A Dose of Reality Can Save Lives

Imagine
you are the parent of a twenty-one-year-old son who is in the
military as well as the parent of a 16-year-old daughter who has
recently received her driver’s license. A heavy hand knocks on the
door and, before approaching the door to open it, the worst scenario
runs through your mind…my son has been killed in the line of duty.
Opening the door, you are unexpectedly greeted by police officers who
regretfully inform you that your daughter has been in an automobile
accident. Eventually, the injuries sustained from this preventable
accident ultimately leads to her untimely passing.

This
scenario has rung true for so many families, but these sad
occurrences can be decreased with drivers ed. Prior to
receiving a license, all potential drivers should be required to
partake in a drivers ed course, preferably through a high
school, professional driving school, or through online instruction.

Aside
from informing drivers of the common knowledge rules of the road and
what not to do while behind the wheel, would-be motorists need to be
given the important and irreplaceable experience of humanizing
accidents from receiving in-person stories from family members who
have lost loved ones due to distracted driving or ignorance of the
prescribed rules which aid in safe driving. Although some may think
it to be extreme deterrence, I also truly believe that in addition to
experiencing the personal heartbreaking stories of others, new
drivers need to be shown photographs and, when available, video of
horrific accidents and their aftermath as part of drivers ed.

Driver
education, however, is not left solely to the professionals; parents
also play a crucial role in reducing car accident death rates by
participating in safe driving customs themselves and, hopefully,
their children will be more likely to match those same behaviors
through observant education.

Personally,
I have never been involved in an accident, but some of my classmates
have, and most of them were completely avoidable. The pure ignorance
of not turning headlights on in the dark, or prioritizing texting
people as opposed to watching the road are the issues that can, and
need to, be fixed (one of my classmates has had his license for eight
months and has been in three accidents already due to a combination
of speed and texting). As a new driver, I am conscious of my speed
(and if I am not, my parents will remind me since they have a phone
app to track where I am and how fast I am going), turn my phone
completely off while driving, and ask the same of my passengers.

To
help limit the amount of accidents and casualties caused by poor
driver decisions, it can be most definitely be minimized through
drivers ed, safe driving practices, and, although often
overlooked, passengers’ restraint from causing deadly distractions
for drivers. All in all, the idea that so many lives are
unnecessarily lost due to unsafe driving practices is the problem;
drivers ed can be the solution!