Delaware has a couple of “firsts” to its credit. Known as “The First State,” Delaware was the first of the thirteen original US states to ratify the new US Constitution, on December 7, 1787. Delaware was also the first US state to have a steam locomotive (the Stourbridge Lion) running on rails, on August 8, 1829. But on the day of your official learner permit tests, you certainly don’t want to be the first person to fail them! In fact, you don’t want to fail them at all.
To obtain a learner permit, you must meet several requirements, including passing a vision screening; a Highway Sign and Signal Test, which asks you to identify or explain various signs, signals, and pavement markings; and a Rules of the Road test, which deals with safe driving practices and Delaware’s laws and rules of the road. However, too many aspiring drivers learned the hard way that just reading the official driver’s manual (Delaware DMV Handbook (DE Driver's Manual) 2026) shortly before the knowledge test did not prepare them to pass it. In 2020 – 2023, 26.1% of aspiring drivers in Delaware failed their permit exams on their first try.