Learn driving techniques

got my driving licence on my second attempt (‘Getting a Dubai driving licence could get harder’, Gulf News, February 16). When they failed me on the first try, I was angry and claimed I drove perfectly. But when I took an extra eight classes and the trainer pointed out my mistakes, I realised what skills they look for in drivers. The moral of the story is, do not make childish excuses. They failed you because of your wrong technique, not because they want your money. From Mr Abu Inabiyah Lahore, Pakistan Facebook comment

Use indicators!

No matter how many classes they give, some drivers will still not use the indicator. That simple step could avoid a lot of collisions if people just bothered to use the indicator. From Ms Suparna Agrawal UAE Facebook comment

A driver’s ability

I t seems it’s not just the number of tests that is important, but the number of lessons needed to get to a test. It should be down to the driver, not a school to make that judgement. From Mr Matt Saville UAE Facebook comment

More education

I ’m glad that it could get harder because it should get even harder. Hopefully more education will help people drive better. So many people cause accidents and they should be made to sit a test again. From Mr Paul M. Dubai Facebook comment

Passed here easily!

I failed my driving test in the Netherlands five times, but I passed here on my first try. It was easy here compared to back home. We didn’t go on the highway until after passing the test and there were only 35 simple questions. You were allowed to have a lot of mistakes, like 15 or around that. The lessons are only 30 minutes long and you need 40 of them, you can take four lessons at a time. From Ms Sharon Hagenbeek Dubai Facebook comment

Used to be tough

I got my licence in Al Ain in 1994 on my ninth attempt, which took almost two

years. I was congratulated because I got it sooner than many. At that time, Al Ain was known for being tougher and they didn’t allow a single mistake. I still remember my mistakes. I’ve never had any fines in Dubai. I was in the UAE for almost 18 years and I would get two or three speeding fines every year only in Al Ain. From Mr Ejaz Ahmed Bhopal, India Facebook comment

Be open to learning!

I got my licence on my seventh attempt, but it felt awesome. Thanks to my driving school, God bless them. They failed me for minor mistakes and I was super upset about it and then when I kept failing, I realised how dangerous it would have been if they had passed me in the first place. It’s not a money making scheme, it means you are a bad driver and not ready for the road! Accept it and learn from it! From Ms Melanie Rose Dubai Facebook comment

Be confident

I got my licence on my first attempt in 2012. Confidence is the main rule in the final test. Be confident, drive well and follow all instructions you get in the road lessons. You will get it! From Mr Mohammad Danish Nasser Dubai Facebook comment

A reasonable demand

C onservatives who are fuming about a motion in the Canadian parliament to curb anti-Islamic hatred that is growing like wildfire need to re-examine their principles and values. Muslims deserve respect like everyone else. The hate against them, which led to the Quebec massacre must stop. I don’t think it is asking too much for a victim to say to the bully: “I can’t take it anymore.” We are not in a jungle where the beast follows its natural instinct to terrorise the weak. Even then, the weak has every right to say no and fight for survival. I’m amazed, dismayed and puzzled to see these bullies crying foul. Demanding an end to hate doesn’t entail the end to freedom of expression. From Mr Abubakar N. Kasim Toronto. Ontario

CBSE’s laudable move

M ost teachers and students heartily welcome the Central Board of Secondary Education’s (CBSE) progressive decision of bringing back the old examination system and abolishing the Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation system from this year onwards (‘New CBSE exam system to pose challenges, educators say’, Gulf News, February 14). The current system, comprising Formative and Summative Assessments, was not a great challenge for bright students, though academically weaker students benefitted greatly from it. The option to choose between school-based and board-based exams, the 30 per cent weight of board exams, more stress on non-scholastic subjects and no fear of being detained, has made students less committed towards accomplishing academic excellence. They are losing the habit of working hard to scale the rungs of success.

By revamping the system and bringing in the old assessment scheme from this academic year, the CBSE is taking a great stride. Initially students may face some teething trouble in adopting to the system as they have to study the whole year’s portion. The days of ‘real education’ will be back soon. From Ms Jayashree Kulkarni Abu Dhabi

The wrong direction

The CBSE should have embraced something innovative that would have promoted critical thinking, nurtured creativity and, above all, should have encouraged children to break the mould of typical parents’ mindset, that there does not exist a profession other than to be a doctor or an engineer in this universe.

Most Indian curricula still follow the age-old system of regurgitating what the students have learnt from textbooks — nothing more, nothing less. It would have been a great benefit to students if CBSE made fundamental changes to the curriculum to identify individual talents so that it nurtures students to pursue the right career options, thereby contributing in the best way to society. A student who scores top marks in mathematics but scores average marks in other subjects cannot opt for maths as a major for the next level and could shatter the dreams of many children who are talented in a given subject. I believe this is not a constructive approach.

Scrapping the formative and summative system is going to make it all the more worse now that the students have to wait for an entire academic year to be evaluated on their knowledge. A semester system has many advantages as it allows better monitoring of the performance of students after each break, before moving on to the next semester. From Mr Esmail Mohammad Dubai

Hold her accountable!

I t is a highly unbelievable and a oneoff situation what the people of the state, as well as those who love the Tamil people, are witnessing now (‘India’s top court shows the way in fighting graft’, Gulf News, February 15).

First and foremost, we are living in an era in which we should have the freedom to express our constitutional rights and thoughts and not just follow the whims and fancies of anyone who claims to have confidence or power or even access to power.

Wonder why educated Tamil people — both men and women — sit quiet and say nothing on this issue? They had more of a voice and mass to express and unite themselves for the Jallikattu Festival issue than for a situation like these pseudo rulers.

Who is forcing Vivekanandan Krishnaveni Sasikala to remain in politics, if she feels that it’s hard for a woman to survive in politics? Sit quiet and be comfortable at home and enjoy the money that has been quietly earned over the years rather than perish with more greed.

Without strong sentencing and monetary punishment, which surprisingly was not handed out in this case, the process may continue to happen considering the timeframe for such verdicts. From Mr Ramesh Menon Abu Dhabi

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