Drivers' Education: A New Perspective

   I will be the first to admit that I DREADED driving before attending Pitner Driving School (PDS). “Marissa,” pleaded my mom, “let’s go out for a drive.” I replied with an automatic “no.” Plain and simple, I just was not comfortable or confident in my abilities. After enrolling in driving school, I have deemed myself an “enforcer” of safe driving practices. Drivers ed is just the ticket for teaching new and inexperienced drivers the importance of driver safety and increasing our driving IQ. Metaphorically speaking, drivers’ education is like the race suit NASCAR drivers gear up in before taking on the track. Drivers’ Education is the gear needed to safely navigate the road. 

         One text or a lane change without signaling could negatively affect the lives of myself and others. Before Pitner Driving School, I was ignorant of this, however currently, I embrace safe practices, such as sharing the road, buckling up passengers, and getting enough sleep. After chatting with my PDS classmates, I realized that our collective experience was not different. In fact, it is the norm for student-drivers to become confident and thrilled about taking on the road. 

         According to the Center for Disease Control, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for American teens. I have no doubt that this could be prevented if more young people attended driving school. In previous years, some high schools offered drivers’ education classes to students for a low or no cost reinstating these programs will allow more students to be educated drivers. It would also enable high school students to experience the classroom instruction and actual street driving time with their instructor.

     Since some families cannot afford driving school tuition, legislated distracted driving prevention efforts to ban a drivers’ access to their phones are integral to prevention. In 2015, cell phone-use was the second largest cause of distracted driving. Most specifically, fourteen percent of distracted driving related deaths came from cell phone use. As a result, in July of 2019, Tennessee implemented the “Hands Free in Tennessee” law. The policy was created to alleviate technological driving distractions.

     Joking and jesting down the hallways, I hear fellow students bragging about their failure to obtain a good night’s sleep-as if it is a badge of honor. According to the National Sleep Foundation’s Drowsy Driving Report, “sixty percent of people are sleep deprived”. Combining drowsiness and inexperienced driving can be a fatal mistake. Additionally, the report found that young drivers are most at risk for crashes related to drowsiness. After attending PDS, I had a genuine conversation with my father. He revealed that with my mom and youngest sister in the car he drove off the road. While my dad was attempting to provide for our family by transporting my mom and my sister, that day could have drastically transformed my life.

    Although statistics associated with teenage driving fatalities are morbidly high; however, with ,pthe help of drivers’ education, safe driving practices, legislated prevention efforts, and a goodnight’s rest will shift the paradigm surrounding driving.  Drivers’ education will help young drivers to be on track for safe driving. It has made a significant impact on my life as I have worked to achieve this milestone rite of passage.