The
Seattle School District offers traffic safety education classes to
students who are at least 15 years old and are eligible to attend a
secondary school (public or private). The course is approved by the
Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public
Instruction. The purpose of our program is to help students to
become efficient, knowledgeable and responsible drivers.
The
Seattle Public Schools has operated a driver-training program for
over 40 years. All of our teachers are certificated with a traffic
safety education endorsement through the Superintendent of Public
Instruction and receive updated information and training every
year. Our instructors average 17 years of experience teaching
driver education.
The
Traffic Safety Education course teaches students about the skills,
judgment and attitudes essential to safe and skillful driving. The
program provides the young driver with the opportunity to learn
about the driving task, rules of the road, driver responsibilities,
and how to make reduced-risk decisions while driving. A unit on
alcohol/drugs and driving and the Seattle Defensive Driving system
are part of the curriculum.
As
part of the course students will practice basic and defensive
driving strategies in a variety of traffic situations. In addition,
they are expected to practice between driving sessions with a
licensed driver who has at least five years of driving
experience.
Before the student
applies for his/her license, a parent or guardian (who has held a
valid driver license for at least five years) is required to
provide a minimum of 50 hours of supervised driving practice of
which 10 should be at night. The Department of Licensing (DOL) will
require the parent/guardian to certify that these conditions have
been met when the student applies for her/his driver
license.
Several driving
schools have opened since the DOL became the oversight agency for
commercial driving schools. Many provide excellent training, but
some do not. Whether you choose the Seattle Public Schools traffic
education program or a commercial driving school we recommend that
you consider the importance of enrolling your student into a
reputable school.
Department of
Licensing web page
For
more information, send email to Gerri Miller at gemiller@seattleschools.org
Traffic Education
Office
1330 North 90th Street
Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 252-4735
Related
Sites:
www.wsdot.wa.gov/
Washington State Department of Transportation
www.pde.drivers.com
Traffic Safety Information Village
www.wtsc.wa.gov/resources/links.php
Washington Traffic Safety Counsel
www.nhtsa.dot.gov
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
www.k12.wa.us/TrafficSafety/
Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Traffic Education
Pages
adtsea.iup.edu
American Driver and Traffic Safety Education
Association
www.mrtraffic.com
Kenny Morse
www.madd.org
Mothers Against Drunk Driving