It does sometimes seem that way, although I don't know of any figures. It would be interesting to look at the pass rates and learning times of people from a variety of professions and educational backgrounds.
I wonder if the brainiacs spend far too long analysing everything?
Again generalising but academic people are very good at applying and storing knowledge, whereas non academic people can often be more gifted in physical/practical areas.
I'm not bragging but I passed my car test after 26 lessons in 1975 first time and hgv3 at age of 21 and then my hgv1 a week before my psv at the age of 25 but I would neither say that I am thick nor academic minded so I would say it depends on a number of things ie how the learner feels at the time of sitting test and how he/she copes on the road
p.s when I passed the car test it was not as hard as it can be now
it also depends on the driving instructor if he/she can teach the learner the proper way to drive
I know what you mean by this question. It never ceases to amaze me the number of baseball cap wearing chav vermin that seem to be driving the day after their 17th birthday, yet it took me nearly 2 years (on and off) learning and 2 attempts at the test before I got my licence. Of course we shouldn't generalise, but I think there's probably something to the practical / theoretical argument. We college lecturers are men of thinking, rather than men of action!