Every summer, most high schools in the U.S. send forms to parents and guardians that ask for permission for various activities at school. The forms usually include something like this:
_____ _____ I give permission for my child to drive to
Yes No and from school.
_____ _____ I give permission for my child to ride to
Yes No school events with other students as drivers.
_____ _____ I give permission for my child to drive
Yes No other students to school events.
This is usually the total extent of the forms, though sometimes they also ask if the student is authorized to drive a sibling to school, and sometimes they ask the parent / guardian to verify that the car the child will drive is insured.
These forms are a multi-part invitation to trouble. Why?
- Statistics repeatedly show that the most dangerous hours for teen drivers are the two hours directly after school lets out;
- These “Yes / No” forms, if checked yes, allow your child, with the school’s blessing, to ride as a passenger with a driver unknown to you, and with other students in the car;
- These forms rarely make any reference to the state’s teen driving law, such as passenger restrictions;
- These forms often give the impression that school events are an exception to teen driver laws; and
- These forms not only encourage but authorize a practice that we know is dangerous, teens driving with passengers.
Why do schools use these forms? To save money on transportation and gas, no doubt. Why do parents agree? Well, the forms come from the school, so someone must have decided that students driving other students is safe, right?
Or perhaps, as I suspect, these are the same forms that have been in use for decades, and no one has thought to change them to reflect better the dangers of teen driving in general and of passengers and after school hours in particular.
In fairness, there is one part of the driving authorized by these forms that actually carries a lower risk: Elsewhere on this blog, I have discussed the difference between “purposeful” and “recreational” driving. When a teen driver has a destination, a route, a timetable, and a consequence for not arriving safely and on schedule, crash risks are lower. Most of the types of driving authorized by these forms are, I suppose, purposeful. But this is the only counterweight to an otherwise dangerous practice of schools asking parents and guardians for blanket permission for teens to drive with other teens as passengers.
What should schools and parents do?
- Not allow high school students to drive other students to school events, period. If transportation is needed, buses should be used or parents / guardians should be the drivers.
- Barring this complete prohibition, schools can:
- remind parents on the forms themselves that the state’s passenger rules are (for example, “Our state prohibits teen drivers from carrying non-family passengers for one year after licensing”);
- identify on the school’s website those students who are permitted by state law to carry passengers;
- on a case-by-case, event-to-event basis, remind students and parents when their transportation to and from a school event will involve a teen driver;
- bar any teen who receives a ticket or citation from driving other students (which, of course, requires the teen or parents to notify the school); and
- have each teen driver sign a school version of a teen driver contract, committing to safe practices such as no electronic devices and a willingness to ask for help if fatigue sets in (which can happen particularly after athletic events).
- Remind every student who will be a passenger of a student driver of the importance of being a good passenger: no distractions, use safety belts, and if your driver engages in unsafe driving, get out of the car.
Any parent, guardian, or school official who dismisses these ideas as too much work is invited to read the other parts of this blog.
Tim,
Basically, it seems you’re asking parents to behave like parents should and exert the appropriate control to keep their children safe.
Parents, you should listen. As an expert in the driver training field, I’ve found that most parents “assume” it won’t happen to their child. Driving is the #1 killer of teenagers and has been for decades. Eighty percent (80%) of new drivers get into a reportable accident within the first three (3) years of driving….that’s a 20% success rate in this country. There is a 4 out of 5 chance your teenage driver will be involved in an accident so “assuming” your child won’t be affected, from my viewpoint, is insane. They’re your children, your responsibility….don’t sluff that responsibility off onto the schools.
Tim has gone through (and is still going through) every parents worst nightmare and he’s trying to yell out from the hilltops so you won’t have to experience his experience. Listen to him….take the time….make the effort, they’re your children!
Each additional passenger in the teenage driver’s car drastically increases the chances of an accident because of the distraction factor….less distractions mean more attention to their driving. I especially like #3 above, teach your children to be a non-distracting passenger.
Tim, maybe you could make something like a “From Reid’s Dad” plastic placard to go in the front dash of the teenager’s vehicle that alerts school officials, parents, and other teenage passengers that the driver has satisfied the one year State requirement for passengers and is without any moving violations. I would imagine your local high school administration would support it.
Keep up the good work,
John