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?

You are very unreasonable to think that maths is nowhere near as important as changing a tyre.

But I'd be pretty miffed if my child came home and precious school time had been spent teaching them how to change a tyre, clean a bathroom, change a duvet etc when these are things we will be teaching our children at home.

No one ever taught me to change a duvet cover (grew up in the era of sheets and blankets) - easy enough to figure out a way that works. Not sure I was ever 'taught' to clean a bathroom either - don't most people just learn by watching and helping?

Changing a tyre is different because the consequences of getting it wrong could be so catastrophic. In that case, relying on something taught at school probably years before owning your own car might be unwise.

In the 1950s, American school, driver's ed (full semester of daily lessons) meant learning some basics of car maintenance. So my mother changed a car wheel. Once. And never did it again. She marveled she'd done that. She didn't retain any of the mechanical skills from the class. I'm sure she never checked the oil, even. You can teach but the info may not stick.

She also wasn't too good at math, fwiw.

This is why I have breakdown cover? As I've usually been alone with young kids when I'm driving for the last 15 years or so, there'd have been no way I could have safely changed a tyre roadside anyway.

Maybe we could just hand babies over to teachers and hand them back at 18.

Why did you not find out and learn how to do it yourself?

Not all modern cars have oil level sensors and can use oil between services. Some manufacturers consumption tolerances are as high as 1 litre/1000 miles so can easily need top ups.

No! My dd is not allowed to drive, why should she be taught a skill that is useless to her

Ha ha, was thinking the exact same thing 🤣

Why teach Pythagoras or Shakespeare or v=i x r in physics then, by the same token, most people won’t use those either.

I wish schools would teach pupils things like
what to do when a fuse blows, How to wire a light fitting
How to select the right light bulb How to complete common forms like a tax return
How the tax & NI system works
About Council Tax
How the benefits system works.

And to use a fucking bell and not mow down pedestrians from behind on footpaths...

This.
But also why didn't you just call a breakdown service? I do know how to change a tyre, but I'll always call someone anyway. I've only needed to do it once or twice in 20 years. There's probably no point teaching this now anyway, cars will probably have self changing tyres when these kids are old enough to drive.

Because she didn't care for maths and so never developed critical thinking skills or logic. People seem to think maths is about finding an answer but in reality it is about learning to think and solve problems....the irony of her post is not lost on me!

Sigh, really OP.
Most people take it upon themselves to learn the basics about cars when they learn how to drive, either that or their parents make them 😏 you're also better to learn on your car as some things will be specific to that make and model.

We used to have the cycling proficiency thing back in primary school. No idea if it is a thing nowadays. It would make more sense than car stuff, as kids can access bikes from a young age.

Totally agree with the 'I wish people would pack it in with the "Schools should teach..." crap.

Schools (teachers) can't solve every single problem of society

I would consider learning about things like that as exercise for your brain.
The more practical things should be down to parents.

I’m in Ireland and over here many kids do Transition Year between exam cycles. They did many things including basic car maintenance. Came in very handy when we had a puncture in a remote spot and the 17 year old leaped out of the car saying I’ve got this and changed the tyre quicker than I could have.
I was a bit dubious about TY but all of mine gained so much experience and grew up so much.

Very true. Like another response, learning things like physics and Shakespeare are good exercises for your brain. The subjects taught at school aren't for the content itself, but to teach you how to think

Every time I think my ‘Schools should teach…’ bingo card is full, I have to add another sheet.
We’re too busy teaching the stuff Ofsted demands, and curriculum subjects and all the other stuff that parents used to be held responsible for.
And no longer expect to be held accountable for.
Yes, in the past many parents didn’t bother to teach their children personal hygiene, cookery skills, table manners, how to speak in grammatical sentences, how to tie their shoelaces or change a plug or put up a shelf and a hundred other things. Including car maintenance.
But they were regarded as not doing their job by many parents who did.
What skills do parents in the 21st Century feel they should be teaching their children? If any?

The thing is OP, if you’re in your 30s there’s a very good chance you’d have forgotten that one lesson in school you had potentially 20 years ago on how to change a tire.
and even if you did mechanics and technologies have changed so much what you learned might not be applicable to your car anyway

really I think if anyone is “responsible” for teaching people this for this it would be driving instructors or the authority who issues the license to operate the car

Pass your driving test.
Then have a compulsory course on car maintenance, tyre changing, Emergency Aid and CPR, several motorway lessons, parking regulations and anger management to avoid road rage.
Repeat every 5 years on pain of points on your license.
Not taught by schools.

I’m surprised so many people have a spare tire with them. There was a survey done years ago that if you compare the cost of the fuel you waste carrying around a spare tire with the cost of calling a mechanic out, then carrying a spare tire is a huge waste of money. My car doesn’t have a spare tire, so if I had a puncture, I’d just call for help. It’s not a necessary skill these days.

My daughter did learn how to use a saw at school this week though. She really enjoyed that lesson.