My youngest son is 16 and has his driver’s license. Being the second child of mine to get his license my angst about handing him the keys for the first time was lessened greatly. Our friends have kids that are or have just reached the age of driving. I am able to empathize with them at this point and can offer some advice as to how my wife and I handled this transition, what we did wrong, and what we did right.
In the age of the internet we have a source of information unrivalled by previous generations. A couple of search terms on how to prepare your child for motor vehicle responsibility and you are presented with hundreds of thousands articles. I read aloud some of the articles and came across an article about getting your driver’s license on Denmark.
Now the Danes are well known for many things. Most notably I have read that a college education in Denmark comes at no cost! Gotta love that. By and large the Danish people enjoy outdoors activity as much, or more, than just about any other country and who doesn’t like sugary Danish in the morning? We also know them here for the ridiculously large dogs with their namesake with probably the most notable being Marmaduke. But when it comes to getting a driver’s license the world should take a hard look at how they do it.
First, you have to be 18 years old and a prospective driver can only start his/her driving education 2 months prior to the 18th birthday. An intensive classroom instruction begins the process. Many hours are spent with a specially trained instructor. While attending this class the 18 year olds are also beginning to drive on a closed track. In addition to the closed track another driving course is utilized to simulate icy roads and, of course, they get a chance to drive on public streets as well. All this pre-training is handled by a dedicated driver’s teacher. This teacher holds all the cards for the student as it is their discretion to notify the student when they can advance to one of the two final tests. Time frame makes no difference here as the students simply don’t advance until they have proven their competence.
Once a student has been given the green light to advance the first test they encounter is written. Much like ours (in the US) this test has multiple choices and is designed to make the student think. Questions asked of this test differ from ours in that they consist of specific scenarios a driver may encounter while on the road and not what a Yellow Triangle stands for. The student can only miss 5 questions but it doesn’t state how many questions there are. Assuming the prospective driver passes this test, then and only then, can they take the driving portion.
The most difficult part of this process is taking the final driving exam. A government supervisor sets the route the driver must take and also becomes the copilot. During this road test the new driver must be perfect, cannot make a single mistake, not one. I am not sure that even with my almost 30 years behind the wheel, with only 2 blemishes I might add, that I could pass. The pressure alone would drive me bonkers.
How many 16 year olds in your community are on the road? Did they get this kind of training prior to putting the cart in drive for the first time?
Here at Overhead Door™ I am proud to say that our technicians go through an even more labor intensive training. We have a manual that has to be housed in a large three ring binder and consists of specific steps they must take and proficiencies they must master before advancing. This process is lengthy and demanding but when you reach out to us for installation or service we believe you should only get the very best garage door technicians available. Our program consists of factory training, best practices and mechanical ability for sure but also, and we think this is just as important, a friendly courteous attitude.
So if you have children that are approaching the age of driving take my advice and send them to summer camp in Denmark. If you need garage door repair or maintenance contact Overhead Door™. In either case you can put your mind at ease that your child will be as prepared to drive as our staff is to handle your garage door needs.
Your Overhead Door™ Team