Online Drivers Ed is the Safest Option

As the world gears for a more online, technological future, Drivers Education services and the process of getting one’s license has to quickly adapt.

Online instruction is not new for the Hartford population. Both of the major driver’s education services offered in Hartford, Just Drive and A-Alert, have online options that a person could sign up for.

With the Safer at Home order by Governor Tony Evers and similar orders around the United States, online classes are being utilized more than ever. With this pandemic still raging throughout the country, online drivers education options should be utilized in an effort to keep more people safe.

These classes still require the same amount of instruction, 30 hours in Wisconsin, before a student can receive their temporary license with an online test at the end of the course.

Balancing homework, their job, and their home lives fill up a student’s schedule pretty quickly. Time is even more critical if the student is an athlete or in advanced courses that require extra time. Unlike the rigid in-person classes, online school is flexible and able to conform to students’ own schedule.

Kari Windisch from A-Alert acknowledges that enrollment in these online courses has recently been increasing.

“Even before the pandemic we were seeing a huge increase in the number of students that were taking the online class versus in person class,” Windisch said.

Currently, the only way for A-Alert students to receive instruction is online, though some in-person classes might pop up at HUHS in November.

According to Aceable, a corporation dedicated to online and mobile drivers ed, Wisconsin is one of the 15 states that allows students to complete drivers education instruction online. California, Colorado, Florida, and Texas are a few other states that online classes are available.

Michigan, on the other hand, doesn’t usually allow online instruction. In March, driver education programs were forced to adjust to online as the entire state was quarantined. Now, in-person classes are once again being held. Miriam Marini from the Detroit Free Press newspaper states that there are instead limitations to the in-person classes to follow governor Whitmer’s virus rules.

“Under Whitmer's guidelines, driving schools are classified as social gatherings. That limits classroom sessions to nine students and one instructor,” Marini said.

One Michigan driving school, Official Driving School, has already turned away and refunded more than 600 potential students.

Online instruction has great potential, especially with the pandemic still in the country. Instead of turning some 600 students away, turn them towards online education. They can stay safe at home and complete the course on their own time.