A Brief History of High School Driver Education
In the mid 1930s Amos E. Nyehart, a professor of industrial arts at Pennsylvania State college Taught a group of students to drive in his own car with stellar results.
Driver Education Unsuitable for Teens
It is well known that, as a group, teen-aged drivers have the worst safety record. Not only are they involved in a disproportionately large number of crashes, they cause a disproportionately large number of crashes.
The problem with teen drivers is NOT that they are kids.
Long ago, people believed the Earth was flat. Today we dismiss that belief as absurd. We know the truth.
The fact is traditional driver education does not work. Moreover, the National Safety Council, on page 16 of its 2004 TEEN DRIVER: A Family Guide to Teen Driving Safety, matter-of-factly reports that the failure is global. That’s not the worst of it though. This information is anything but new. Way back in 1962, Dr. Edward A. Tenney wrote a book entitled, The Highway Jungle: The Story of the Hoax in Our Schools that is Putting Death at the Wheel.
Traditional driver education teaches “skills.” However, driver ed. “skills” are not what one might expect.
Coping With Adolescent’s Immature Brains
We’ve had adolescents for millennia, and they’ve always had immature brains.
Psychologists as Driving Instructors?
Traditional high school driver education strives to change people’s personalities in hopes that such changes will increase road safety. This is due to the heavy and prolonged involvement of psychologists in driver ed.
Is It Really That Hard to Understand?
Is it really that hard to understand? Driver education does not work. That is a fact. It has been shown by study after study since the 1970s.