Driver education undoubtedly has value, but the first year of teenager licensing remains among the most dangerous time of their young lives. Car crashes are the leading cause of teenager deaths. Debate, however, continues unabated in assessing the effectiveness of driver education programs. Do they actually save lives or weaken other protections that have proven valuable for many years? Of course, if they prevent even one fatal car accident in Pennsylvania, driver education programs enjoy some level of success.

All U.S. states have concerns. The past 15 years have seen all states invoke "graduated" licensing laws for new drivers. Young drivers now receive more privileges in stages, instead of giving them unlimited driving rights. Restrictions include prohibitions from driving at night or having non-adult passengers.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, funded by auto insurers, completed a report in May 2012 indicating that, since graduated licensing restrictions were installed in 1996, teenage deaths have declined consistently. However, there remain no national standards that apply to driver education courses or curriculum procedures.

While the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has published guidelines for driver education courses, there is still no standard or uniform program. For example, 16 states allow driver ed "graduates" to bypass some graduated license requirements. States have different age limits for teens to get learner's permits, required number of hours of driving practice, rules for types of passengers and after-dark restrictions.

Statistics indicate that those states allowing teens to sidestep some graduated licensing for completing driver education courses may be more harmful than helpful. Classroom driver education is not an effective replacement for many hours of driving experience. There are even some states that still have no driver education requirements at all.

As more young drivers die in car crashes, the ground swell for a national standard for educating teens in driving and roadway safety will increase. Where do you stand on this national debate? Should there be national standards for minimum driver education, hours of driving practice before licensing and restricted and/or graduated licenses for teens?

Source: The New York Times, "The Mixed Bag of Driver Education," Tanya Mohn, June 23, 2012