In an effort to reduce the alarming rate of epidemic of road accidents in the Dominican Republic, the National Institute of Transit and Land Transportation (Intrant) and the Ministry of Education (Minerd) have embarked on a collaborative initiative to integrate road safety education into the national school curriculum.
The pilot program, which began during the past 2023-2024 academic year, targets 125 educational institutions and 7 regional districts, strategically selected based on their high incidence of road accidents. This strategic approach aims to measure the program’s impact and refine its implementation for broader adoption.
737 regional and district technicians and teachers received course material so they could serve as facilitators for the student workshops. The program’s curriculum encompasses a range of road safety topics, including:
• Fundamentals and scope of Law 63-17 on road safety and civic engagement
• Technical formulas and strategies
• Human relations in traffic
• Rights and duties of pedestrians
• Conflict resolution in traffic
• Importance of respect for others on public roads
Gertrudis Esthela Soto Mejía, the coordinator of the Social Sciences Curriculum Area at Minerd’s General Curriculum Department, emphasizes the importance of fostering road safety awareness from an early age, utilizing age-appropriate approaches and content.
For primary school students, the program employs engaging methods such as games and visuals to convey fundamental road safety concepts. For secondary school students, the focus shifts to a more comprehensive and curriculum-aligned approach, ensuring that graduates are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to navigate the roads safely.
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Presidency
18 July 2024