Are you planning to apply for your California driver’s license? One of the requirements you need to fulfill is to complete a drivers education course.
Finishing a 30-hour drivers ed program is mandatory for teens between 15 ½ to 17 ½ who are applying for a driver’s license for the first time. You need to satisfy this requirement before you can get your learner’s permit.
Please do not confuse a behind-the-wheel (BTW) training program with a drivers education course.
In a behind-the-wheel training program, you are going to learn how to drive. This is the part where you sit in a car with an instructor teaching you how to properly and safely drive an automobile.
In California, the requirement is 50 hours of behind-the-wheel training, 10 of which should be done at night.
Meanwhile, a drivers ed program primarily deals with the knowledge part of driving. It is where you will learn about road signs, traffic rules, defensive driving techniques and unsafe driving behaviors, just to name a few.
How to Take a Drivers Education Course in California
In California, students like you have the option of taking a classroom-based or an online drivers ed course.
Also called traditional drivers ed program, a classroom-based course is just like your regular school classes. It is an instructor-led program with a fixed schedule and venue. This means that you need to physically attend the classes to complete the course.
An online drivers ed course, as the name suggests, is a virtual program which can be taken using any Internet-connected device. Here, you can take the course in a place of your choice, like your house or favorite coffee shop, for as long as there is an Internet connection.
California Drivers Ed Online Course – The Safe Choice
Studies report that there is a higher chance of contracting the dreaded COVID-19 virus in enclosed spaces, especially in poorly ventilated ones. This is one of the reasons why most schools in California are closed and have shifted to full-time distance learning.
Clearly, the pandemic is changing the way things are being done including drivers education. Traditional online drivers ed providers all across the country now have to deliver their programs virtually. This meant that the only available option now for driver’s license applicants is online learning.
In states where face-to-face instruction is the requirement for drivers education, this is an entirely new thing but not in California.
As mentioned earlier, the Golden State allows driver’s license applicants to complete their 30-hour drivers ed course online for as long as the program is DMV-approved.
So, while a lot of things are being put on hold because of the pandemic, completing your licensing requirements, particularly your drivers ed course, shouldn’t be one of them.
All you need to do is to look for a reputable California drivers ed online course, and you can start learning using an Internet-ready device from the comforts of your home.
In this type of program, everything is done online – from the registration to the certificate submission. Hence, you do not have to worry about your safety when enrolling and completing this course.
California Drivers Ed Online – A Convenient Way of Learning
But taking drivers ed online is not just about safety but also convenience. There are no fixed study schedules you have to follow. You decide when you want to study – whether it’s during the day or at night as well as weekdays or weekends. Plus, you can stop whenever you want and pick up where you left of since the program saves the student’s progress.
There is also no fixed schedule per topic as you dictate the pace of the course. You can choose to spend more or less time on a module as you see fit. Experts say that, with the self-paced learning method, students are able to retain more information and understand topics better.
These two things – the free study schedule and self-paced learning – set Internet-based drivers ed courses apart from traditional programs which are now being offered online.
With traditional courses that shifted to distance learning, the design is still much like before wherein there are pre-set class and topic schedules. You still need to go online at a specific time and date to listen to the instructor teach the lessons. The only difference from before is that the class is held virtually.
So, in terms of convenience, a drivers ed online course is undoubtedly the smart choice. Furthermore, since they have been in business for years, companies that offer online programs have a well-designed learning platform – one that is fast and easy-to-use.
Are you looking for a California drivers ed online course? DMVEdu is the state’s leading provider of drivers education and traffic school courses. Visit our website or call us now at (877) 786-5969 to learn more about our courses.
