Why Driver’s Education is Critical

On January 10, 2024, I was in the passenger seat of my girlfriend’s car. I didn’t have my car at the time, and we were heading back to my house after hanging out at hers. Living in the small town of Payson, Arizona, we usually have some decent snow storms. We had just had one the week prior. The only problem was the snow had melted, and the water that remained turned to black ice on the roads. 

As we were casually driving back to my house, we stopped at a stop sign. As we turned the corner, we noticed the tires slid a bit, but we quickly gained control and continued on our drive. I even recall laughing a bit, not thinking much of it. About three minutes later, we reached a windy road. Once we hit the first bit of curve in the road, all of the tires lost control, and we began to slide aggressively. As we slid, the car flipped entirely upside down as it slid down into a dirt ditch about six feet deep. Every time I think about this moment, I wonder how I am alive. The car we were driving was a soft-top convertible Mustang that also happened to be front-wheel drive. As much as I hate to admit, neither of us had our seatbelts on. The car landed right in between two trees, and to my horror, after we had kicked open the door in order to escape the trapped car, there was a giant rock that was right where my head should have been. 

Again, I still, to this day, do not know how I escaped this drastic scenario. I do not hold my girlfriend’s driving accountable; however, having had driver’s education classes may have prevented this scenario. In all honesty, I am not saying I could have done any better in this situation. I, too, could have benefited from a driver’s education and could have advised against going down this road. I am a new driver and I have had a fair amount of driving experience. Yet there are certain terrains I have yet to drive on, and rather than experience them for the first time, as my girlfriend and I did that night, it might prove much more effective to learn about these scenarios in a driver’s education class. 

I believe neither I nor my girlfriend are the first to experience something like this. There are thousands of new drivers in the U.S., and I know they may encounter difficult roads or terrains, as I have. That is why driver’s education classes must be more readily available. Driver education classes or courses could easily be incorporated into schools; even basic, less hands-on driving principles could be implemented in younger grades, such as middle schoolers. It would only make sense to apply classes such as driver’s education, for these kids are about to get their licenses anyway. 

There is a stigma that teenagers drive recklessly and having been in the cars of many other teenagers, I can attest to this. However, many teens drive this way due to a lack of knowledge and experience. If they had had proper lessons, many accidents could have been prevented, and they would know not to do or even try certain things. 

Some adults could use some driver’s education practice, as well. If you live in a small town like the one, I live in, it is easy to live all of your life driving on the same, simple roads. However, if you ever decide to leave the town and drive on a freeway, you may find yourself struggling a bit. Having taken a driver’s education class would help in this scenario because it would supply basic driving knowledge instead of finding out things on the road. Many adults I know tend to drive a certain way because that is how they were taught by their parents or friends growing up. 

In conclusion, a driver’s education class being readily available, either in school or around town, would help millions of citizens. This would not only have been helpful in my scenario, but it could have also helped save thousands of other new drivers. It is better to learn in a class than on the road. My hopes for further driving education classes can only go so far, and I hope my thoughts are considered. I believe everyone from new drivers to experienced drivers, even to future drivers, could benefit from a driver education class. Having better, more knowledgeable drivers will create safer roads, and perhaps even prevent the rising number of accident-related deaths.