As a child, I can remember looking forward to my sixteenth birthday. The thought of being able to drive with the windows down and music on full blast was a dream. You no longer need to ask your parents for a ride, so you were basically an adult, right?
 I learned quickly that with this newfound freedom comes a big responsibility. I am fortunate to have parents that preached the importance of responsible driving and constantly reminded me that when other people are in a vehicle with me, I am not only responsible for my life but for the lives of the passengers. Not only did I have parental guidance, I also had a great Driver’s Education experience. I gained time behind the wheel, which put me in real life driving situations, but I also gained knowledge about the rules of the road and most importantly why those rules were put in place. 
I could not imagine driving down the road with no sort of regulations. Cars could drive on any side of the road causing accidents left and right. No stop lights to allow traffic to intersect safely. It would be utter chaos to say the least. Americans knew that we could not drive under those circumstances, so traffic safety had to be established. Almost a century before cars were invented, the “keep to the right rule” was established for horses and buggies. The number of rules continued to increase when cars were invented, and the amount of vehicle traffic increased. Teaching these rules became essential for young drivers, thus Driver’s Education was founded. 
The first driver’s education course took place at State College High School in 1934 in Pennsylvania. The goal of this program is to teach essential driving skills and habits. Over time, driver’s education has become standardized, with 32 states requiring a passed course before granting the new driver their license. Mortality rates have significantly decreased over the years, and it is a direct correlation to the increase in the amount of people gaining an education on traffic safety and gaining experience driving before getting their license. 
  Learning the main causes of vehicle crashes is an important point driver’s education makes. In today’s world technology is a significant factor in our everyday lives. We hold all the knowledge we could ever want in the palm of our hands. While these devices can do so much good, it can also cause mass destruction. Distracted driving, such as using a cellphone, is one of the main causes of motor accidents. It is important that we put our electronic devices away while we drive whether the car rides for five minutes or five hours. The text can wait, it is not worth putting your life or others’ lives at stake. To prevent others from experiencing car wrecks caused by electronic devices, we can encourage our friends and family to stay off of them for the time spent in the car and instead interact with each other in face-to-face conversation. 
Another main cause of motor accidents is driving under the influence. Driver’s education instructors stress the importance of not driving while impaired due to alcohol. It is best for you and the others on the road to wait until you are sober or to ask someone who is sober to drive. I have been blessed to not have experienced a vehicle wreck myself but close family members around me have. When my stepfather was young his father and himself were hit head on by a drunk driver. Thankfully the only injuries my dad and grandfather received were a broken leg and a concussion but that is not always the case for others. Studies have found that 32 percent of motor vehicle accidents are due to driving under the influence and 31 percent of those accidents result in death. It is our responsibility to decrease this number, so it is no longer a statistic. Be a voice for the people around you, help your friends make responsible decisions when it comes to driving after consuming alcohol.
I find knowing the reason why a rule is put in place helps me better follow the rule. The Driver’s Education program does an exceptional job of this. The course’s assignments explained thoroughly the objective of the lesson and I truly left the course feeling like I learned more about traffic safety and felt better equipped to go and drive on my own. 
In conclusion, I encourage every new driver to take Driver’s education, whether it is required to receive a license in your state or not. The knowledge you gain is unmatched and learning the rules of the road and applying them to your driving habits can save you, your friends and family, and other drivers around you.