Sequoyah’s Opinions and Advice on Drivers’ Ed
Image Credits: What you should know about Drivers ED?
By the time teenagers turn 15, most of us can’t wait to drive. At the very least, we wonder what driving is like. As we all know, before we take our permit test, we need to study. Studying for your permit has become a pretty controversial topic among teens. In this article, we will hear from Sequoyah students about their opinions, experiences, and advice for others walking into the world of drivers’ ed.
Some quick background on drivers’ ed: there are several websites you can use to take your lessons. Many are similar, but they demonstrate different ways of learning each lesson. Once you finish all the required lessons, you become eligible to take your permit test.
Freshman Sam Heiser is halfway through his drivers’ ed course. He uses My California Permit and recommends this website to others. Once you finish reading and studying a lesson, you take a quick test. Tests can be very stressful, and it’s easy to forget everything before you take one, but the site lets you retake your lesson test as many times as you need. On any website you use for your lessons, you learn some things that don’t seem entirely necessary, including car history, physics, and a couple of other things. Heiser shared his opinions on these “not so necessary” lessons, saying, “I don’t love it, but for the physics lessons, I think it would be good to know in the end…Car history is not too important. But still study it because, again, you might need it.” Heiser recommends starting early so you don’t have to wait to take your driver’s test. If you don’t take your permit test at age 15 ½, you still need to wait 6 months after you take it to get your driver’s license.
Gideon Schneider ’26, who now has his license, shares his experience of drivers’ ed and some advice to prepare for the big test. First, Schneider expresses his opinions on the “not so necessary” lessons. “The car history lessons and stuff like that aren’t too important, but [you should] still study them because there may be a question on your permit test, so it wouldn’t be so bad to go over it. But don’t stress on studying super hard, it’s okay to just get the bigger picture.” Schneider suggests that students take their time on the lessons, and don’t overwhelm themselves. It will help in the long run.
Isha Agrawal ’27 isn’t exactly sure how far along she is on her drivers’ ed journey. She currently is using Viva Driving School and wouldn’t recommend it, as it doesn't tell you how far along you are and can be confusing at times. Currently, Agrawal is learning one of the “not so necessary” lessons, car history. “I think these unnecessary lessons are absurd,” Agrawal says, “because you need 30 hours of lessons, and that makes sense, but if those 30 hours are filled with pointless stuff, I’d rather elaborate on the important stuff.”
Agrawal recommends doing research on what website you want to complete your drivers’ education. Also, be prepared to read, as Heiser stated he had 45 pages of reading once! It can be a lot, so don’t be scared when you come across this. Reading can be from 10 pages all the way to 50 pages. So again, be prepared! Lastly, Loella Kleiner ’27 recommends taking notes. When it’s time to take the mini-test at the end of the lesson, having a little notepad with some important information or bullet points can be extremely helpful.
Overall, drivers’ ed can be tough, but eventually it will be over and you will be ready to step on the gas and go the extra mile–literally.