Delayed Gratification

As teens, our literal key to freedom is a car key. We yearn throughout our entire freshman and sophomore years in high school until our parents let us apply for “the pot of gold” that us Drivers ed. Once licensed we race out of that lot and rev our engines, we want the whole town to know we are ADULTS! Not so fast. I truly think the key to enhancing safety in this freedom is delaying the age we take drivers ed. I lived in Switzerland. We graduated high school and, only then, did most kids begin drivers ed. The time it takes to get a permit is extensive. So much so, that at even 23 years old, it isn’t uncommon to just begin the education. The students have worked through hormones, teen problems, their prefrontal cortex is almost fully developed. The reptilian brain has more experience in fight or flight. It is important to delay the gratification of freedom through driving, so that the adrenaline of teenage life doesn’t also take the driver’s seat.