Chicago public high schools require all sophomores to take (and pass) a driver's ed course.

Including students who are blind.

This has been going on for some time now. A mentor program that pairs blind adults with blind teenagers asked the kids what they would like to see changed--the point was to teach political activism. And the kids all mentioned that they were required to take Driver's Ed.

Chicago doesn't offer simulators or behind the wheel training; the classes are videos and booklets (that aren't translated into braille or anything).

The Trib notes:

For Teniya Booker, 17, who lost her sight after she was shot at age 3, the class proved to be one more struggle in an already challenging class load. "Why should we have to memorize how a street sign looks when we are never going to see them while driving?" Booker wrote in a letter to Ald. Howard Brookins Jr. (21st).

My favorite part of the story is this:

One teacher argued that the lessons aren't a waste of time."I don't think you can ever get enough traffic safety ... and we do a lot on how to make good decisions," said Brent Johnston, a Hinsdale South High School teacher and a chairman of the Illinois High School/College Driver's Education Association. "Still, this shouldn't be the school's decision; it should be mom and dad's decision. A little common sense would go a long way."