Getting one’s driver’s license is a rite of passage for teenagers, and the Driver’s Education class, or Driver’s Ed, can help young adults accomplish it.

The driver’s education program, sponsored by Ladue and Clayton School Districts, offered three driving sessions: May 25 to June 4, July 5 to July 30, and Aug. 2 to Sept. 3. Classes included 12 hours of class instruction and discussion, six hours of individual driving time, and six hours of driving observation.

Even though it is offered through the school, students must pay a fee and receive no high school credit for taking the class. Students took the class for various reasons.

“I decided to take Driver’s Ed because I heard from a lot of my friends that it made them more confident drivers,” sophomore Eudora Olsen said. “I also liked the fact that at the end of the course, they give you an actual practice driving test.”

Others, like junior Aaron Dharna, who took the class last year, attended for different reasons.

“I already had my permit, but I took the class because I didn’t feel too good about driving on the highway,” Dharna said. “Also, taking the class gives one a cut in one’s insurance.”

Driving instructor Pete Barrett, who is employed at Pattonville High School, has been teaching driving for 24 years. He finds teaching rewarding.

“I’ve always had a desire to work with young people,” Barrett said. “I get a tremendous satisfaction teaching people how to drive, because it is a lifelong skill, and teaching Driver’s Ed is coaching someone how to drive. It’s something they will have to do every day, hopefully safely and prudently.”

Barrett encourages high school students to take the class to improve their driving skills.

“You will have to be a safe driver every day,” Barrett said. “You must listen and learn in order to build proper fundamentals, which include knowing the basic functions of the vehicle and controlling it, knowing how to drive in a straight line, and making turns and smooth starts and stops correctly. Students are presented with the nuts and bolts of driving.”

The students have found the actual driving experience helpful and instructive.

“I really like driving with the instructor,” Olsen said. “This is because I have learned new little details about driving that I hadn’t even thought of before.”

Junior Shuyang Li agrees, even though he had not had previous driving experience prior to the class.

“I think the driving portion of the Driver’s Ed class is pretty nice and informative,” Li said.

Dharna, however, disagrees.

“I had been driving for an entire year before taking the class, and I like driving,” Dharna said. “I did not really like the way that the driving was carried out, which is a student switching with one other person every 30 minutes for two hours. I would rather have driven until I wanted the other person to take over.”

Students found that the theory part of the class was less interesting.

“The actual ‘class’ is not particularly useful, but that’s just because most of the stuff we learn is either somewhat common knowledge or stuff I’ve already known, like, for instance, nature’s laws,” Li said. “I think the class is pretty effective, more so with the actual driving portion than the classroom segment. It definitely helped with the written portions of the examination, though.”

Olsen agreed, preferring the driving more.

“I think the classroom portion of Driver’s Ed is helpful and the material presented important, but some of it can be dry,” Olsen said. “The class is definitely effective, even though the material can be really dry at times. The driving itself is fun, though.”

Barrett acknowledges the weaknesses of the class.

“A weakness is the shortage of time,” Barrett said. “Even though classes meet over a large time span, the class meets for the theory part only 12 hours, and only 12 hours in the car driving or observing. Therefore, I have to abbreviate basic fundamentals. Also, after the class finishes, the students do not continue driving sometimes.”

As the teacher, Barrett praises the strengths of the class, too.

“A strength is that the class helps you take the driving test,” Barrett said. “It gives an introduction to driving for beginners as well. Students learn very quickly and improve their driving. They are able to go from driving in a parking lot to driving on an interstate in three to four weeks. It’s amazing. One won’t be perfect at driving, but students must remember that driving is an attitude.”