AIBU to think they NEED to teach car maintenance at school?

[MeMyCatsAndMyBooks]

Today my car tyre popped on a piece of metal left in the middle of the road, and I had no idea what to do.
I've been driving since I was 17 and I'm in my 30s and never had an accident touch wood or anything wrong with my tyres.
I instantly panicked as it happened in the middle of a giant hill and knew I couldn't do it there, thankfully a really kind man ran out and helped it be pushed to the side & changed my tyre for me.

I had no idea how to do it, or what a space saver tyre really was! Luckily I got it home driving very slowly & onto my drive and have my breakdown cover coming out next week to change the tyre.
But I just had no idea about any of it. Im aware I sound like a helpless woman, but im usually quite independent but this knocked me for six!

AIBU to think they need to teach car maintenance in school rather than pushing maths (which lets face it isn't anywhere as important) onto students till they turn 18?

And people wonder why kids manage to leave school without being able to read and write. There's already enough crap in the curriculum we don't have time to teach without mechanics being added!

No. It's getting ridiculous now. Whatever next?

Right fair enough, but who even teaches how to change a tyre?

Basically every single life skill I have like changing tyres, wallpapering, knitting, hanging really heavy mirrors, highlighting my hair etc I've learned on Youtube. Have you never heard of it OP?

When I got a car I went to an evening class for a few weeks learning the basics. Most my friends had their dad /mum show them. I wouldn't like it in secondary school education but it could be added on to driving lessons.

The problem is now the tyres are too difficult to remove by hand you need a machine and issues need to be diagnosed by a computer.

But basics is up to you as an adult to learn e.g. how to change a fuse,plug, turn water cock off. Catch a rodent, hang a picture, etc it's just life as an adult. This is an overhang of spoonfed learning - identify your learning goal and engage.

Actually....
I do think schools should do more life skills and community based lessons.
The GCSE years are all about exams, exams, exams. The amount of threads on here about the hours and hours of revision that need to be done. The amount of subjects that are compulsory - but really many teens aren't that interested in and it won't make a massive difference in their futures if they didn't do.
The GCSEs are 2 years. The final summer term is the exams so I won't count that so it's 10 half terms of around 6 weeks.
If schools did 6 week courses on things that are life skills (ie car maintenance) and also community based projects then that's 10 different 'life' experiences that 16 year olds will have when they finish school. Experiences that many don't get the opportunity to do out of school.
This wouldn't be about getting a GCSE. Not even about 'passing' the subject. It would be about learning useful things, having experiences and even having fun.
I know if something like this had been around when I did my GCSEs it probably would have been my favourite subject.

@Hingey

Depends on your learning style. I’ve never learnt a thing off YouTube. Usually the annoying fucking American accent is enough to put me off within five seconds flat.

Jesus. How many hours do you think there are in the school day? People have no concept of what schools are trying to get through in a day

If driving was on the curriculum then I’d say basic car maintenance should be part of the subject, but it isn’t so no. Schools don’t have the capacity to teach everything that may one day be useful, same as ‘they need to teach mortgages and bills’. I always think no to that too. I’ve seen how to look after dogs should be taught in schools here, no to that as well.

no "they" ( ie me!) dont need to and shouldn't

I dont know anything about car maintenance - I dont have a car and I never will

Most of my students probably wont, either, these days, and the ones that do, how do we know in advance what wort of car they well drive?

What car maintenance would cover the issues that cars drivers might face in the future? Anything we teach now will be obsolete by the time our students are adults

I dont have enough space to store the resources for the lessons I do teach. Or to seat all my students. Where is the space for car maintenance? Or the cars to practice on?

What should I take out of the curriculum to accommodate this unnecessary, expensive and useless subject? Not maths, which most students need to get a job.

So you want people without any knowledge of cars to chuck away their teaching resources, buy some old cars, chuck out the chairs and tables in some classroom, and teach something they know nothing about to a bunch of children who will never use that information, when any of them that do become drivers will be perfectly capable of finding out the relevant, up to date information for themselves, as and when they need it.

This is one of the crazier "Schools NEED to teach...." ideas

Surely it's absolutely vital they teach children how damaging driving us and how urgent the need to find alternatives??!!

You can teach yourself if you’re that bothered imo. A lot of cars nowadays require a computer to diagnose issues and can’t be fixed by a hobbyist. My husband is a big biker and can fix his vintage bike but doesn’t have a clue about a modern racing bike for example.

A huge swathe of people don’t even learn what schools DO teach in the first place. I recall a notable example, a girl asking me ‘what’s the holocaust?’ barely a week after we had spent a term studying WWII.

YouTube is your friend. I've taught myself how to do alsorts of practical stuff watching YouTube tutorials. Saved myself a fortune!

If you've been driving 15 odd years and have never bothered to learn how to change a tyre - to the point where you don't know what a space saving tyre is - then I'm afraid that's your fault.

Buy a can of tyreweld and keep it in the boot.

I actually did learn this at school. But it was the chosen technology subject that I did for GCSE instead of food tech/wood work/graphics or sewing. We changed tyres, took apart the engine of an old Vauxhall Astra, learned about breaks and the gear systems.

Yup all of this.

I think there is something in this.
Over 40 years ago, when my brother was at 6th form in a boys' grammar they did a "getting ready for living away from home at University" course - it included some stuff like how to wire a plug that you wouldn't need nowadays, but they made them all sew on a button, sew up a hem, cook a couple of meals, iron a shirt (life was more formal then), and had lessons (I guess they would be more PSME now) including stuff like knowledge about alcohol and drugs.

I can actually see the value in a term of 'adulting skills' at the end of school - teaching things like budgeting, understanding credit, cooking (incl things like storing food, freezing, not wasting, adapting recipes etc), First Aid, some basic DIY skills, and all the other things that people say "should be taught at school". Sort of like everybody (okay, well the men) had to do National Service back in the day.
For those who then choose to go to University, it would give a term for all potential students to apply with results in hand, and do away with all the 6th form angst of predicted grades.

I know it would never happen but, if I ever get to rule the world, I might decide to impose it.

It's all very well saying "parents should......" but there are too many families where children don't have the parents who do - or, in many cases who can , and so the cycle continues.

top tips for changing a tyre.
Use one of the mats from the car footwell to kneel on.
Loosen the nuts at least half way before lifting the car on the jack.
To untighten nuts, put the nut wrench on the nut in 2 o'clock position, then push it down with your foot. I've actually stood on a wrench with my full weight to Loosen a nut. (which is why you shouldn't jack the car up yet!
Iv hhad a flat tyre on the way to catch a flight - you don't always have time to wait for the AA!

(I also had flat tyre on my wedding car - I left that one for someone else to change!)

Honestly if someone taught me to change a tyre at 13 years old by the time I was driving and then got my first puncture (probs like 2 years into driving?) there was no bloody way I’d remember it

You don't need permission or formal education in school to learn practical skills. If you are competent enough to drive you must be competent enough to find out about basic car maintenance. Be proactive, stop being lazy and teach yourself!

For something as simple as changing a tyre look on youtube and then give it a go at home (you don't need to wait until you have a flat!). There should be a service/user manual with your car, have you read it? In ye olden days I learned from reading the car manual(s) that came with my first car!

Why is it whenever an adult encounters something that they can’t do, instead of learning how to do it they start going on about how it should have been taught at school. Like the point of school is to teach you everything you might need to know in life so that you can stop learning at 18.

Didn’t know how to get a mortgage - should have been taught at school

Didn’t know how to plan a dinner - should have been taught at school

Didn’t know how to do taxes - should have been taught at school

Didn’t know how to vote or what the different parties stand for - should have been taught at school.

With the wealth of internet resources out there these days there is no excuse in blaming school for your ignorance on a variety of topics.

During my A Levels in a state secondary school they included a compulsory unit on carousel which included financial management and basic car maintenance and I forget the less useful units. Was during the mid 90’s and I did roll my teenage eyes at having to do these courses but they were very useful. I even summoned up the knowledge last year when a teen had a flat in the car park at school and I was able to help her, even down to the correct order to tighten nuts and of course driving slowly to the garage to get them checked ( I now live abroad so driving ages are lower than the UK).

I do agree that schools are being made responsible for things they are not responsible for, but this carousel unit was really good, although I wouldn’t have admitted it at the time. I also seem to remember although we had a tiny sixth form of 20, some parents became fairly animated about wasting learning time but the rather brilliant Head held her ground.

As a teacher now, yes these courses would be marvellous but we also have to consider that because the internet is so easily accessible etc.. a lot of these skills can be gained from watching YouTube.

Schools cannot do right for doing wrong and any learning time that is used for non curricular activity would gain ‘remarks’ from parents and probably an official complaint or two. Head teachers these days tend to bow very swiftly to what parents think and taking on another battle plus factoring in staffing, lesson time, resources are extra battles that I think only the bravest or most well funded school could even consider taking on. Gone are the days when a kindly woodwork teacher would allow his elderly Ford Escort to repeatedly have its wheels taken off, oil changed etc… and not every driver when they first start out can afford breakdown recovery.

no. I agree with all the other posters - it's very unlikely if you were taught aged 11-16 you'd even remember it 20 plus years later, many cars now are either too heavy/unwieldy/complex to change yourself, or don't include the correct kit (load of cars now just have that tyre inflate repair stuff in a can rather than a spare tyre). People 'having a go' at something they don't know how to do properly and don't have the right tools for, for the first time in a stressful situation is unlikely to have great results.

Basic car maintenance and very easy, non emergency repair (e.g. changing windscreen wipers) is easy to teach yourself from youtube or a book, for the result just get breakdown insurance/go to a garage.

My dad taught me basic car maintenance when I passed my test. His exact words were ‘no daughter of mine is going to stand at the side of a road waiting for someone else to do something she could easily do herself’. He was also a stickler for Sunday morning oil, coolant and tyre pressure checks no matter how hungover we were. Thanks dad!

yabu

they should know how to repair a bike tyre though and adjust bike brakes and gears.

tbh if you drive a car you are responsible for keeping it road safe and how to recover from situations you describe. either by paying a recovery service or learning how to under your own steam.

Agreed. What subject would they have to drop to do this.