Republic Council on Road Traffic Safety of the Republic of Macedonia Traffic education within the formal primary and secondary education

Everyone on this planet has the right to live. Life is a precious treasure. Children are the most vulnerable category, especially children from 6-14 years of age, particularly as traffic participants. The insufficient maturity of children, their lack of life and traffic experience on one hand and the complexity of traffic system and the exposure to the risk in the traffic on the another hand, makes the children to be the category of participants which suffer the most in traffic accidents.

How to reduce the negative consequences of children's participation in the traffic and how to improve traffic safety in general? The age of 6-14 is a period when children become individuals, when they acquire proper habits and attitudes about certain aspects of human life, including traffic habits: education at the beginning of the first days of school and continuously during the whole education: basic rules and regulations for safe participation in the traffic, challenges and problems they face in the traffic system.

EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA Primary education is defined as compulsory nine-year primary education. Secondary education (compulsory) is in duration of three or four years of education and it can be: Gymnasium Secondary vocational education Art education

Traffic education in primary education Within primary education, students study subjects and programmes related to basic traffic rules and regulations. Teaching contents and plans in the field of traffic education are taught within the subject Technical education as a mandatory subject: 4th grade - once a week, 36 hours per year (6 classes per year of traffic education) 5th grade - 2 times a week, 72 hours per year (10 classes per year) 6th grade - once a week, 36 hours per year (6 classes per year)

What is the meaning of traffic signs; Using a safety belt; The traffic culture is also studied through teaching units included in other subjects (arts, music, mother language...) The basic traffic rules and regulations are studied in a formal and informal manner in the primary schools, especially the following topics: How to safely cross the street; What is the meaning of traffic signs; Using a safety belt; Proper riding of bicycles etc.

Participation in various manifestations in the field of traffic Numerous non-teaching activities in the field of traffic education Organising traffic quizzes; Participation in the traffic educational manifestation “Children's traffic-light” Organising traffic educational competitions; Visiting streets, crossroads, bicycle paths etc.

Good practices Within the framework of an educational campaign for traffic safety in the elementary school "Grigor Prlicev" Ohrid, the Municipal Council on Road Traffic Safety organised the first graders to attend a children's play and to learn how to properly behave in the traffic. The pupils from elementary school "Dimitar Makedonski" from Skopje settlement Lisice, Skopje, took part in the safety campaign, strongly appealing all the drivers to be conscientious and to be careful about themselves and about other participants in the traffic.

Traffic education in the secondary education Within secondary vocational education there are traffic school centres in which students acquire greater knowledge and skills for traffic, while studying curricula for the basics of motor vehicles, traffic and road engineers, etc. Participation in various manifestations in the area of “Traffic and Technical Culture of the Youth”

The Republic of Macedonia pays great attention to the safety of children in road traffic, and according to the planned programmes and the adopted second National Strategy for Road Traffic Safety 2015-2020, it is provided the number of children - victims in the traffic to be 0 - zero.

Campaign for greater safety of children in the traffic supported by the Ministry of Education and Science

CHILDREN’S MESSAGES “Every child deserves to rejoice in life”, “Drive carefully – you are responsible”, “Children's love has no limits, children's life has no price” “Be a conscientious driver” “Be careful for the others, think of yourself” “Be rested” “Children have no brakes”

www.rsbsp.org.mk