Learning Is Education

Belle Tran

DmvEdu.org

Driver Education Initiative

04 March, 2021

Learning Is Education

I did not listen to the warning. I did not care for the warning; I thought I was “immortal.” With the car headlights shaking on the ground, the other party’s car dented and suffering from a popped tire, bruises the size of a hand forming all over my body, I was proven wrong: icy roads should be avoided. The rush of an accident would not happen to me screamed in my head when I left my house. This exact thought, everyone had at least once. “Nothing will happen. I have trust in myself. I got my license; that shows my competence on the road,” one may think and I did, too. In the end, something did happen: damaged property, bruises all over, a spike in insurance and weeks of calling one person after another about the claim. When I got home that day, all that matters was my body was intact. I am alive.

From that day, the realization of the importance of life and safe driving stuck with me. During the few weeks without my car (as it was in the body shop), my father would drive me to and from school. He has a bad habit of sightseeing whenever he drives. This habit developed around a year ago during the time I started to drive on my own. His sightseeing has caused us to almost be in accidents numerous times. He had slammed on his break due to not seeing the lights turn red too many times to count on my hands. The most I have counted five times in the span of a few minutes. He has also crashed into people for not paying attention to the road more than once with my mother in the car instead of me. Now, whenever I am in the same car as him, I would actively watch the road with him as if I am the driver. Anxiety sits at the bottom of my gut, ready for an impact at any given moment. It is not a fun experience, and I still do it till this day.

The accident caused by ice and my poor judgement; and my fear of my father’s driving integrates itself into driver education. Being educated on the dangers of the road and how to prevent accidents and worse–death gives the driver an idea of what to look out for. Knowing how to drive safety is a great bonus. Even so, with driver’s education, it is not guaranteed fool-proof. I took driver’s education and still got into an accident, but the education I received allowed me to know what to do in the situation (call for road assistance, call 911, get insurance information of the other party, etcetera). To further prove this point, in a longitudinal study with 150,000 teen drivers, findings showed “driver’s education significantly reduces crashes and traffic violation among new drivers” (University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL)). If education reduces crashes, it can also reduce the amount of deaths. Those who did not complete driver’s education are 75 percent more likely to get a ticket and 24 percent more likely to be in an accident (fatal or injury) (UNL). As teen crashes and fatality rates are highest at age 16-18 (UNL), it is best to provide teens driver’s education. The information learnt will guide teens into their adulthood, promoting safe driving.

Unable to afford driver’s education? That is perfectly fine. I was privileged to be able to afford my education, but for those who cannot, there are plenty of guides. Yes, it does not beat real life experience in driver’s education, but practicing with a parent’s car or a trusted person’s car along with following the guides gives almost the same experience. In the American Automobile Association (AAA) pamphlet, Get There! Your Guide to Traffic Safety, provides common thoughts drivers have on their “immortality” and how it can be harmful. Furthermore, it provides tips on how to prevent these thoughts and how to be careful when driving (pp. 2-28).

Driving safer to the key to avoiding accidents. These tips will help anyone on the road–whether it is review or completely new information. It is also a reminder for me to be a better driver. It keeps the other party and myself safe; knowing how to drive safely is like wearing a mask. It is to prevent me from sharing my germs to other people. The top four tips I can give is: focus on driving (no multitasking or sightseeing, all focus should be on driving), drive “defensively” (be cautious of surroundings), make a safe driving plan (avoid hurrying, speeding due to lack of time, plan ahead) and practice safety (avoid distractions, driving when tried and moving cargo) (Nationwide). In bad weather, it is best to take these tips to the extreme. There is no rush; others will be understanding. Driving more slowly than usual or even under the mile limit is okay. That is from personal experience. No one will honk or scream; even though the constant worry was always in the back of my mind.

Driving is a privilege. The best way to take advantage of this privilege is to drive safely to avoid accidents (fatal or injury). Driver’s education is important; it reduces accidents and provides information to teens going into adulthood. Those who are unable to afford driver’s education can learn, too. It takes using different resources available. With education, one can drive safer, along with great tips. Education does not guarantee no accidents or deaths, but it promotes safer driving for everyone on the road.

References

“Driving Safety Tips Every Driver Should Know.” Driving Safety Tips – Nationwide, Nationwide, www.nationwide.com/lc/resources/auto-insurance/articles/driving-safety-tips. Accessed 4 Mar. 2021.

The Auto Club Group and Minnesota Safety Council. Get There! Your Guide to Traffic Safety. American Automobile Association, The Auto Club Group and Minnesota Safety Council, 2010, member.acg.aaa.com/content/dam/acg/pdfs/Get-There-Your-Guide-to-Traffic-Safety.pdf.

University of Nebraska-Lincoln. “Study: Driver’s Ed Significantly Reduces Teen Crashes, Tickets.” Study: Driver’s Ed Significantly Reduces Teen Crashes, Tickets | News Releases | University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 13 Aug. 2015, newsroom.unl.edu/releases/2015/08/13/Study:+Driver%27s+ed+significantly+reduces+teen+crashes,+tickets#:%7E:text=%22Teens%20taking%20driver%20education%20are,these%20reductions%20are%20especially%20meaningful.