loss Data Institute, titled "Motor vehicle crash deaths per 100,000 people by age and gender" shows that senior citizen drivers have some of the highest rate except for drivers 20-24 years of age who have the highest at 18.5 percent ("Older Drivers").

3. In 2011, the rate of pedestrian deaths per 100,000 people was commonly higher for drivers 75 and older than for drivers younger than 75 ("Older Drivers").

E. What is the history of senior citizen drivers?

1. Deaths per 100,000 people 70 and older have decreased from 25.9% in 1975 to 14.2% in 2011 ("Older Drivers").

2. Motor vehicle crash death rates per 100,000 people increased at ages 70-75 among males and ages 65-69 in females in 2011 ("Older Drivers"). This is similar with data from 2005 ("Older Drivers").

III Standards/Criteria

A. The solution should involve senior citizens and law enforcement as well as the families of senior citizens and really the entire nation since everyone is affected by senior citizen drivers.

B. The solution should include improving situations and driving conditions for senior citizen drivers.

C. The solution should include every state. Either each state has their own rules or the entire country has rules to follow.

D. The solution should benefit both non-senior citizen driver and senior citizen drivers.

IV Possible Solutions

A. Senior citizens should have to have a physical and mental exam yearly starting at age 60. If they fail a part of the exam and the problem cannot be reversed, they should no longer have a driver's license.

B. All states should improve road conditions. This includes improved road signs through lettering, size, and color; more left turning lanes with left turning traffic signals; and more roundabouts instead of traditional intersection.

C. Make public transportation more accessible to reduce the number of senior citizen drivers.

D. Create a curfew for senior citizens drives similar to drivers under 18 years of age in certain states.

V Best Solution

A. The best solution is a mixture of possible solutions. Every state should set aside money to improve road signs, add left turning lanes, and more roundabouts.

B. Each state should enforce some regulation about physical and mental exams. How often and at what age to start can be different with each state.

C. Each state should also enforce some type of curfew for senior citizen drivers

VI Implementing and Testing

A. To test this solution, each state should try road improvements in areas of high crash rate and observe if the rate decreases

B. A few different states should temporarily enforce a curfew to see if that aids in the reduction of senior citizen vehicle accidents.

C. Each state should enforce some type of regulation for physical and mental exams to determine if it would help in reducing accidents involving senior citizen drivers and if so it will help the states determine at what age and how often these exams should take place.

Part 2- Problem-solving Panel Discussion

Requirements:

1. Your group will complete a problem-solving panel discussion (in class & online) on a policy question that is of interest to you and your audience. The objective of this assignment is for you to practice consensus-building as it relates to group problem-solving.

2. Your group should first select a question of policy that is of interest to your group members and
to your audience. The policy question should be one that allows you to provide a mix of evidence (e.g. examples, stories, statistics, and expert testimony) and opinion. Example: What should schools do to lower the rate of child obesity? Make sure that your question is not too broad in scope.

3. Each group member must research the topic/problem and organize an outline using Dewey's 6 Steps to Reflective Thinking as explained below.

I. Identify and Define the Problem (Step 1): Phrase the topic as a policy question (before the discussion). During the discussion, you should define terms in your question as well as unfamiliar terms that might come up during the discussion.

II. Analyze the Problem (Step 2): Before the class discussion, identify relevant questions (pg. 48) and provide necessary ideas and evident (examples, stories, statistics, and expert testimony) on your outline to answer the questions.

III. Standards/Criteria (Step 3): List the standards or guidelines that you feel your solution must meet. Standards usually begin with "Our solution should...)-see text/electronic reserve for examples.

IV. Possible Solutions (Step 4): You should provide 5-10 possible solutions to your problem.

V. Best Solution (Step 5): Look at your list of possible solutions and your information for Steps 2 + 3 and then decide what you think is the best solution(s) to your problem. Keep in mind that when your group collaborates on this step, you might see the benefits of other solutions.

VI. Implementation and Testing (Step 6): Describe how you would go about implementing and testing your solution for effectiveness. Again, keep in mind that this might change when your group collaborates on this step.

4. You must bring your 6 step outline to our next class (Note: Step 2 should be your longest step) You will use your outline in class for the your panel discussion. If all group members come to class prepared, your group should have lots of information and ideas to share (about 20 minutes). After the in-class panel discussion, you must hand in your 6 step outline (10 pts.).

5. You are now ready to communicate as a group online. Before you begin your online discussion,
your group must select a recorder who will create a Google Doc/Drive for your group. The recorder should begin the Google Doc with a summary of step 3 and then share the document with the group members and. Group members should be given editing rights.

1. Your group must first select a topic and word the topic as a policy question. Some of the following policy question examples were used by previous CAS 100E groups. You may use any of the following questions or may be creative and create your own policy question.

What should be the policy for senior citizen drivers?

What should be done to reduce the rate of sexually transmitted diseases? What should schools do to lower the rate of child obesity?)(

What should be done to prevent Freshman 15 at Behrend? A

What should be done to make college at Behrend more affordable?

What should be done to make textbooks more affordable at Behrend?

What should be done about the general education requirements at Behrend?

What should be done to lessen alcohol related accidents of college-aged students? What should schools do to prevent school shootings? X

What should be the policy regarding the legalization of marijuana in Pennsylvania? What should be done to lower the suicide rate?

What policies should be in place for the use of E-cigarettes?

What should be done to ensure preparedness for pandemics?

What should schools do regarding .4611R vaccines for students?

What should be done to reduce overcrowded-prisons?

What should be done to make fracking more environmentally friendly?

Your policy question: What should be done to reduce overcrowed-prisons?

2. To guide your research for your individual outline and your discussion next week, your group should decide which questions need to be answered during Step 2 (Analysis of the Problem). Your text lists the following questions. You may select any or all of the following questions to answer during your in-class discussion next week and possibly add your own questions.

How long has the problem been in existence?

Howe widespread is the problem?

What are the causes of the problem? The effects? Who is harmed by the problem?

What methods already exist for managing the problem? What are the limitations of existing methods?