Ensuring your safety as a Driver through Drivers Education.

Driving is a privilege that people must earn by passing a written exam on the laws and signals you will encounter on the road along with a driving test administered by an instructor who will ensure you meet the requirements to obtain a Drivers License. Unfortunately many drivers, specifically drivers in the younger age groups are not aware of the responsibilities that come with this advantage and decide to utilize their license in a way that puts their life and the life of others on the roads in danger. According to an article by USA Today “Motor vehicle crashes are the No. 1 leading cause of death for people ages 13 to 19” (Moore and Gollub 1). With statistics such as this one it is more than clear that as a society we must take action in order to educate young motorists that their safety on the road is their most important asset and that they must stay away from doing any activities that will put them at risk of losing their lives.

From this issue we can take our first step to reducing the number of deaths related to reason, education is our most important tool to alleviate this problem and that is killing thousands of people every year. Education will have a very positive effect on the population, it will directly prevent many deaths of many drivers, especially drivers between the ages of 15-21. As we know young adults that are in the process of obtaining a valid driver’s license learn significantly faster and easier than full grown adults. According to a report redacted by Penn Medicine News “While the teen brain has some limitations, it also has some advantages over the older, adult brain. As the brain develops, there is enhanced synaptic plasticity—teens learn faster and memories last longer” (Messinger 1). Since this age group has a less complicated process in picking up a new habit, they have the opportunity to create driving routines that will help them preserve their lives and the lives of others. In order to achieve these kinds of customs teenage motorists must be educated in the classroom about how they must act on the roads, here is where driver’s education comes in and serves as a mechanism to prevent the deaths caused by driving. All people that intend to get a license before the age of 18 must go through a Drivers Education course whether it is at their school or with an independent driving school. Drivers Education teaches new drivers about modern driving laws, vehicle safety and how to operate a motor vehicle. Going back to how drivers education prevents the death of many drivers, statistics in a study conducted by The University of Nebraska show that “10.4 percent of students who took driver’s education were ticketed for moving traffic violations, compared to 18.3 percent of those who did not take driver’s education”.

After reviewing the evidence displayed by this study we can conclude that drivers education is a very effective measure to reduce the death of motorist on the roads, but as individuals we cannot expect that the Drivers Education course is going to solve all of our driving issues, we must also take action ourselves to improve the way we act on the road. There are many things small we can do in order to become safer drivers, some of these include: following the speed limit, wearing a seatbelt, avoid driving in the rain, handing the keys over after you have consumed alcohol, not engaging in conflicts with other drivers and not operating a vehicle when you are in a condition that does not allow to drive properly. In the time that I have been driving I have always implemented these small habits, as a result I have not been involved in any sort of accident or put my life or someone else’s life at risk while operating a vehicle. In contrast to this, I have seen close relatives that ignored many of these basic safety measures and did suffer some sort of accident as a direct consequence. In 2018 a group of family members were in a vehicle and both the driver and passengers were under the influence of alcohol, sadly the SUV that they were in flipped over on a curve and one of the people that was in the vehicle had to be rushed to the hospital and spend the rest of the night there. Anecdotes such as this one reflect the importance of being in a sober state where you can operate a motor vehicle and maintain both the safety of others and most importantly yourself.

To finalize, always maintain your safety and the safety of others on the road by being a responsible driver and taking the basic safety measures that will reduce the chances of getting into a tragic accident by a significant percentage. Use the options that are provided to you as a younger driver such as Drivers Education to make yourself more aware of the dangers on the road and on how you should behave while operating a vehicle. Lastly utilize logic and do not abuse the privilege that you earned, be wise and most importantly stay secure at all times because any small mistake while driving can cost you your life.