Driver's Ed
When I was in High School, there was a course called “Driver's Ed” that pretty much everyone took, mostly as Juniors. [YES, it was indeed some time ago; NO, no horses were involved; YES, I think that's where they put the damned apostrophe.]
The purpose of the course was not complex: Before long a horde of new drivers would be licensed to operate motor vehicles on the public thoroughfares of the Garden State. The Powers that Be thought (correctly) that the High School was a good place to teach these hooligans something about the safe operation of automobiles, as well as the rules that limited what one could and could not do once a license was issued.
The community (through the legislature) had determined that one could not be licensed to drive before reaching the age (as I recall) of 16. It was presumably thought that, before that age, one was insufficiently mature to be anything but a danger to one’s self and others. And the course was given only to students of about that age.
I don’t recall anyone suggesting that 12-year-olds should be given the course since, well, we all know that they’re going to be driving anyway, there’s no way to stop them, so we’d just better make the best of it and teach them how to be stupid carefully. I also seem to recall that the course was exclusively about the proper operation of an automobile, kept within the limits of its intended purpose.
There were no lessons, for example, on the best way to minimize casualties if you decided to drive on the sidewalk, instead of in the street that had been provided for that purpose. Similarly, there were no lessons in making high-speed jumps off ramps, or driving in reverse at 35 miles per hour, or steering with your knees while not spilling your beer. If any of these was part of the curriculum, I was absent that day.
I’m pretty sure we didn’t have a course in Sex Ed. We did have auto shop.
The purpose of the course was not complex: Before long a horde of new drivers would be licensed to operate motor vehicles on the public thoroughfares of the Garden State. The Powers that Be thought (correctly) that the High School was a good place to teach these hooligans something about the safe operation of automobiles, as well as the rules that limited what one could and could not do once a license was issued.
The community (through the legislature) had determined that one could not be licensed to drive before reaching the age (as I recall) of 16. It was presumably thought that, before that age, one was insufficiently mature to be anything but a danger to one’s self and others. And the course was given only to students of about that age.
I don’t recall anyone suggesting that 12-year-olds should be given the course since, well, we all know that they’re going to be driving anyway, there’s no way to stop them, so we’d just better make the best of it and teach them how to be stupid carefully. I also seem to recall that the course was exclusively about the proper operation of an automobile, kept within the limits of its intended purpose.
There were no lessons, for example, on the best way to minimize casualties if you decided to drive on the sidewalk, instead of in the street that had been provided for that purpose. Similarly, there were no lessons in making high-speed jumps off ramps, or driving in reverse at 35 miles per hour, or steering with your knees while not spilling your beer. If any of these was part of the curriculum, I was absent that day.
I’m pretty sure we didn’t have a course in Sex Ed. We did have auto shop.
Presented for your delectation by the Gentleman Farmer at 5:57 PM
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