A bill has been submitted to Knesset by MK (Kadima) Ronit Tirosh, seeking to compel a change in the driving training in Israel that includes students learning on a driving simulator. Tirosh feels such a move would significantly improve driver training, and permit eliminating a number of the practical driving lessons as well.
If passed into law, the bill would compel establishing simulator centers around the country, a reality that she feels would be beneficial to the many high school students who opt to begin learning at 16, the minimum age permitted under the law. She feels learning with a computerized simulator would yield better drivers, drivers who simply learn the correct way of driving as opposed to many, who today learn incorrectly.
At present, there is one simulator in Israel which was purchased by the HaMaslul HaMahir (Fast Lane) School in Ashdod. Some 800 students from around the country have learned using that simulator, resulting in 70% of students passing their first or second road test. They took an average of 31 lessons prior to taking their road tests. Alternatively, the students around the country, those studying without the simulator, took an average of 40 lessons.
Tirosh explains the simulator can prepare students for various driving scenarios based on weather conditions and topographical realities, simulating 50 different situations.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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6 Responses
It has been found that Simulators are not as effective in learning driving skills as personal driver instructor.
Why in the world would any person need 31 – 40 lessons before taking a road test, if not to line someone’s pocket???
because here in israel a driver is not permitted to drive with anyone but an instructor until they pas their road test
Driving instructors in Israel make a good living, and are not always particularly competent. Also, many are former (or wish to be future) driving examiners, and as such, they tend to help each other, costing the driving students a lot of money.
And even with all these lessons, drivers in Israel are still aggressive and relatively unsafe.
bkmom, i agree. this is absurd. it costs a minimum of $1000 to earn a drivers license in israel, and thats if you pass the first time, which nobody does. so now it will cost even more. i am sure of it. and like you said, somebody will pocket the money. they should put the cops through simulators to teach them skills in combating the rising death toll on the roads in israel. on the road, the cops turn a blind eye to improper or illegal driving maneuvers. they know only how to hide in driveways and pull people over for talking on cell phones and seatbelts. on the highway is where people die in israel and illegal/unsafe lane changes, tailgating, passing on the left and aggressive driving are all ignored. my wife hates when we rent a car, she says the driving is so dangerous with all the meshugana drivers in israel. observations from a frequent visitor to the holy land.
bklynmom,
Apparently you have never had the “pleasure” of experiencing Israeli drivers. In some cases 400 lessons are not enough. Most Israeli drivers treat traffic laws as suggestions.
As for the effectiveness of simulators, I would be interested in knowing where you get your information. I have no first hand knowledsge, but if they can effectively be used to train jet pilots, it seems that they could be of use in driver training.
Kind of funny, the picture you used of US road signs… If only the Israeli ones were as easy to understand…