Thousands of teens across America learn to drive each year, memorizing handbooks, privately enrolling in classes and spending hours on the road. 

But getting your license is a long, expensive ordeal. 

Many driving courses come with a large price tag, which some student’s families cannot comfortably afford — especially when they have multiple students of driving age. In Kansas, private driving classes can cost up to $799. 

The alternative is to obtain a learner’s permit and then spend 25 to 50 hours practicing with a licensed driver over 21. This route can be time consuming, and it is difficult to work so many hours of driving into already busy schedules. 

Offering driver’s education as a summer course through the Shawnee Mission School District would relieve financial and time-related barriers that prevent some teens from getting their license. 

Driver’s ed was a course at Northwest before 2001, and many alumni earned their license this way. 

“One driving, the instructor in the passenger seat, and then one or two kids in the back seat,” history teacher and Northwest alumni Todd Boren said. “You would go out, and you would get to drive for about 10 or 15 minutes, and then you would switch spots.”

But, if driver’s ed was brought back, it would have a different look. Instead of being an in-school semester long course, it could be offered as an optional summer class for teens across the school district. Students would pay a relatively minimal course fee of $50 to $100, and attend sessions for three weeks. 

During class, students would first learn the rules of the road and driving etiquette. Once passing the Kansas Driver’s Handbook test, they would then be able to practice driving with their instructor. Students would have four attempts to get an 80% on the test. 

When driving, instructors and students would use a dual brake car, making it safer for beginners. 

This summer course, similar to driver’s ed offered by private driving companies, will be taken on a pass/fail basis. Students must meet the participation requirements and complete the in-person driving and written exam portions. 

At the end of the course, instructors would submit a student’s scores to the administrative offices. In three business days, students who passed would receive a valid DE-99, which they can take to a state driver’s license office. After passing a vision test at the DMV, students can then pay for a printed state-issued permit. 

Creating such a course would be resource consuming and labor intensive. The class would be paid for by both school funding and fees collected from students. Instructors would be needed to teach the course, and a dual-brake car needed for driving sessions. 

Though costs may be a concern, purchasing a dual brake car would be an investment, as it could be used for many years, and reduce the risk for instructors and students during  lessons. Driver’s ed would bring many benefits to the student body, outweighing the costs. 

Driving is a huge part of life, especially for adolescents, which is why it’s so important to protect them on the road. Offering courses that are financially accessible to students and within a close proximity to their homes could potentially relieve pressure for Northwest families and bring the community closer together.