Riding Shotgun: A DmvEdu.Org Essay Submission

Education is essential for all growing minds, from understanding the world around you with science lectures, developing your linguistic skills with English classes, and challenging your problem-solving skills with mathematics courses. And while all of these classes are beneficial, none are as important as driver education. People, especially teenagers, view driving as a simple and effective means of traveling, but it’s a scary and surprising world out there. You never know if your next time stepping behind the wheel is your last. That is why drivers ed is so valuable in our modern world, the class drums the necessary knowledge and skills one will need for the road and teaches simple steps to ensure your and other’s safety on the road.

School is supposed to be a sanctuary, a place where students and faculty should come to feel safe and happy. It’s an unfamiliar feeling to feel mourning in such a place. A story from my past, while it does not involve me personally, it affects me regularly. My attendance in my ROTC volunteer program had been shaky at best, I found myself playing as a defensive tackle for my school’s football team and wound up going and playing in games rather than giving back to my community. A yearly car wash event was taking place while I was at a game, it is looked forward to around the year simply due to the comradery that it brings, but the opposite effect had taken place. I had gotten back on the bus to be met with my phone exploding with messages. Text’s from friends asking if I am okay, and how I was holding up. This took me by surprise until one acquaintance shared the bad news. My friend (who we will call Mark) was standing near the highway exit to advertise the car wash event. As he was crossing the road, due to the light being red, a car came charging off the exit ramp, with no intent to stop. It had collided with Mark, sending him back dozens of feet. The driver stayed with him until the ambulance arrived, but it was too late. The injuries he sustained were grave, and he had perished. The driver claimed to have been distracted while driving and eating. The details for the rest of the day are rather morbid, but I am stricken with a wave of fear and guilt whenever I am distracted while driving, not wanting the pain I and so many others had felt to be spread by my hand.

While it seems insignificant, driver’s ed is THE place to learn the lesson I had learned, minus the heartache. Driver ed has a crucial importance in reducing the number of deaths via car incidents. The course is known to more or less scare students into following the rules of the road. While that sounds malicious, it is true. No one would drive the speed limit if they were not scared of the fines they would face by the police, no one would focus on the road rather than their food if not told tales of woe. But that is not all that the instructors are there to do. There are trusted and foolproof steps to ensure the death toll of people in car accidents drops. The first and most crucial step is to apply your seatbelt. A statistic found by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 2022 states, “Seat belts can reduce the risk of death by 45% for front seat passengers in a car and 60% in the backseat.” Merely wearing your seat belt with increase your survivability by half. The next safety step in ensuring your safety is to avoid distractions. MarketWatch has estimated that 13% of fatalities in car crashes are due to distracted drivers. This involves phones, food, makeup, and even music, but there are ways to help you keep your eyes on the road and avoid all these distractions. Leaving your phone in the back seat of your car or in a bag out of sight will help you forget about the device and its screams for attention, the same goes with food. This tip as helped me get to my destinations distraction-free many times, using the out of sight out of mind technique.

While those tips help with your safety, there are quick steps to help you become a safer driver in the long run. I advise using the SAND technique, 4 steps I have created that have allowed me to be a safe and protected driver. S=Speed, your speed is crucial to your safety, the speed limit is the way it is for a reason, and exceeding it will not only end up in a fine but maybe a life as well. Your speed should be well maintained as well, slamming on your breaks on the highway could affect the safety of people behind you, forcing them to react quickly and rashly, we don’t want that. If some sort of situation is happening in front of you on the highway or even on the street, the safest way to ensure your and others’ safety is simply to take your foot off the accelerator. This slows you down at a manageable speed and gives you and other drivers time to either switch lanes or stop. A=Awarness, Being aware of your surroundings is crucial, noticing signs, lights, and drivers allows you to assess the situation and react accordingly. Driving aimlessly with little attention towards the road will undoubtedly lead to a scare, and hopefully not a life. N=Noise, other drivers might not be following the A-step, so while it may seem rude, do not be afraid to utilize your horn and bring their awareness back to the road. D=Distance, drunk drivers, and reckless road ragers are problems you want to avoid, and the only way to do that is by distancing yourself from that situation. Driving past them at a safe distance allows you to feel comfortable knowing that the danger is now behind you.

In conclusion, driver’s ed is essential for any person who wants to pursue travel via the road. While my own experience will always haunt me, it taught me valuable lessons on the way. I hope it teaches anyone who reads this essay to always watch your speed, be aware, not be afraid to make noise, and distance yourself from your problems. My only intent is for everyone on the road to make it safely home. Stay safe.