Driver
education, especially for teens, is of the upmost importance to
preserve lives of men, women, children, infants, and elders. I have
heard shocking stories from my friends and family about teenagers
behaving recklessly while operating motor vehicles. I have listened,
dumbstruck, to a story about an unlicensed fifteen-year-old boy my
father knew who stole his family’s car to go joyriding. I have
heard of teenagers speeding through a neighborhood in a friend’s
car, endangering the lives of everyone around them. These teenagers
may have been perfectly responsible otherwise, but the freedom of
driving went to their heads. Unfortunately for them, driving is when
responsibility is a necessity.

Teens
enrolled in drivers ed courses learn about the complexities and
potential dangers of operating a motor vehicle. They are taught how
to avoid crashes, drive safely in extreme conditions, and obey road
laws. These skills, and many others, learned in drivers ed
serve to lessen the number of driving accidents, saving countless
precious lives.

Sadly,
many teenagers do not take drivers ed very seriously. When in
drivers ed class, I saw many of my fellow students, myself
included at times, become bored of the class and drift into
daydreaming or distracting their friends. When students don’t take
drivers ed seriously, how can they treat driving with the
gravity it demands?

To
reduce the number of deaths related to driving, drivers ed
courses need to be respected. They should be treated as
indispensable, a privilege to attend, instead of a boring, useless
class. Perhaps review games, or other interesting material, could be
introduced to the curriculum, without detracting from the gravity of
the class. Another issue adding to unsafe driving is a lack of
professional practice. The state could provide driving coaches
trained in the best teaching methods for new drivers and require new
drivers to have so many hours of practice with a coach. Perhaps with
more interesting education and more professional practice, teens
could avoid reckless driving.


Only
once did I come seconds away from a serious accident. I was driving
home from a late babysitting job along an unfamiliar, twisting road.
I was so drowsy, I was half-asleep. I jerked to a stop at an
intersection, looked both ways, saw a car coming…and pulled out
anyway. I’m still not sure why. Maybe my brain never translated the
sight of a car into “Wait!” Whatever the reason, I accelerated
into a small sedan. The car swerved as I braked. We didn’t make
contact, thank the Lord, because as he pulled away, I saw wide-eyed
children staring at me from his backseat. I could have killed
innocent children by my careless, drowsy driving. Shakily, I drove
home, collapsed in my mother’s arms, and cried. Ever since, I have
taken measures to keep alert, present, and focused while I drive. I
have made mistakes, but by staying aware of my surroundings, noticing
what others are doing on the road, and never driving drowsy, I can
keep others safe.