ACCORDING TO RESEARCH released recently by the RACQ, more mothers are teaching learners to drive than any other supervisor.
More than 53 percent of learners surveyed reported they were mainly supervised by their mums or step-mothers, perhaps explaining why so many new drivers have such a poor understanding of the road rules and driving craft. According to the survey, 43 percent of learners choose to be taught by mum for the majority of their 100 hours mandatory supervised driving.
The RACQ’s Lauren Ritchie suggested the high percentage of learner drivers being trained by their parents is a timely reminder to both parents to brush up on their knowledge and skills before letting their child behind the wheel. “Parents play a huge role in learning to drive and it may have been a while since you sat your driver licence test,” she said “so it’s important you’re across any road rule changes or new techniques. Learner drivers will pick up a lot about driving from you, so make sure you’re setting a good example and not passing on bad habits.”
That’s all well and good, but a frightening majority of Australian drivers are setting a very bad example to young drivers, from not knowing or following the rules to not understanding the most basic driving essentials (just ask any driving instructor).
Ms Ritchie encouraged parents to get their learner children driving as often as possible and under a range of road, traffic and weather conditions, including at least 10 hours of night driving.
She also encouraged parents and learners to take advantage of free professional instruction by signing up to the Keys2Drive program for a one-hour lesson from an accredited driving instructor. “It’s a great way for parents to brush up on their skills and ensure they are passing on all the essential information to their learner driver.” Details can be found here