A budget bill awaiting the signature of Governor John Kasich contains an amendment allowing online
drivers’ training – and that has driving schools in the state up in arms.
"With all the emphasis on highway safety, it would seem that the state would choose the most
effective mode of instruction, not the most expedient," said Donna Foster, owner of Mid-America
Driver Training in Bowling Green.
House Bill 487, a mid-term budget and management review bill, amends current law to "require 24
hours of in-person classroom instruction or completion of an approved, equivalent online driver
education course offered via the internet by a licensed online driver training enterprise" as well
as eight hours with a qualified instructor.
The companies offering the online instruction are located out-of-state, in Indiana and California.
The bill is expected to be signed by Kasich today.
Foster, who was among several driver’s training school owners who spoke before the Senate’s finance
committee against the bill two weeks ago, notes that there are a number of potentially detrimental
issues wrapped up with this amendment.
"What we’re teaching here is lifelong learning," she said, explaining that research shows the
best learning comes when students have the opportunity to develop interpersonal relationships with
teachers. Taking online driver training would remove this.
"This is not going to happen if we go online."
Studies by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in Virginia and Colorado, she said – which
are among 13 states that permit online driver training – show the potential problems. In Virginia,
students who took the online class before getting behind the wheel were significantly more likely than
their classroom counterparts to be involved in a collision. "The findings were dramatic," said
Foster.
Similarly, in Colorado, online students lagged far behind their classroom counterparts on driving
proficiency tests.
"So we’re going to have the novice drivers out there on the road, maybe not knowing what they’re
doing, not understanding the laws."
Students, she said, would also miss out on important hands-on lessons and demonstrations available in a
classroom setting.
"I would say 98 percent of (my students) say no, they would not like an online program."
Beyond the safety aspect, the amendment could also have a stark economic impact – it will cost Ohio jobs,
Foster said, because fewer instructors will be needed.
Mid-America currently employs 12 people, which Foster said she would have to slash to a skeleton crew of
three if the amendment passes.
And, further, it may not be viable for her to keep the 28-year-old school open at all.
"I may have to close my doors."
There are currently approximately 400 driver training schools in Ohio. In states where online training
has been permitted, half of their schools have closed. This then would create issues for those needing
training, as costs will rise, Foster explained.