What did you pay for drivers ed classes?

[Annie Laurie]

I'm in Texas and trying to figure out if the two driving schools ds has priced are insane, or if I'm stuck in the dark ages.

[BridgeTea]

$0 for my dark ages-born kid. $330 each for the next two drivers. (All through the same public school.)

 

Not sure what I'm doing with #4 yet.

[Guest ME-Mommy]

Last spring = $349

[Annie Laurie]

Ugh, I guess it's the going rate. Ds was told a little under $400 at both private driving schools.

[Annie G]

We live in Illinois and paid $400. The kids could have taken it through the school for less money but it would have taken all semester. The instruction was just ok, but not worse than the school, and it's required if they want to get a license before they're 18.

[Perry]

$359

[momtotkbb]

oldest through ps was $75.00 - but that was 7 years ago - now it's $150-300 depending upon high school. We'll have to go private route w/ next three. I've priced a couple for this coming summer and they are $300-$450.

[Tressa]

It is $450 in my area. Insane.:glare: It isn't offered through the school anymore, so everyone gets to pay that price.

[RoughCollie]

The company that provides the classes my boys take gives them at the high school. The cost is $90 per child, for classroom work only, which is 27 hours.

 

The driving part is $35 per hour, per child, with around 9 hours being the average. So the total is $405 per child.

 

When I was in high school, all of this was free and was taught during the regular (much longer) school day.

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

3 years ago I had a friend who paid $600 something in Michigan. That was NOT through the PS though it was some private driving company. I have a few more years before my oldest will be in drivers training. So for now our sidewalks are safe :001_huh:

[dirty ethel rackham]

At the ps it is $250. Since ds was low-man-on-the-totem-pole, we would have been stuck with whatever session they gave us, which would have meant no vacation last year (you can't miss ANY classes.) So we went private and had to pay $500. And ds had the WORST behind the wheel instructor. Fortunately, due to scheduling issues, he got a new instructor for the last couple sessions and he was great.

[Night Elf]

$300 for 6 hours of driving instruction. It was a personal driving coach. If we wanted to add the 30-hour classroom instruction, the price would have been $450. But we just wanted the on-the-road instruction.

 

I should add that Georgia has a law called Joshua's Law that requires teens to have the 30 hours of classroom instruction but my dd18 didn't need to meet that requirement because she got her license when she turned 18, an adult. But for my own personal peace of mind, I did want her to have the behind the wheel training.

Edited October 6, 2010 by Night Elf

[jennifero]

In Texas you can do parent taught drivers ed. It is $20-25 to register with DPS and then you have to use an approved curriculum. They range from $75-350. We have registered, but haven't purchased a curriculum yet. My friends have used Drivers Ed in a Box and loved it, but it is the most expensive curriculum approved in Texas.

[Maeintx]

We paid $350 through the local high school- the class was there but taught by someone else. This was summer of 2009.

[QueenCat]

$360, through a private company. Included 6 hours of drive time and 30 hours of classroom time.

[Alyce]

the only problem we had was that homeschoolers were registered last which meant we usually had to wait until summer season to get in.

[Nestof3]

My son took drivers ed online:

http://driversed.com/

 

It worked great for us because he was very busy with school and working full time in high school. He could work it into his schedule rather than working around it.

[orangearrow]

:ohmy: Oh my gosh!!! I had no idea driver's ed was so pricey! My dad taught me in empty parking lots (and then side streets through neighborhoods, and so on...). Is this not done any more?

 

:blink: My kids may never, ever get to drive! LOL!!

[Nestof3]

:ohmy: Oh my gosh!!! I had no idea driver's ed was so pricey! My dad taught me in empty parking lots (and then side streets through neighborhoods, and so on...). Is this not done any more?

 

:blink: My kids may never, ever get to drive! LOL!!

 

Do it online like we did.

[Ruby]

My daughter is taking the education part on the computer...........$20.00 When she passes the test they will mail a certificate to take to the DMV. This will get her the permit I think. We are in ~California. I am investigating now to see if I can pass as an instructor with the local DMV to permit me to teach her the required behind the wheel portion. If not it is at least a few hundred bucks around here for the 6-8 hours behind the wheel with the instructor. If I can get around this somehow I'm gonna try. Then you have to log at least 30 hours of behind the wheel practice before you can take your test.

[Thea]

$175-- through the public school. This was 1/2 the cost of the course--the school picks up the remainder.

[Vida Winter]

In our rural area we can't manage to get the 15 or so students to even have the class in the first place. If we did, the cost would be $250.

 

I would gladly pay the $400 if we had the class available, but it looks like it will not be having it.

[Pamela H in Texas]

We did driver's ed in a box, however, somewhere I read that driver's ed costs have risen considerably more recently due to changes in requirements. I don't know if that was for Texas or nationwide. I just don't remember much information about what I read about it. But I remember it mostly because it made a sharp difference from what I paid for dd and what I'll pay for ds.

[In The Great White North]

We paid $500.

 

It's not optional if you want your license before you turn 18 (It was optional when I was 16.)

[posybuddy]

My son just took driver's ed last month; it was $350 for 24 hours of class time and 10 hours of driving/observation time.

[yarrow]

We'll end up paying $495. Our schools don't offer it so we have to take it privately but it's not an option, legally, to complete it at home or online.

 

That includes 24 hours of classroom time and I don't remember how much driving/observation time.

[Pamela H in Texas]

24 hours of class time and 10 hours of driving/observation time.

 

Is that enough to get a driver's license where you are?

 

It seems odd to me that driver's ed programs would have considerably fewer hours than necessary to get a driver's ed. How does one get the extra classroom hours? Obviously driving hours could be done with parents IF the parents were qualified (I am *not* qualified, due to health, to teach a child to drive according to the state).

[momofkhm]

the only problem we had was that homeschoolers were registered last which meant we usually had to wait until summer season to get in.

 

This is what I was going to say too, but we looked around and there were classes just for homeschoolers in Wake Co. A friend signed her ds up through the local private school - on site for the private but still through public.

[posybuddy]

Is that enough to get a driver's license where you are?

 

It seems odd to me that driver's ed programs would have considerably fewer hours than necessary to get a driver's ed. How does one get the extra classroom hours? Obviously driving hours could be done with parents IF the parents were qualified (I am *not* qualified, due to health, to teach a child to drive according to the state).

 

 

That is to get a Level 1 license. After the student has their Level 1, they have to complete 50 hours of driving time with an adult, and then go back to take "Segment 2" driver's training, which is the additional 6 hours of classroom time, and pass a written exam. (Technically they can take Segment 2 any time after they've accrued 30 of the required 50 driving hours, but you get the idea.) They don't get to take their road test until after Segment 2.

[Vida Winter]

In Oregon, once issued a permit one needs 100 hours of driving time with adult - but it can be cut down to 50 hours if a driver's ed class is taken. Since no driver's ed available in our county, we're looking at 100 hours. So far, dd has done about 23. It's taking forever, not that I'm anxious.

[DianeW88]

I think around $360. That is for the professional instruction (which was an online course) and the required driving hours with the instructor. We still have to pay the DMV for the road test and license. Driver's Ed is required in Utah, so we don't have a lot of choice. It's easy though and the course was great, so no problems here.

 

Diane W.

married for 22 years

homeschooling 3 kiddos for 16 years

[FaithManor]

It is no longer provided by the schools in Michigan. Independent agencies provide the training and it costs an average of $400.00 per student although that varies from county to county. In our area, there isn't much competition so the price stays high. I have heard of counties where it can be gotten for half that price due to so many driving schools vying for the business.

 

Faith

[FaithManor]

I should also add that we chose not to get driver's ed for dd. We taught her ourself and waited until her 18th birthday to pay the $60.00 for the road test from the local certifier. We worked very hard to make sure she was a well-prepared driver. She took the written test first, got a 30 day driving permit, drove for 30 days after her birthday, and then took her driving test. She passed with no deductions whatsoever. The locally available programs met at ridiculous times....6:00 a.m. book classes, etc.

 

Faith

[Laurie4b]

Nothing. It's offered through our public schools to all students.

[mereminerals]

We used driversed.com for my ds in public school as the local schools want almost $400 for drivers ed. I think we ended up paying $69 for the online class. I'm pretty sure it was under $100 total for his drivers ed and license.

[mysticamethyst]

Driver's Ed in a Box here, cost $275 at convention last year hoping to use it with all 4 kids. All I have to do is send the $20 fee to the state for each child. Going next week to get ds #2 his permit. I am not sure when my kids grew up but here we are at the driving stage. I miss when they were just wee little ones.

[GraciebytheBay]

Around here it is $400 per student.

[mcconnellboys]

I believe it was something like $300-$350 for about 6 lessons....

[Reeciecup]

20 years ago I paid $300 for it. But my kids take it for free with the schools here in NC.

[SweetMissMagnolia]

took them in public high school so it was FREE.....that was in the late 80s....no idea what private lessons are....

[StaceyinLA]

475 for ds this past July