Beginner Driver Education (BDE) Curriculum Standards

Appendix: Required Topics - Examples

It is expected that the curriculum developer will expand on the required topic headings appropriately when developing the curriculum. The table below includes examples of how the required topics could be expanded. The examples below are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to be exhaustive.

Required Topic

Rules of the Road (CC1)

Subtopic

CC1.ILO1.RT1

Examples

• Ontario driver's licence classifications
• Getting a driver's licence
• Maintaining a valid driver's licence with correct and up to date information
• Graduated licensing program
• Demerit Point System for new and fully licensed drivers
• Licence suspension and consequences
• Administrative Driving Prohibition and Vehicle Impoundment
• Registered owner restrictions and responsibilities
• Safety restraint use
• Insurance
• Mandatory vehicle-emissions testing program
• Municipal by-laws

Subtopic

CC1.ILO1.RT1a)

Examples

• Stop sign
• Yield sign
• Speed limit sign
• School zone sign
• Construction zone sign
• Railway crossing sign
• High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) sign
• Temporary condition sign (i.e., weather, construction)
• Regulatory sign
• Warning sign
• Information and direction sign
• Children with special needs sign
• Children playing sign
• Emergency response sign
• Bilingual sign
• Animal warning sign
• Community safety signs

Subtopic

CC1.ILO1.RT1b)

Examples

• Pedestrian signals
• Motor vehicle signals
• Accessibility features
• Traffic officer directions
• Lane-use lights

Subtopic

CC1.ILO1.RT1c)

Examples

• Chevrons
• Arrows
• Bicycle
• Crosswalks
• Stop lines
• Railroad crossing
• Accessibility

Required Topic

The Vehicle and its Components (CC2)

Subtopic

CC2.ILO1.RT1a)

Examples

• Ignition switch
• Manual vs. automatic transmissions
• Selector lever for automatic transmission
• Gearshift for manual transmission
• Clutch pedal for manual transmission
• Steering wheel
• Accelerator (gas pedal)
• Various cruise control devices
• Avoiding the use of cruise control devices on wet, slippery road surfaces
• Brake pedal
• Types of brakes (e.g., ABS)
• Parking brake
• New technologies (as required)

Subtopic

CC2.ILO1.RT1b)

Examples

• Speedometer and odometer
• Fuel gauge
• Alternator gauge or warning light
• Temperature gauge or warning light
• Oil-pressure gauge or warning light
• Brake warning light (ABS)
• Check engine light
• Other dashboard lights

Subtopic

CC2.ILO1.RT1c)

Examples

• Lights (day and night)
• Windshield wipers and washer fluid
• Sun visor
• Defroster/Defogger
• Rear-view and side-view mirrors

Subtopic

CC2.ILO1.RT1d)

Examples

• Air bags and restrictions
• Seat belts
• Head restraints
• Infant/child restraint systems
• Door locks
• Structural features

Subtopic

CC2.ILO1.RT1e)

Examples

• Seat-position controls
• Steering wheel
• Air conditioner and heater air vents

Subtopic

CC2.ILO1.RT1f)

Examples

• Ignition buzzer
• Locks
• Alarms and other anti-theft devices

Subtopic

CC2.ILO1.RT1g)

Examples

• Taillights
• Directional (turn) signals
• Emergency flashers (hazard lights)
• Parking lights
• Horn

Subtopic

CC2.ILO2.RT1a)

Examples

• View the surrounding area
• Remove loose objects
• Tires
• Pressure
• Wear pattern
• Tread depth
• Vehicle body
• Exterior lights
• Lights
• Exhaust system
• Fluid levels
• Under the hood

Subtopic

CC2.ILO2.RT1b)

Examples

• Dash board
• Fluid level alerts
• Fuel level
• Brakes
• Seat belts
• Spare tire and tire changing equipment
• How to change a tire
• First aid kit
• Emergency kit

Required Topic

Vehicle Handling (CC3)

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1b)

Examples

• Smooth steering control
• Proper hand positioning
• Display steady lane tracking
• Maintaining optimal lane position

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1e)

Examples

• Proper foot position
• Holding steady pressure at moderate levels
• Variation in cruise speed
• Benefits of steady speed control (e.g., fuel efficiency)

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1f)

Examples

• Early deceleration
• Benefits/hazards
• Smooth deceleration
• Correct braking techniques
• Smooth time-limited braking
• Steady light braking and holding stop on different grades
• Moderate impact braking
• Emergency braking control
• Relationship between proper seating position and braking
• Driving characteristics of conventional and anti-lock brake systems

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1h)

Examples

• Stall parking (forward and reverse)
• Hill parking (up and down)
• Angle parking
• Parallel parking
• Shoulder parking

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1i)

Examples

• Yielding
• Crossing intersections
• Merging
• Changing lanes and passing
• Maintaining correct lane tracking
• Backing-up

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1j)

Examples

• Stop signs
• Two- and four-way stops
• Traffic circles
• Yield signs
• Controlled and uncontrolled intersections
• T-intersections
• Malfunctioning traffic control devices
• Emergency vehicles

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1k)

Examples

• Left and right turns
• Three-point turns
• Maintaining correct lane tracking

Subtopic

CC3.ILO1.RT1l)

Examples

• Entering and exiting
• Curves
• Shoulders
• Grade of road
• Passing
• Changing lanes

Subtopic

CC3.ILO2.RT1a)

Examples

• Speed and its relationship to time and stopping distances
• Space management (front, rear, side)

Subtopic

CC3.ILO2.RT2b)

Examples

• Dry
• Oily
• Damp or wet
• Icy or snowy

Subtopic

CC3.ILO2.RT3

Examples

• Recognize critical situations requiring emergency evasion manoeuvres
• Wheels-off-road recovery
• Head-on collision avoidance
• Rear-end collision avoidance
• Optimal emergency braking control
• Proper seating position
• Threshold braking modulation
• Maximum braking

Subtopic

CC3.ILO4.RT1

Examples

• Detection and recovery
• Selecting the correct control actions in terms of both braking and steering
• Steering response
• Steering follows eyes, rapid and smooth release of wheels
• Alternate steering wheel hand positions
• Brake release and shift to neutral
• Controlling skids/slides with
• Front wheel drive/conventional power brakes
• Rear wheel drive/conventional power brakes
• Front wheel drive/ABS
• Rear wheel drive/ABS
• Four-wheel drive vehicles vs. two-wheel drive vehicles
• Lock and hold brakes when rotated beyond the point of no return

Required Topic

Driver Behaviour (CC4)

Subtopic

CC4.ILO1.RT1

Examples

• Steering control
• Speed control
• Speed versus stopping distances
• Risk perception versus accurate knowledge of vehicle performance
• Road surface conditions

Subtopic

CC4.ILO3.RT1

Examples

• Driving as thrill-seeking

Subtopic

CC4.ILO4.RT1d)

Examples

• Injury
• Criminal Code offences (impaired driving, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, and criminal negligence) vs. civil infractions (under the Highway Traffic Act)

Required Topic

Respect and Responsibility (CC5)

Subtopic

CC5.ILO1.RT1b)

Examples

• Ensure personal safety first
• Pull to the side of the road (if possible)
• Stop immediately
• Warn others if possible
• Call for medical help if necessary
• Call the police
• Exchange information
• Get names and addresses of witnesses
• Stay at the scene
• Make accident reports (if required)
• Go to collision reporting centre (where available)
• See a doctor (if you have been injured)

Subtopic

CC5.ILO1.RT1c)

Examples

• Pull safely to the side of the road
• Have licence and registration available

Subtopic

CC5.ILO3.RT1a)

Examples

• How to purchase a fuel efficient vehicle
• Following manufacturer's recommended maintenance schedule
• Poorly maintained vehicles can consume more fuel
• Keeping tires inflated at the manufacturer's recommended pressure
• How and when to measure tire pressure
• Under-inflated tires can increase fuel consumption
• Avoiding unnecessary idling
• Effects of speed on fuel consumption
• Alternative fuels and technologies

Subtopic

CC5.ILO4.RT2c)

Examples

• Skills will deteriorate unless effort is made to keep them sharp
• Monitor changes in personal driving skills and adapt driving behaviour to compensate for changes in skills
• How feedback can help drivers improve their skills

Required Topic

Sharing the Road (CC6)

Subtopic

CC6.ILO1.RT1b)

Examples

• Cyclists and pedestrians
• Traffic control persons
• Large vehicles
• Slow-moving vehicles
• Motorcycles
• Animals
• Public transit vehicles
• Emergency vehicles
• Carpooling

Subtopic

CC6.ILO2.RT1

Examples

• Vehicle signals
• Hand signals
• Horn
• Hazard lights
• Eye-to-eye contact
• Non-verbal communication
• Headlights
• Vehicle position

Required Topic

Attention (CC7)

Subtopic

CC7.ILO2.RT1a)

Examples

• Eating and drinking
• Applying make-up
• Other passengers
• Pets
• Children
• Insects
• Loud noises
• Mobile communication devices (e.g., phone calls, text messaging)

Subtopic

CC7.ILO2.RT1b)

Examples

• Advertising
• Animals
• Collisions
• Construction sites
• People

Subtopic

CC7.ILO3.RT1a)

Examples

• Ability to choose to process relevant information while simultaneously tuning out irrelevant information

Subtopic

CC7.ILO3.RT1b)

Examples

• Vigilance, concentration
• Ability to persist or maintain a consistent response set over time
• involves two aspects of performance: length of time or duration of performance and the consistency of performance during the time period

Subtopic

CC7.ILO3.RT1c)

Examples

• Shifting attention, mental flexibility
• Ability to easily shift one's focus from one activity or stimuli to another

Subtopic

CC7.ILO3.RT1d)

Examples

• Mental tracking
• Ability to internally hold onto several pieces of information at once

Required Topic

Perception and Risk Management (CC8)

Subtopic

CC8.ILO2.RT2c)

Examples

• Endangering the driver, passengers, and other road-users

Subtopic

CC8.ILO3.RT2d)

Examples

• Self-esteem
• Aggression
• Frustration
• Impatience
• Feelings of power
• Overconfidence
• Awareness of consequences

Subtopic

CC8.ILO7.RT1

Examples

• Safe margins (front, rear, side)
• Safe driving speeds
• Braking and stopping safely
• Emergency braking control
• Accelerating safely
• Using the brake and horn
• Yielding if uncertain
• Point of no return