The driving test in an overall perspective : Paper for the 2nd NORBIT Scientific Conference, Reykjavik, Iceland, August 11th-12th, 2008

Abstract

The Driving Education in Norway is done at driving schools, and normally in a combination of driving at home together with parents or someone else. The assessment for the driving licence is done by examiners in Norwegian Public Roads Administration. Most of them are educated driving teachers, so they know much about the learning process. The Norwegian Public Authorities look at road safety as a national affair, and want to get a quality assurance of the driver trough the Driving test.The White paper from Stortinget, St.meld nr 46 (1999-2000) contains The National Transport Plan(2002-2011), which is the strong leading document about how we shall take care of the road safety in our country. It contains a Zero Vision of no road accidents with death or hardly damaged in the future. This document leaded to a great national lift by giving the driving education another structure and a new curriculum (2005). The driving teachers had to do great changes in the education, but there were no corresponding changes done in the Driving test. It is my opinion that there is too little accordance between goals and working methods in the education, and the working methods and tools for assessment which is used in the driving test today.