Should you teach your child to drive?
It’s hard to believe, but that small bundle of joy you brought home from the hospital all those years ago is finally growing up and turning into a teen driver. As your child studies for the driver’s exam, dreaming of the open road, you have to decide: who’s going to teach this kid to drive?
You could probably do it. But that doesn’t mean you should. Driving school isn’t always cheap. It’s important to consider the options before you make your choice. It might be worth it to pay someone else to teach your child to drive
Learning from you
You’ve got a car. You know how to drive. What more does the kid need? Teaching your child to drive is something most parents probably think about well before their child is big enough to see over the wheel. Media and social stereotypes have created an expectation of parental help when it comes to learning to drive.
Teaching your teen to drive can be a special milestone in your relationship. It may be one of the last things you explicitly your kid to do. It’s good for all involved when a parent takes an active role in a child’s life. Making sure they learn the right stuff and acknowledging their effort will provide nice bonding time between you and your child.
But there are also downsides. As the parent and the owner of the vehicle, it’s sometimes hard to let a teen driver take control. You need to maintain calm throughout. Remember: your teen is pretty nervous anyway. It won’t help matters if you can’t keep your cool.
Also, it’s slightly riskier to use your car for learning. Unlike training vehicles, which often have a brake pedal on the passenger side for the teacher, you won’t have much power to intervene when your child makes a mistake. It’ll cost you a lot more to fix your car than to pay for your teen’s driving classes.
Pros
- Bonding time with your teen
- Don’t have to pay for lessons
Cons
- Bonding time might not go as well as you hope
- You may not be a good teacher
- Greater risk to your own car
Taking a Driver’s Ed course
You might be surprised at the advantages that come with driving school. Before you decide against it because of cost, carefully think through the issue.
A certified and licensed instructor can guarantee that your child is taught by someone who knows exactly what they’re doing not only behind the wheel, but when someone else is in the driver’s seat. Most courses for beginners include class time and a number of in-car practice sessions.
Depending on the specific instructor you approach, offerings and prices differ. Make sure to look for an instructor approved by the provincial transportation authority. For example, in Ontario you’ll want to choose one of these schools. In Alberta you can find those instructors here.
When your teen goes to a government-approved school, you get a discount on their car insurance, which can save you money over several years. On top of that, in provinces with graduated licensing, these lessons can get your teen a reduction in time required before graduating to the next level of licence.
Pros
- Insurance reduction
- Professional education experience
- Fast-track graduated licensing
- No risking your car
Cons
- It costs money
- You don’t get to teach your child a new skill
Why not both?
It seems like sending your child to driving school is the most sensible choice when it comes to making sure they learn to drive. However, just because someone gets driving lessons, doesn’t mean they can’t practice outside of class. That’s where you come in. Get all the pros and negate the cons by giving your kid practice lessons on top of the lessons they get from their instructor.