Through Innovation of Curricula of the Study Program Road Transport to safer Future Generations
Injuries in road traffic are the eighth leading cause of death globally and the leading cause of death for young people aged 15 to 29 years. Reducing this negative impact of road transport is one of the main goals of the Improving the safety of transport in the Western Balkans through innovation and the development of curricula Erasmus + Project, the participants of which is the University of Montenegro as well.
The value of the project, which is headed by Sreten Simovic, PhD, from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Montenegro, in the period 2018-2021, amounts to 860,000 euros.
‘One of the ways of achieving intended goals when it comes to the safety of transport is the adjustment of the education system at all levels, especially at the higher education institutions, within which the study program for road transport at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Montenegro’, Simovic said.
The curricula of the road transport studies, he adds, should be comprehensive, and in that sense in order to fulfill the strategy for the development of traffic safety in Montenegro, they require adjustment of curricula that will cover all levels of education.
‘In addition, at the University of Montenegro, there is a clear need for modern laboratory equipment, modern software, courses that are problem-oriented and that students and others in the traffic system will acquire a more significant level of practical skills,’ Simovic said.
He states that interviewing perceptions of citizens regarding to traffic safety, which will result as an important input for the design of further activities in meeting the project objectives, is in the process.
As a result, in addition to raising the quality of higher education in the field of transport in Montenegro, according to the trends in the EU, the project will influence the strengthening of the relevance of experts for the labor market and society, he considers.
‘It will influence the increase in the level of competencies and skills, create new training programs on traffic safety training with training materials, train teaching staff of the University of Montenegro according to modern knowledge for teaching according to new / improved programs, introduce advanced teaching process and learn, introduce new laboratory equipment, library units and software necessary for continuation of study programs,‘ Simovic said.
The long-term impact of improvements in education will also be a change in the behavior and attitudes of people in Montenegro related to traffic.
Project partners:
ABS: Road Traffic Safety Agency of the Republic of Serbia
UPKM: University of Pristina in Kosovska Mitrovica, Kosovo*
TCASU: Technical College of Applied Sciences Urosevac with temporary seat in Leposavic, Kosovo*
CRLS: Center for Development of Local Communities Kosovska Mitrovica, Kosovo*
UNS: University of Novi Sad, Serbia
VTSNIS: The College of Applied Technical Sciences Nis, Serbia
UNSA: University of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
US: Sinergija University Bijeljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina
TSARS: Traffic Safety Agency of Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina
AUB: University Adriatic Bar, Montenegro
UoM: University of Montenegro
AC: ALPHA Centre, Montenegro
UPM: Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
OU: Obuda University, Hungary
LUT: Lublin University of Technology, Poland
UM: University of Maribor, Slovenia