The Driver Ed instructor I had was a total asswipe ex-military prick. One real sadistic sonabitch. He got off on sweating us in some weird-ass trafic situations. Everybody in the car hated the nazi bastard, and the tension was always at the choking point.
While you don't need driver ed to get a license, it was possible to get it 6 months early if you took driver ed....So, I did.
The BMV guy almost flunked me for my license (by 2 points) because I "turned in front of" a car a whole city block away.
Best news....Whee, no more driver tests !