Monday,  April 30, 2012 • Vol. 12--No. 291 • 2 of 29 •  Other Editions

A look at more than 25 years of driver's education
By Bill Krikac

• The way we teach young people to become responsible drivers has changed over the past quarter century--sometimes for the better, and sometimes not.
• When I started teaching drivers education in the 1970s, the class was taught within the school curriculum, usually to sophomores.  It was often on a weekly basis for a semester, garnering the needed 30 hours of classroom instruction. The second semester involved six hours of behind-the-wheel training, usually two to three to a car. The class was like any other--students did not pay to take it.
• This evolved to a summer course, often with the class part being taught in a week or two weeks. The behind-the-wheel sessions followed. The charge for these classes now ranges from $100 to $200 per student.
• Now that the class has a price tag attached to it, the focus has shifted. Efficiency trumps content, and students are herded through, just to get that desired driver's license. Many of the concepts, good driving habit routines and some risk-taking ramification examples--the lessons that make for life-long learning--have been lost along the way.
• What is the best method for teaching proper driving habits?
• The answer to that question changes depending on the student, the community, what's going on in the world, and even the time of day. This means that it's best to use a variety of methods, and hopefully one or more will make a lasting impression on each student.
• Movies with scare tactics, such as scenes of tragic accidents and fatal accidents,

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