The Necessity of Driver’s Education

According to the United States Department of Transportation, 33,654 fatal crashes occurred in 2018, notwithstanding the number of individuals that died as a result of these accidents. Unfortunately, this jarring statistic is only increasing as the driving population grows each year: setting a destructive precedent for future motorists who may be the instigators or victims of collisions. To abate similar incidents of vehicular casualties, enforcing driver’s education to the extent of highlighting the behaviors that statistically cause accidents is exigent considering the predominance of costly, technological distractions.
The pinnacle of success is only achievable on the foundation of education and if substantial changes are to be made in regards to the deaths associated with driving, then instruction must be promoted beyond its current extent. Specifically, greater emphasis must be placed on educating new drivers on the negative effect that distractions pose on effectively manipulating a vehicle, which I find to be equally reflected in the current curriculum. For reference, distracted driving is the most common cause of accidents on the road and as a result, is deserving of much focus when it comes to driver’s education. Nevertheless, I find this to be moderate in the current system which adequately stresses how dangerous the act can be in regards to the use of technological devices: after all, every driver must take into account that they are (on average) maneuvering a 1.4 ton or 2,871-pound assembly of high strength steel on a narrow band of road while moving at speeds exceeding 55 miles per hour. Simply put, a car is first and foremost a dangerous implement for facilitating travel and should be recognized as such. Therefore, even the slightest distraction could cause an immense catastrophe on the road which coincides with the increasing portability of technology in the form of phones. It should be noted that technology in it of itself is a neutral factor in accidents but averts from this when they are used for their infotainment capabilities such as music and video play. Coincidentally, driver’s education has placed more onus on driving behavior that is dependent on the aforementioned which has helped to decrease the rate of accidents through distracted driving campaigns to raise public awareness of the issue. Even more effective are the state laws that have been implemented to stop distracted driving as is the case in Nevada where handheld devices are banned while driving and texting is illegal. As a result, this presents a strong deterrent against distracted driving by placing legal consequences for such behavior which has seen long-term reductions in hand-held phone conversations according to the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM).
In addition, driver’s education promotes situational awareness in accordance with the elimination of distractions which helps young drivers maintain coherence in regards to their environment while cementing in old drivers the ability to avoid obstructions in their path. This is coupled with the mechanical knowledge that is imparted in drivers education which applies not only to the proper handling of a car on the road (i.e. turn signals and parking) but to the self-control needed to properly react to changes that occur on said road (i.e. hand position on the wheel and pressure on the pedals). However, the ability to successfully control a vehicle would be redundant without proper insight into the rules of the road: driver’s education fills this aperture by meticulously teaching young students the variety in lane lines and the importance of road signs which is critical in accident prevention. On the other hand, driver’s education enforces established rules and informs older, more experienced drivers of the new regulations that they may not know or be aware of. This culminates in the confidence that drivers have at the wheel, and imparts a certain assurance that other motorists will adhere to the rules of the road which is essential if general safety is to be maintained. In a similar effect, driver’s education has been instrumental in decreasing the rates of drunk driving, especially among younger drivers by illustrating the detriments of such behavior which is due to the increase in abstinence among drivers. Driver's education has bolstered this global trend by decreasing the popularity of drinking as a social advantage which has the benefit of reducing instances of drunk driving and the potential deaths that can arise as a result.
Due to this and many other points which illustrate the effect of driver’s education on the preservation of life on the road, driver’s education is truly essential to the continuation of the aforementioned.