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MORE COURSE, LESS CRASH
Formal education for teenage learner drivers needs an overhaul if it is to reduce their high crash risk, as a welter of published studies shows that it is ineffective (
). The widely applied standard programme of 30 hours of class and six hours of on road instruction is too short and too narrowly focused. Future programmes need to counter a widespread fallacy that driving is a simple exercise. They should foster the higher order psychomotor, perceptual, and cognitive skills important in safe driving that teenagers lack and show learners their own limitations to counteract their tendency to overconfidence. Teaching needs to emphasise the value of practices to driver safety and relevance to teenage drivers, and training must be flexible enough to cater for individuals with different competencies.
GRADUATED LICENSING WORKS...
Extending the learning period for teenage drivers before their test—by graduated driver licensing (GDL)—reduces their crash rates, according to a review of published research, but why and how it does so is less clear (
). GDL provides a buffer before becoming fully licensed—to gain more experience while “protected” from known crash hazards. At least some of its components are known to work. These are extended learning, early intervention …
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