Revised August 1998

Section 252.40

a) Approved Teachers – Persons authorized by the State Superintendent of Education to conduct an approved driver education course.

b) Teacher Preparation – All persons who teach a driver education course, which is reimbursable or non-reimbursable, must be qualified according to the minimum standards.

1) The teacher must have the following:

A) The instructor must be a certified teacher.

B) The instructor must hold a valid drivers license.

C) The instructor must possess good physical health as determined in accordance with Section 24-5 of The School Code.

2) The driver education teacher in a nonpublic school is not required

to be certified but must hold a baccalaureate degree, or equivalent as determined by the employing school, in addition to meeting the requirements of Section 252.40(b) (3).

3) The fully qualified instructor is required to have sixteen (16) semester hours of college credit in the field of safety and driver education as follows:

A) five (5) semester hours in driver education,

B) three (3) semester hours in general safety,

C) eight (8) semester hours in subjects chosen from the following related areas:

i) Additional safety courses;

ii) Advanced psychology and sociology;

iii) Health education;

iv) Instructional materials.

D) Teachers assigned to either simulation or multiple-car programs must have preparation in the use of these methods which shall consists of as minimum of one semester hour or its equivalent in each area.

4) Additional requirements will not be retroactive as pertaining to those qualified under standards applicable prior to September 1, 1962, so long as they continue to teach driver education in the same district, except in the event the method of instruction has been changed to include simulation and/or multiple-car laboratory instruction. (See Section 252.40 (b) (3) (D)). The prescribed additional requirements effective July 1, 1969, must be met.

5) When two or more teachers are assigned to driver education, it is recommended that one teacher be designated as responsible for the overall program. When schools have a department chairman or a person designated to supervise the program, this person must meet the minimum state requirements and be qualified to teach driver education.

(Source: Amended at 10 Ill. Reg. 12922, effective July 22, 1986.)

* The course of instruction required of each eligible student at the high school level shall consist of a minimum of 30 clock hours of classroom instruction taught by a certified high school teacher who has acquired special qualifications as required by participation under the terms of Section 27-24.2 of this Act.

Please be aware that the requirements for teaching driver education in Illinois will probably change in the next year (during 2007). It is being recommended that the semester hour course requirements go from 16 to 24 to make the endorsement requirements inline with all other teacher endorsement and certification requirements.