A
Safe drive for the Future

By
Chanelle McKenzie

A
road can be compared to someone’s life; a road has its twists and
turns , dead ends and turnarounds which is much similar to a life.
There are many ideas and laws that are created to ensure a safe
driving experience for those who are willing to follow these laws.
But yet there are also some drivers who fail to comply with these
laws. Reckless driving is the number one cause of teenage death
throughout America. There are statistics stating that teenagers aged
from 15 to 20 without drivers ed are responsible for 91% of
driver crashes and for the teenagers who took a drivers ed
suffered fewer car accidents. Drivers ed demonstrates an
alternative way to allow teenagers to gain knowledge of driving and
can reduce the risk of fatal teenage car crashes.

Teenagers
need to be taught that driving is a task that is both complex and
demanding. Drivers ed provides multiple benefits for teenagers
who partake in it. For instance, drivers ed can get teenage
students to gain driving experience by taking driving classes so that
they can practice driving on the road while gaining a clear
understanding of the rules and safety measures ahead of time, rather
than learning them as they go. Drivers ed can also give the
students a sense of responsibility because they learn and come to
understand the rules and regulations of the road, which will help
them understand the responsibility of a driver. And most importantly,
drivers ed can help students gain confidence while driving
because when a driver has self-confidence it will reduce the amount
of car accidents while also boosting the driving skills of the
driver. Confidence is the most important asset of driving because
without self-confidence the risk of car accidents can increase.

As
a former drivers ed student I can concur that drivers ed
has been a benefit to me because without taking drivers ed
classes I don’t believe that I would be as confident as I am today
when driving. When I was taking the drivers ed classes I
learned how to be a defensive driver, where I learned how to improve
my driving skills by by anticipating serious situations and making
safe well-thought out decisions. These were decisions that were based
on road and environmental conditions present when driving. I was also
taught the rules and regulations of the road. During my driving
classes my drivers instructor taught me about parallel parking,
three-point turns and about the three deadly D’s of driving that
can kill any driver while on the road.

• Distraction

• Drinking
  

• Drowsiness

Thanks
to my driver instructor who taught me these three deadly D’s I can
be more aware and conscious of taking care of myself before driving
because if I am not properly capable to drive then it can affect
those around me and my safety as well. My drivers ed classes
taught me to stay focused, assertive and alert while driving on the
road because you should not assume other drivers are going to follow
the rules of the road. I also learned that there are aggressive
drivers on the road that can prove to be hazardous for the safety of
defensive drivers. You can’t control the actions of other drivers so
you must be alert while on the road. You must have good defensive
driving skills so that you can avoid the dangers caused by other
drivers’ bad driving. Drivers ed was a huge help to me in
fully understanding the rules of the road and since drivers ed
affected me and my driving skills It could deeply influence other
teenagers who lack decent driving skills as well.

To
conclude drivers ed can be beneficial for teenage students who
are learning to drive. Teenagers who have not taken drivers ed
classes are at a greater risk of fatal accident due to a lack of
experience. Drivers ed classes can provide teenagers a way to
learn to keep themselves safe when driving which can increase the
amount of teenager’s lives being saved.