Victor J. Andrew Division Chair for Physical Education, Health and Driver Education Doug Bozych recently presented at the 71st Annual Illinois High School & College Driver Education Association State Conference in Effingham. His presentation, titled Unpacking the ISBE Driver Ed Classroom Standards, provided attendees with practical, standards-based lessons ready for immediate use in their classrooms. Bozych shared insights from D230’s experience implementing the new Illinois State Board of Education Driver Education Standards, highlighting gap analysis, effective strategies, and challenges encountered along the way. 

Bozych said, “The District 230 Driver Education teachers at all three of our schools are way out in front of other schools around the state in implementing the new standards into practice. As a member of the team that developed these state standards, I had early insight into their content. Using that knowledge, I supported our teachers—working closely with my administrative colleagues—in fully understanding and applying each standard in practice.”

“Over the past year, our team of D230 teachers and my administrative counterparts Christina Douglas from Stagg and Sheaus Murphy from Sandburg worked extremely hard to redesign our course to maximize student learning and ensure we’re putting the most well-educated and defensive drivers on the road,” Bozych added.

Bozych’s expertise continues to be recognized statewide; he has been invited to present this fall to Chicago Public Schools driver ed teachers. He will co-present with the division chair at Oak Park River Forest to further explore classroom and behind-the-wheel implementation of the new standards. Through the efforts of Bozych, who has worked closely with the state association, the D230 Driver Education program—along with other exemplary initiatives from across Illinois—will be highlighted as a model of excellence. As a result, the D230 Driver Education instructors have been invited to present at professional learning workshops this fall, where they will share the district’s instructional model and effective methods for assessing student learning in Driver Education.