1.3 The Driver Education Program & Driving School Operating Rules

New instructors deliver the Driver Education Program, the RMV curriculum that every professional driving school and public school program must use. Its requirements also appear in Chapter 1 of the Driver's Manual as conditions for a Junior Operator License (JOL). That makes the program's numbers part of the PDI blueprint as well as part of daily work.

The Four Components

540 CMR 23.06 and the RMV curriculum (revised August 2024) define the program:

The Manual adds the family's part. The applicant needs 40 hours of supervised driving, certified by a parent or guardian, or 30 hours if the teen completed a Driver Skills Development Program. The parent or guardian must attend the 2-hour class unless they attended within the past five years. The parent class requirement does not apply to parents of students over 18.

The 15 classroom modules

The RMV recommends teaching the modules in order. A school that changes the order must document it and show the record on request. A student who misses a class must make up that module, or the course hours are incomplete.

In-person classroom since September 2025

Remote classroom delivery ended on September 22, 2025, when the RMV discontinued virtual driver education classes. Classroom hours must now be taught in person by a live instructor. Earlier RMV guidelines already defined "live instruction" as a certified instructor present and actively taking comments and questions.

Eligibility, Daily Limits and Completion

• Enrollment age. A student may enroll at 15 years, 9 months. A valid learner's permit is required before any on-road instruction, and the RMV's operating guidelines also require age 16 for on-road work.
• On-road limit. 540 CMR 23.06 says no student may exceed 2 hours of on-road instruction in a day. The RMV guidelines also allow only one on-road session per day.
• Classroom limit. RMV guidelines cap classroom instruction at 6 hours per day, with a 15-minute break after every 2 continuous hours. Breaks do not count toward the 30 hours. The guidelines cap combined classroom and on-road instruction at 6 hours per day.
• Completion window. A student must finish all requirements within 2 years of the initial enrollment date. Extension requests go to the RMV in writing and are reviewed case by case.
• Final exam. Under the RMV's operating requirements, the school's final exam has at least 50 questions, at least 30% of them on the rules of the road, and the passing grade is 80%. The Registrar may set standards and may withhold the certificate until the student has met them, including finishing the BTW practicum.
• Road test readiness. A student who has completed every requirement can road test after reaching 16 years and 6 months, having held a permit for 6 consecutive months with a clean record. Schools are told not to push a student to the test until, after talking with a parent or guardian, they believe the student drives safely.

Moving Between Schools

A student may take the classroom component at one school and the on-road component at another. Each component (30 classroom hours, or 12 BTW plus 6 observation hours) must be completed at one school. Splitting a component between schools is allowed only with RMV approval for legitimate extenuating circumstances, such as a medical emergency, moving out of state or out of the school's region, or a documented complaint against an instructor or school. Requests go in writing, and the RMV allows at least 10 business days for processing. The finishing school relies on the student's Statement of Completion, or the RMV's Statement of Partial Completion, and keeps a copy for six years.

Records

Schools keep business records electronically in the RMV's ATLAS Driving School Portal:

Classroom, in-car and parent sign-in sheets record the date, times, module or lesson type and instructor. Instructors print and sign their name on the line directly below the last student signature. A school may submit a student for completion only when every requirement is met.

Operating and Advertising Rules

The RMV's operating requirements for licensed schools include these:

• Only programs that offer all components (classroom, on-road and parent class) may be licensed.
• Schools make reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities.
• At enrollment, schools give families a written disclosure: business hours and contacts, fees and refunds, class schedule and curriculum, cancellation and make-up policies, and completion requirements.
• Schools may not solicit or advertise at RMV service centers or road-test locations. They may not claim to be RMV agents, suggest that a license is guaranteed, or make misleading claims.
• Schools may not give on-road instruction on a road course the RMV uses for road tests.
• Schools must notify the Registrar within 30 days of a change of name, address or ownership, or of closing. A closing school must account for refunds and incomplete students.
• Schools must report any noncompliance in writing to the Driver Licensing Section.