Young drivers looking to learn the ways of the road, and ticketed motorists needing to fulfill their court requirements can both look to College of the Canyons for help, as the Community Education department is now offering online traffic school and drivers education.

Available 24 hours a day seven days a week, the self-paced 30-hour-long online drivers education training course blends text, video and animation with accompanying study questions and quizzes over 10 units of material.

Students are able to access quizzes and the drivers education online test as many times as it takes to successfully pass, with practice permit tests available after completion of the course.

"Because drivers education is regulated by the DMV, the online version will not be any shorter or any easier," said Gina Bogna, director of community education at COC. "But the advantage is 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week access, which is ideal for teenagers who can complete the course at their own convenience."

Coming at a cost of just $85, the online drivers education training course is licensed by the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and is 100 percent guaranteed - meaning if you don't pass, you don't pay.

Students and their parents can also sample up to 10 percent of the course for free before deciding to officially register.

After successful completion of the course, students receive a driver's education course certificate of completion, but will still need to pass a California DMV permit test, complete the mandatory hours of driving in the company of an adult and pass the DMV driver license test before being issued an official driver's license.

In addition to driver training, community education is now offering online traffic school to students, as opposed to the traditional in-person courses that are available at both the COC Valencia and Canyon Country campuses.

At a cost of $39, the online traffic school is DMV approved and 100 percent guaranteed.The course is divided into several units each containing text, video, graphics and accompanying review questions, allowing users the choice between completing the course all at once or progressing at their own pace.

At the end of the course, users will be tested on a series of multiple-choice questions, with unlimited retakes. After passing, users will receive a completion notice, which is processed and forwarded to meet the necessary court requirements - with overnight delivery options available.

"We're continually trying to find ways to meet the community's needs and this just seemed obvious," Bogna said. "Almost everybody has gotten a ticket and they all dread going to traffic school. We can't take away the fact they received a ticket, but we can make it so they can go to traffic school without ever leaving their home."

For more information about the College of the Canyons Community Education online drivers education and traffic school courses, or to register for classes please visit www.canyons.edu/communityed.

Written by John McElwain