Safety First

Veronica Nguyen

11/17/20

Safety First

Driver’s education is essential before getting behind the wheel. The roads, like every common area, have rules to follow. Driver’s education provides knowledge on street signs, speed limits, and other rules when driving. Driver’s education is not only to encourage one to receive their license, but also to reduce the chance of being involved in an accident. According to drivesmartgeorgia.com, “Driver education is associated with a lower incidence of both crashes and convictions – reducing crashes by 4.3% and convictions by nearly 40%.” For those who want to drive, they should choose to complete driver’s education because the percentage of crashes due to not doing so will be lowered.

There are other steps for people who plan on driving soon could take along with driver’s education. There are a ton of videos online one could watch and lessons one could take from a driver’s instructor. Videos offer a visual presentation of what being behind the wheel would be like along with providing the do’s and don’ts for driving situations. Getting a driver’s instructor could advance one’s driving skills or help someone gain experience if they have not received any. I have family members who got into car accidents, but like any other, there was a different cause for each accident. My dad has a record of accidents, but the recent one, which happened last year, was due to his irresponsible driving. He was changing lanes too fast and tried to squeeze in at the wrong time so it was definitely a memory that has stuck with me, but not a good one. It is nobody’s wish to want to be involved in a collision, so being careful on the road is necessary and so is sharing the road with others rather than being an aggressive driver.

I, myself, am a beginner when it comes to driving and I know I have more things to learn along the way. According to drivesmartgeorgia.com, “Teens who complete driver education programs not only scored higher on the driving exam, they also demonstrated greater long-term knowledge over their peers who did not take drivers ed.” I completed driver’s education before I got the chance to be behind the wheel and I did not get to experience driving until three months after practice. I always try to keep in mind that one should be considerate of others and think of what someone would do in that situation. If someone is too close to one’s vehicle or if someone is not going within the speed limit, being careful is always key. One last way I could be safe while driving is not to have any distractions, such as using my phone. In Taylor Covington’s article, “Distracted Driving Statistics, Research, and Facts,” she states: “Drivers who text while operating a vehicle are 23 times more likely to become involved in a car accident” (NYTimes) Therefore, I should avoid using my phone while driving to prevent being in a car accident.