Teen driver safety is more than just a personal problem or familial debate because driving is not an individual task. The way that teens drive impacts the driver, its passengers and all other drivers on the road meaning that it is an essential topic to discuss, understand, and pursue improvement within. As I’ve seen through my own personal experience, driver education gives all prospective drivers the opportunity to become well-rounded drivers by teaching them what that truly means. Driver education taught me countless things that I never would’ve known otherwise. And although some of the lessons seemed irrelevant or unimportant I can confidently say that there was a time where I used each and every one.
After a few years of driving I can look back and see the different distractions and impediments that I have faced as well as how they have impacted me. A few of these that stand out to me include social media and peer pressure.
Social media and popular television tends to promote reckless driving, disguising it as a good time and just another thrill that we should partake in because after all, we’re only young once. The understanding that reckless driving is just a thrill is something that transcends age and a perception that follows teens into adulthood. To limit this and control the effect that social media has, young drivers can choose not to interact with these types of posts or comments or cut out social media altogether in an effort to protect their minds and help them be better drivers and people overall.
A teen myself, I have seen firsthand the effect that my peers have had on the way that I drive. This peer pressure can come in any shape and size including shameful posts on social media about the kind of car someone drives, spoken encouragement to drive faster, and more. A way to overcome this is to be mindful of who we surround ourselves with so that our inner circle encourages us to drive safely rather than recklessly.
When I was a new driver I was laser focused on the road and on being the absolute best driver I could be, mainly out of fear of crashing or damaging my car. However, as I became more and more experienced and my confidence as a driver grew, the dedication I had to not becoming distracted slowly faded away and I began taking liberties. It began with small things like occasionally checking a text at a stoplight or skipping a song, to these habits becoming more and more frequent. It got to a point where I would scroll instagram at stoplights or type out important emails while going 55 mph. I didn’t notice what I was doing and there are times where I still don’t. However there was a moment that served as a wake-up call for me. My younger sister learned how to drive this year. I’ve driven her around for years and she’s seen the way that I drive and the habits that I’ve adopted. One day as I sat in the passenger seat of the car while she drove I began noticing her casually picking up her phone and checking a text or skipping a song, just like I used to. I instantly corrected her and insisted on the danger of her actions explaining how my life and safety rested in her hands. To this she calmly responded with the words, “you always do it so why can’t I?” I was shocked. She was right and I knew it. I realized that I had become part of a cycle which normalized distracted driving and even glorified it as a necessary skill for drivers to have. I don’t want to be that kind of sister, friend, or someday mother. I see now that changes have to be made. I realize that I need to be better than that. That I can’t allow the privileges that I have to own a car, a phone, and a drivers license to jeopardize the safety of those in the car with me and those outside of it.
With that I believe that having an impact on the way that people drive is something that anyone can do. It can be as simple as setting a good example for younger siblings or more outward like promoting safe driving on social media. For schools and communities I believe the best thing they can do is educate. Right now, teens’ job in the world is to learn and to be students. Therefore I believe that time for this can be taken from our busy school days. It must be a priority to teach students about how to be safe drivers so that not a single person who gets their license knows what they should do with the privilege that they have been given.