Driving Education Importance

February 16, 2024, was the day I got my license. It was the day I was given responsibility for my own life and the lives of others. What do I mean by that? A car is the biggest weapon that a person can wield without even knowing it, but it does not have to be that way.

Depending on where you live, you must go through a series of events before getting your license. First, you must take a permit test 6 to 12 months before getting your license. After that, you must go through traffic school, a class that instills you with tools and knowledge as you become a driver. After that, you have a driving school with an instructor, which is eight hours of road driving. Once you have completed these steps, you can take your driver’s test. Some may ask, “Why must we take all these courses to get a license? I mean, it’s just driving.” these forms of traffic and driving education are essential to ensure safer driving. Without them, we are more likely to have reckless drivers on the road.

It is vital to have proper driver education to ensure everyone’s safety. When taking traffic school, they show the students videos of reckless driving and how it affects multiple lives. It affects the lives of the driver, the victim, and the families of both parties. Teens make up a large amount of fatal car crashes because we do not take into effect the natural consequences of reckless driving even though it is a state requirement in Ohio to take 24 hours of traffic school. Not only having but also genuinely understanding the driving education someone receives is essential to lowering the number of deaths caused by car accidents. It is crucial not only because when someone is doing what they are supposed to be doing on the road, it also causes them to be aware of how to maneuver when someone else is not correctly on the road. Seasoned drivers will tell you, “You must drive for everyone, not just yourself.” Having that education allows you to be cautious and drive accordingly because even though you are doing everything correctly, someone else’s mistakes can cause the same consequences you are trying to avoid.

A constant flow of driving education ensures a lower rate of car crash fatalities. As we have seen, only giving someone driving school as a beginner or when they get a ticket is not fundamentally practical. Reiterating education would have positive benefits because it would keep those skills in everyone’s mind. Practice and reiteration make what you repetitively do permanent, and here, it becomes what you know and act on.

We have all had our personal experience of car accidents, whether being in one or just knowing someone who has. I have been lucky enough not to have been in a car accident while driving or being a passenger. However, I have witnessed irresponsible driving by many of my peers. I have seen switching and turning without brakes or signals. I have seen aggressive stops, causing passengers to jerk. And I have witnessed speeding on an astronomical level. Although none of these events have led to catastrophic consequences, they are still dangerous acts that can lead to calamity. It can be enerving for a passenger to feel unsafe because the driver is acting recklessly. Imagine how it feels for other drivers on the road who have to adapt and adjust their driving to prevent something tragic from happening.

As a new driver, I am still learning about the road and still find it very important to remember the information that I learned in my traffic school. I can do my part to ensure that I am a better driver by constantly remembering those skills that I was taught during driver education. This can help others be safer because as long as I am doing my part, I am leading by example for my peers to do the same.

In conclusion, driving education is fundamentally important to the safety of everyone on the road. When someone gets the education and uses it to its full extent, meaning they are driving the proper speed limit, being cautious around trucks on the road, or driving at a safe distance, they are doing their part in safety. You cannot escape poor driving on other people’s behalf; however, making sure that you are doing what is necessary for you to do and being cautious and aware of everyone around you will always lower the rates of death and car accidents. You can ensure you are doing what is right by having the correct driver’s education.