Name: Brooke Ontiveros
From: Austin, Texas
Votes: 0
I
sat inside cars that swerved on highways and smashed on brake pedals
since my time in Mimi, my booster seat. Behind the wheel was an
emotionally volatile father, who, in a rage, did not notice a red
light and sped through an intersection, narrowly missing a disabled
man crossing the street. I do not know how many fatal car accidents
our silver Rav4 missed, but I do know the example parents set is
substantial. Research suggests that parents who exhibit reckless
driving habits like speeding or texting while driving, produce
children who are equally irresponsible drivers.
I
am a part of this statistic.
My
father often drove in fits of fury. Driving angry increases your
chances of crashing by almost tenfold, something every driver learns
in their drivers education courses. But since I grew up with
emotional driving and consequently speeding as a norm, I ignored this
fact as an exaggeration.
I
crashed my car in March of my junior year.
I
was upset. I was sobbing and driving. I turned too fast, lost
control, and collided into a fence. I crashed because I thought
crying and driving was okay because if my dad did it, I could too.
Knowing
the power you hold while driving is essential to road safety. Drivers
education courses help reinforce the idea that reckless action can
result in serious injury. But online modules preaching statistics on
crashes due to speeding, emotional driving, or texting while driving
lose impact if parents, a child’s primary role model, contradicts
the information taught in those courses.
Studies
show young drivers who complete drivers ed courses are 75% less
likely to get a ticket, 24% less likely to be in a fatal or injury
accident, and 16% less likely to have an accident. These statistics
only apply when students concentrate on their education courses. In
my case, because the actions of my parents invalidated the lessons in
my drivers education courses, I did not focus on the information
provided, effectively learning little to nothing.
To
remedy this, I propose mandatory refresher drivers ed
courses to remind adults, specifically parents, the importance of
practicing safe driving habits. Parents exhibit reckless driving
behavior because they have forgotten the potential consequences of
their actions. If re-education courses were required, we could remind
parents to set good examples for the next generation of drivers.
When
operating a vehicle, we hold the lives of others in our hands. To not
require re-education courses for such a dangerous act goes against
common sense. We see compulsory re-education courses for doctors with
re-licensing to ensure the lives doctors are responsible for are
safe. Constructions workers that operate heavy machinery are required
to complete re-education courses on the same premise, to ensure
safety. In all cases where a person has the potential of injuring
life, re-education courses exist as a necessity – except for drivers.
The steps we need to take to make everyone a better driver and keep
our roads safe is through continued education.
