The Importance of Driver’s Education

“In America, an average of 34,000 people die each year as a result of driving. This is more people who have died in one year as a result of driving, than the total number of American soldiers who have died from war in Iraq and Afghanistan combined”. Please reread that quote. In the United States, more people are killed driving than our soldiers that fought in some of the most historic battles known to the United States. Although fatalities that are caused by driving is a significant amount, one does not consider it as a pressing issue that needs fixing. In order to reduce the number of deaths related to driving each year, society, as a whole, needs to implement more driver’s education to those who have or will obtain a driver’s license.

To introduce myself, my name is Emma and I am seventeen years old. I have been driving for almost two years now and I have been in my fair share of close calls on the road and have witnessed crashes while driving as well. Before I turned sixteen, my parents made sure that I was signed up for my high school’s driver’s education course. At first, I was dreading having to attend a class every week in order to save some money on my insurance. However, this class would be the very reason why I am such a good driver and my solution to reducing the number of deaths related to driving each year.

Whenever I hear of a crash or a significant event that has occurred, the prevalence of the event does not affect me strongly until I have seen or have heard specific details of said event. By providing an in-depth account or seeing physical evidence, it allows my mind to fully grasp what is happening. Therefore, I believe that many people are not taking the number of deaths by driving serious because, to some, it is just a statistic to them. The truth of the matter is that unless a loved one has passed away during a driving incident or if he/she has been in a life-threatening crash themselves, the number of deaths related to driving is not a significant event to others. However, during the driver’s education course that I participated in, there were three significant activities that my teacher, Mr. Romano, had us partake in. The first activity that occurred was our class being shown extremely graphic images of what driving under the influence/distracted driving can result in, the second was an actual convicted person’s account of their vehicle manslaughter charge, and the third was my personal mission that I completed in the duration of the course.

Again, we may hear about car crashes that resulted in a death, but we have never really seen what actual pictures look like. As I mentioned previously, I believe that by having seen the results of what happens when one is under the influence or is distracted while driving is an important part of the process of truly realizing the effects of what can occur if one drives distracted or under the influence. Mr. Romano presented us with raw images of a car crash where a person was texting and driving and ended up colliding with a semi-truck in front of them. Fortunately, I will spare the details, but it has stuck with me for over two years. I will always remember that gentleman who chose to send a text that was not worth his life.

The second activity that my driver’s ed teacher had us participate in was listening to a guest speaker. This guest speaker shared her story of how she drove under the influence after leaving her job as a bartender and this choice resulted in her hitting a pedestrian walking home. I remember her explaining how she had hit a restaurant owner who was a father, and, in court, she had to look at her victim’s family and apologize. At the time she talked to our class, she was on house arrest and was wearing a monitor on her ankle. That day has truly impacted me for the rest of my life. I can still hear the regret and sadness in her voice as she described the pain and suffering that her victim’s family endured. I will never cause this kind of torment to another family for as long as I live.

Lastly, the third moment from my driver’s ed class that was extremely impactful for me was setting up a memorial sign marker. After Mr. Romano had shared a story where one of his student’s, who was like a son to him, had passed away in a car crash; I wanted to help set up a memorial sign marker for him. I researched and contacted the Florida Department of Transportation and, after a couple of weeks, I was able to place a memorial marker for Nick Lord, who tragically passed away after he had lost control of his pickup truck in Palm City.

Overall, my driver’s education course has significantly affected my mindset whenever I step foot into a vehicle. I am aware of the importance of driving safely and how, if I am not cognizant, I can alter the life of my family or another family forever. I believe that by requiring a driver’s education course before one earns their driver’s license and every 5 years after receiving their license will reduce the number of deaths related to driving. Although it will not eliminate the occurrence of driving related deaths, by implementing memorable guest speakers, introducing people to the real results of DUI’s and distracted driving, and keeping drivers aware of the sheer power they hold when driving a two-ton vehicle every day, I believe it will reduce the number of deaths by driving each year.