Drivers Ed is a Responsibility

In Mississippi, driving skills are second nature to the residents. Whether they have prior knowledge with operating vehicles from driving four wheelers, tractors on farms with their families, or trucks on back roads before they even get their permit, it is almost guaranteed that anyone that you speak to over the age of 16 operates a vehicle on a daily basis. However, this does not stop some teenagers from being irresponsible. At least once a year, there is a deadly car accident amongst the student body. This is an immense issue considering the towns around here are small (for instance, I graduated with one of the largest classes I have ever seen; a class of 90 students.)

I have firsthand experience with losing a dear classmate due to reckless driving behaviors. She was a passenger that was reported to be sober while the driver and other passengers were both under the legal drinking age and intoxicated. Accidents like these are entirely preventable, and people often wonder how to go about doing so. The answer lies within the parents of the teens. Your child may have the experience to operate a vehicle at a young age, but that does not mean that they have the mental capacity to prevent themselves from making life altering decisions. Driving is something that should be taken seriously and should be heavily monitored by authority until the person has reached appropriate levels of maturity. Teenagers should also be taught to have responsibilities as they age, and getting home safely should be a priority. According to Moms Against Drunk Drivers, “Teens who don’t drink alcohol before age 21 are 85 percent less likely to become a drunk driver later in life and are 80 percent less likely to abuse alcohol or become alcohol dependent.” This article also mentions how alcohol affects the minds of underage drinkers, stating that the brain is still developing during the teenage years. These statistics are crucial to determine whether or not someone has the mental capacity to be on the roadway.

For children that do not have parental guidance, they should be enrolled in any drivers ed class that will teach them key concepts, such as attentiveness, refusing to check their phones while they are driving, and making sure they are sober before getting behind the wheel. Monitoring and teaching children about driver’s safety is vital to how seriously they take the task; this will help reduce the amount of accidents, both fatal and non fatal, on the roadway. Drivers ed is something that should be mandatory for the safety and wellbeing of the students and other drivers alike, and it is more than just a simple lesson.

Works Cited:

helpdesk. Parents Have the Power to Make a Difference. “Mothers Against Drunk Driving” (MADD). Nonprofit Organization. April 4, 2019. https://www.madd.org/parents-have-the-power-to-make-a-difference/.