Learning to drive is an anticipated event in a teenager’s life that introduces independence and responsibility. In suburban areas, like Monmouth County, driving is imperative since walking and taking public transport are typically inconvenient. However, the legally required permit-to-license process can be complicated if schools don’t offer Driver’s Education courses; Communications High School is one of those few.
Principal James Gleason claims that the academy-wide decision not to host Driver’s Education is justifiable, and CHS will continue to withhold it from the curriculum.
“Most of it’s driven by the cost to have a program and making sure you’d have somebody certified to teach it in five different academies,”Gleason said. “So I just think it’s not a sustainable curriculum item.”
Many students claim the course not being offered in school has put them at a disadvantage.
“It put me at a disadvantage because I had to self-study, and I didn’t necessarily have all the materials needed,” junior Madison Loushine of Loch Arbor said.
CHS’s lack of Driver’s Education forces students to seek learning the rules of the road through third parties, such as local driving schools, while friends and siblings at public schools are already taught the material.
“It’s frustrating that while some people were able to get their permit and start driving quicker, I had to schedule appointments and everything just came later as opposed to just getting it during school,” sophomore Oksana Kopylenko of Manalapan said.
Up-and-coming drivers must pay for their own lessons. According to carsdirect.com, the average prices for learning to drive are $30 to $180 for classroom driver training, $50 to $150 per session for actual road training and between $200 and $800 for all-inclusive packages. Some decide to opt out of classroom training, other lessons or driving completely to avoid these costs.
Junior Ariana Ortiz of Long Branch claims that self-studying was good enough to allow her to succeed on her permit test.
“It didn’t affect me much because all it took was looking through the driver’s manual an hour a day and I passed,” Ortiz said.
Some students drive far to get to school during the mornings, and without the proper education from a classroom setting, one may be too nervous to get behind the wheel and drive to school, another reason for hindering novice drivers.
“It could be daunting when driving for the first time to have to go all the way to CHS, especially,” junior Eliza Madore of Atlantic Highlands said.
Aside from a slower, independent learning process, financial nuisances, and fear behind the wheel, CHS students manage to reach expectations and get onto the road.
“I passed. Not with flying colors, but I passed,” Ortiz said.
