• TASD Driver’s Education Program Description

    The TASD Driver’s Education program is one of the oldest in the country, having been started not long after the first program opened in St. College, PA in February 1934. Today we are one of a dwindling number of districts still supporting this valuable program.

    TASD provides classroom instruction, behind-the-wheel training (BTW) and the PA Driver’s License exam.  Student must take their permit exam at the state center but all other matters can be done here.

    Parent Involvement:
    We strongly encourage Parent/guardian involvement in their student’s Driver’s Education experience. It is critical to the student’s success as a driver. We are currently providing the following to our families:

    1. Parent/guardian access to all student grades and classroom progress through Sapphire. If you haven’t done so, contact the Guidance Office for instructions to get your logon
    2. Requiring four different parental/guardian signatures on student work, confirming independent completion and parent review of student
    3. A 20-30 minute parent orientation meeting following the first class of each marking period
    4. A website for parents/students.

    Curriculum:
    Lesson plans are required for both the classroom experience and for each Behind-the-Wheel (BTW) one hour session. Students take 30-34 hours of classroom instruction and 6 hours of BTW training. Copies of the curriculum can be found with the instructors, in the Main Office and in the Program Coordinator’s room. We follow the existing standards set forth in the PDE standards of 1999, as well as those from the IUP Institute for Rural Health and Safety.

    Differentiation:
    We provide differentiated instruction to all students. Each lesson is designed to be flexible to meet the needs of the individual student. Extended time can be provided to students in need of more in-depth instruction time.  This decision will be made by the instructors.

    Student Participants:
    TASD accepts any student who lives within our district. Students may be participants of home-schooling, cyber school, or a private school – as long as they are a resident within our district. The fee schedule applies to all participating students: classroom is free and BTW cost is $45. Our program is open to students who are enrolled in Grade 10 – 12.  Seniors may participate until August 1.

    Online Courses:
    While we are required to accept the state approved online cyber classes, we do not recommend them.  By and large we find that these students require additional training from our BTW instructors that our classroom students do not.  Cyber students are required to submit proof of course completion and grade before being accepted into our BTW instruction. 

    In-Car Instructor/Student Ratio:
    We provide a one to one student/teacher ratio in BTW training.  Cameras record all driving sessions, inside and outside the vehicle.

    Instructor Certification:
    Our instructors are certified through the IUP Institute for Rural Health and Safety and the PRAXIS testing program.  Our license examiner has been certified by the PA Department of Transportation.