The Test of Life

The Test of Life

Imagine taking a test at school that you never learned the material for. The chances are that you will fail unless you are slightly lucky that day. Similarly, driving is also a test for survival on the road. Without proper driver’s education, you might fail the test of life unless your luck gives you a chance. However, safety is not something that should be decided just on the basis of luck. Hence, driver’s education is crucial for everyone who is planning to be in the driver’s seat.

Driver’s education is a course that informs teens regarding the rules of driving and incorporates various activities and tests in the curriculum to ensure that they are well instilled in young minds before they go on the roads. Besides that, through video presentations and physical demonstrations, teens in this course are also prepared to detect various risk factors on the road such as pedestrians who might walk into the street or vehicles that might merge without using their flashers. It gives students a major lesson to not make any safety related mistakes themselves along with keeping in mind that it is extremely possible for others to make those mistakes and risk everyone’s lives. To give teens a firsthand experience with driving, this course brings theoretical knowledge from its curriculum into practicality through a one-week behind-the-wheel training where teens could implement what they learned in class and make mistakes to learn from them under professional supervision. By properly teaching teens to be responsible on the road, driver’s education prepares them to avoid accidents and reduce the amount of deaths that happen due to carelessness.

To reduce the amount of deaths while driving, before starting the car, it is imperative for drivers to check the condition of their cars to ensure fully functioning brakes and airbags, and make appropriate adjustments with their mirrors and car seats. They must also make sure all passengers are secure with their car seats or normal seat belts. While driving, they need to be attentive on the road 100 percent of the time and not get distracted on their phones or with their music. In order to help with this, they could put their phones on Do Not Disturb mode or switch them off completely, and compulsorily not tamper with the in-build car stereo systems. As important it is for drivers to not get distracted, it is equally as important for passengers to not create distractions during the drive to ensure everyone’s safety. Also, drivers must never be under the influence of alcohol while being in the driver’s seat. Furthermore, instead of relying on new technology of inbuilt blind-spot-cameras in cars, drivers must also turn and physically check their blind spots before maneuvering so that they do not fall victim of technological bugs like frozen cameras and get into dangerous car crashes. Drivers must always use their flashers to communicate their intentions with other drivers on the road. By taking such measures, not only will you not make any life-threatening mistakes while driving, but at the same time will not fall victim to others’ mistakes through the alert habits you would have developed overtime.

Fortunately, nobody I know including myself has ever been in a car accident before, however, I have a lot of family members and friends who drive recklessly sometimes and overspeed due to being late for college or their jobs. One of the main things they do is going around 15 miles over the speed limit and tailgating others. Although these habits are quite prominent among most adult drivers in America, as a teen driver myself, I can promise myself to never go above the speed limit, or tailgate others, and keep in mind little things like stopping right behind the stop sign and not a foot or two ahead of it to ensure the safety of myself and others on the road. When in the passenger’s seat, I often get sleepy from long empty repetitive roads. To ensure that I do not fall asleep while driving myself, I can always pack something to chew on like gum, and if that does not help, pull over to the curb and take a small nap. Being alert while driving, avoiding distractions and keeping all safety rules in mind, can allow me to be a better and safer driver as well as reduce the risk of deadly accidents on roads at least from my side.

Just like how passing tests in school is important, it is equivalently as important, if not more, to pass the test of life while in the driver’s seat.