An intensive driving course is most often associated with learning to drive in the UK. There are a few US courses that are offered on the intensive level, but this may not mean quite the same thing. In the UK what is typically meant by intensive driving course is that a course of short duration, less than week, is used to prepare people to get their driver’s licenses. People may go from no license to drive to being fully licensed in that time, with lots of driver practice, provided they pass all exams.
As most of the schools that offer intensive driving lessons point out, the traditional driver education school can take place over several weeks. This isn’t the best arrangement for everyone. Sometimes time constraints may make it challenging to attend school each week, and other times people find it hard to retain material as the course progresses. The latter could create challenges when it comes to taking and passing any driver exams.
The contention of the many such schools that offer an intensive driving course is that compressing all learning of material on driver safety and driver practice into a single week makes it more likely a license will be gained. Since people focus solely on the issue of driving and practice, often attending daylong sessions of school, they are more likely to retain information and gain more confidence as drivers. This is surely true for some learning styles, but it’s arguable that not all people would benefit from the compressed course style. Those who are very nervous about driving could find this manner of studying overwhelming, and fortunately, there are many driving schools that offer more traditional and lengthier driver training courses.
In places like the US, an intensive driving course may mean several different things. Sometimes what is meant is that the student will be trained to drive more defensively, and this may or may not occur in a week or less; it also isn’t only open to people gaining a license but might be available for licensed drivers. There are lots of online programs that are described as “intensive” and these normally speak to obtaining a driver permit only, through intense study of the material. They may not count toward mandatory training that teen drivers must undergo prior to getting a license. The best way to find a driver training course that will count as training, and are of short duration, is to look for classes in the phone book and perhaps consult the Internet.
There are many people in great favor of the UK style of the intensive driving course. It certainly can save time, though people may need a week to complete a course. This may be advantageous or not. Those who need to learn how to drive quickly before doing things like relocating or starting a job where driving is required could benefit from being able to enroll in classes that won’t take too much time.