{"id":552097,"date":"2007-04-24T11:19:48","date_gmt":"2007-04-24T11:19:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:8888\/wordpress\/technology\/552097-computerised-learners-tests-on-the-cards.html"},"modified":"2007-04-24T11:19:48","modified_gmt":"2007-04-24T11:19:48","slug":"computerised-learners-tests-on-the-cards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/technology\/552097-computerised-learners-tests-on-the-cards.html","title":{"rendered":"Computerised learners&#8217; tests on the cards"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><font size=\"2\">It is also participating in a national forum proposing changes to the driving licence legislation. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Last month, the traffic and licensing services department invited the P-Cubed company, which deals in the computerised system, to visit the municipality&#8217;s facilities to see how it could adopt the new technology. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">The Rossburgh testing facility in Durban is the only one in the country using it so far. P-Cubed will also do a cost estimate on the provision of the system. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">&quot;The representatives from P-Cubed were impressed with the facilities at our centres and were of the opinion that the computerised system could be easily incorporated into the current structure,&quot; traffic chief Hamilton Totoyi told the safety and security committee at the weekend. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">P-Cubed had come up with valuable suggestions. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Traffic and licensing department spokesman Luncedo Njezula said some of the innovations were video surveillance and voice-recording equipment. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">&quot;The system provides valuable and tangible advantages, such as the random generation of tests for each applicant. It is a touch-screen computer system and is therefore user-friendly. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">&quot;It automatically marks the test and the applicant has access to the results immediately. The system is not open to manipulation, thereby reducing corruption,&quot; Njezula said. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">It was available in various South African languages and was very efficient. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">The municipality is also looking at a review of the driving licence legislation. Councillors have already asked for a relook at the K-53 system because they say many applicants are failing the test. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Assistant licensing chief Frik Terblanche said the review was not to make the test any easier, but to &quot;make administrative processes better&quot;. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">&quot;For instance, driving schools have to be regulated as some are offering poor training which leads to failures,&quot; he said. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Terblanche said if the learners&#8217; tests were computerised, the centre would be able to do about two more classes a day. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">&quot;Another advantage is that the system can accommodate a lot of people at any given time, thereby also reducing the backlog of people waiting for testing.&quot; <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Because the marking of tests and issuing of results would all be computerised, corruption would be curbed, he said. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">At present the tests could be manipulated by the examiner. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">&quot;If he likes you or if you pay him, he can make you pass because he will be responsible for the marking. With the new system, there is no manipulation as there is no direct interaction between the examiner and the applicant,&quot; Terblanche said. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">At the moment, the questions and answers for the learner-driver tests were easily available, with some driving schools photocopying and selling them to applicants. But with the new system, the questions for each applicant were randomly selected, making it impossible for applicants to memorise the questions and answers. It also mean the examiner would not know beforehand which questions were to be asked. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Explaining the proposed use of one learner&#8217;s licence for all codes, Terblanche said it would save money and time as many learner drivers first did the test for light vehicles. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Another proposal was for the learner&#8217;s licence to be valid for 24 months instead of the present 18 months, Terblanche said. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">At a workshop in Pretoria in January, the driver technical committee proposed changes to the legislation. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">A working group consisting of transport officials from KwaZulu Natal, the department of transport and other transport organisations was formed to compile the first draft of the proposed legislation. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\">Some of the proposed changes are: <\/font><\/p>\n<p><font size=\"2\"><\/font><\/p>\n<li><font size=\"2\">The introduction of only one learner&#8217;s licence centre in future. This will effectively mean that the applicant will have to study all the modules. Once a person is in possession of a learner&#8217;s licence, he will not be tested again should he want to obtain a different code of driving licence. <\/font><\/li>\n<li><font size=\"2\">The validity of a learner?s licence would be 24 months from the date of examination and test. <\/font><\/li>\n<li><font size=\"2\">When someone applies for a new driving licence on or before the expiry of his existing licence, and when that licence has not been suspended or cancelled, it will be deemed valid until the new licence has been issued, but not for more than four months after the old one expires. <\/font><\/li>\n<li><font size=\"2\">That provision be made in the legislation for the introduction of a mobile learner&#8217;s licence facility. <\/font>\n<p><font size=\"2\">&quot;It should be noted that these are still only proposals,&quot; Njezula said adding the changes should be seen as positive. <\/font><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/vb\/showthread.php?t=73090\">Comments<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<p \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In an effort to curb corruption in the issuing of driving licences and other traffic documents, the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality is considering introducing a computerised drivertesting system at its learner testing centres. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sma_x_autopost_status":"idle","_sma_x_autopost_error":"","_sma_x_post_id":"","_sma_facebook_post_id":"","_sma_instagram_post_id":"","_sma_threads_post_id":"","_sma_x_attempts":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-552097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/552097"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=552097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/552097\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=552097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=552097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=552097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}