Online Learner’s Permit Test Resumes Today

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ken Underwood, Founder and CEO of the National Safety Commission, announced that his company, LowestPriceTrafficSchool.com, and the Florida Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles have agreed to resume online testing today for teens seeking their learner’s permit. The Department, based upon an internal study, had previously cancelled the program late last year. That study was later found to be invalid in a report by Dr. James McClave, a former University of Florida professor and world-renown statistician whose college textbooks have become a staple at University campuses throughout the country. In his report, Dr. McClave stated, “…the only statistical evidence comparing online testing to traditional testing, showed that the online students performed significantly better. This evidence, coupled with the Departmental data showing a decline in teen fatality rates of nearly 50 percent, provides strong statistical support for reinstating the online testing program.”

“People are just tired of waiting in line.”

The Online Learner’s Permit Test Program requires parents to proctor their teen during the official DMV test. “Parental proctoring is known to have a positive impact on teen learning of traffic laws and driver education,” Underwood stated. “When a parent monitors the online exam, knowledge deficiencies are identified. The parent can then take corrective action by engaging in discussions to ensure that the teen understands the traffic laws. This interaction does not occur when the teen takes the written exam in crowded driver license offices and is proctored by government employees.”

Underwood did not fault the Department for the flawed study that led to cancellation of the program. “The Department does not have the legal authority to test the control group of students who take the exam in-person and we hope to work with the Department on this issue during the next legislative session. Their mission is safety and they were doing what they thought was the right thing to do. Their internal study acknowledged that the online students’ traffic safety statistics – traffic conviction and crash records -- do not differ significantly from those of the traditionally tested students, and now the additional safeguards added by the legislature should make a successful program even better.”

Each year, approximately a quarter of a million Florida teens obtain their learner’s permit and nearly half of those take the exam online. Underwood said he anticipates there will be even more teens taking the test online now because of long lines at some drivers license office locations with wait times of 6 hours long or more while other locations require weeks to get an appointment. “This was a big reason for the strong bi-partisan support of this new law,” Underwood added. “People are just tired of waiting in line.”

To take the Learner’s Permit test online, consumers may visit LowestPriceTrafficSchool.com.

About National Safety Commission

The National Safety Commission, based in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., is America's leader in safety training. The Inc. 500 company provides driver education services such as traffic school and first time driver courses (LowestPriceTrafficSchool.com), and prep courses for new drivers, motorcycle operators, and CDL applicants throughout the United States. Each year, the National Safety Commission extends its influence throughout the world so that people will increase their awareness of important safety issues, particularly those that deal with highway and traffic safety. For more information on the National Safety Commission, visit www.nationalsafetycommission.com.