Solon Proposes Driver Education Should be Taught to Senior High Schools

In an effort to minimize deaths caused by road accidents, Representative Antonio F. Lagdameo Jr. of the 2nd District of Davao del Norte filed the House Bill 5425 which seeks to include driver’s education on 4th year high school’s curriculum.

Under the HB 5425, all senior year students ages 16 and above are mandated to undergo a total of 30 hours of driving-related classroom instruction and 10 hours of accumulated driving hours under the supervision of professional driving instructor “who is qualified and accredited by the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and granted a professional driver’s license by the Land Transportation Office (LTO).”

If the bill passed, the responsibility of providing learning materials for the driver education program will be assigned to the Department of Education (DepEd) which will include all the necessary things that pupils need to learn about driving.

The measure mandates the Department of Education to adopt course contents standards for the driver’s education, which shall include knowledge of the operation and maintenance of motor vehicle, road traffic rules and regulations and mental and physical components of driving.

Likewise, as provided under the bill, students under the driver’s education program shall be taught correct eye usage, defensive driving, effects of alcohol, drugs and distraction on the driving task, and trouble shooting skills.

Upon finishing the driver education program, the student will receive a “certificate of completion” which he/she can use to apply for a student driver’s permit in lieu of passing the standard test that LTO conducts for student driver license applicants.

Rep. Lagdameo hopes that the House Bill 5425 will be the key to more knowledgeable drivers in the country which in turn would ultimately lead to safer roads all throughout the archipelago.

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