THE IMPORTANCE OF DRIVERS EDUCATION

There is a popular saying “Knowledge is power”. This saying is the thin line between failing and succeeding. Many things that are done in ignorance often have tremendous consequences and this also applies to driving. The more knowledge you have, the better you can recognize hazardous driving situations and avoid then, potentially saving yourself and others from accidents. Knowing and understanding the rules of the road give you an edge as a driver and helps prevent accidents on the road. The concept of driving education is to ensure that new drivers are trained to recognize risk and potential consequences in order to make reduced-risk choices. Simply put, driver’s education prepares those who are new to the road, access and recognize the dangers of the road and help them understand that their actions on the road as drivers can either save or put other road users in danger, helping them to make better decisions while driving.

Many teenagers often dwell on the freedom that comes with driving oneself and leave the parts of the driving itself and this has been the cause of majority of road accidents. Texting while driving, being under the influence while driving, going past the speed limit, running a red light. All these accidents would have been avoided if you just drop the phone and focus on the road, order a cab instead of driving that night, driving on a safe speed, waiting till a green light appears. The rules are quite simple and if we just adhere to them, a lot of consequences would have been avoided.

As my father would say “When driving, drive like you are the only sane person on the road”. This I’ve come to learn is called defensive driving. It is a set of safe responses to potential danger, including others driving on the road, bad roads, the weather and other factors. This concept helps drivers move on the road with genuine concern for their safety and that of other road users.

Where I am from, basic rules like the three-meter distance to be kept with a vehicle in front of you, waiting for pedestrians at a zebra crossing, are easily ignored. This is because most people decide to learn how to drive from experienced drivers and fail to learn the basics of driver’s education rather than going to driving school because it is perceived to be boring and a waste of money. Though most people get the driving part, they fail to understand the rules of the road. Potentially putting themselves and those on the road at risk. I recommend that the drivers classes should be more innovative as well as educative to make people look forward to the experience of driver’s education. I also suggest that during driving school, classes should be divided based on age groups as people tend to have more fun and learn better when they are with people of their age group.

I’ve had friends drive irresponsibly and almost lose their life because they failed to obey the simplest rules. A friend of mine lost his life during the holiday simply because he took his mother’s car out for a drive. I will make reference to a Karen kings bury novel “Forever”. In this novel, a teen driver drove drunk one night and got into an accident with a mother and her two children, leading to the death of one of her children and leaving the other in critical condition. How would you feel if it were your sibling that was killed by a drunk teenager or a driver that is high on drugs? My answer is as good as yours. It most definitely is not a good feeling. Now he was alive to tell the story, but he ended up ruining the life of a little girl who was a star singer with a very beautiful voice as the novel tells.

In conclusion, many lives would have not been destroyed today if drivers genuinely cared about the road and themselves. Accidents are inevitable and a percentage of drivers would not adhere to the rules. Sadly. But we must do our part to ensure that we are not part of that percentage. We should endeavor to drive on the road thinking about our lives and the lives of other road users. Simple steps that can be taken include, mandatory defensive driving courses for reissuance of expired driver’s license. Agencies like the FRSC that is the Federal Road Safety Corps, and the VIO, that is the Vehicle Inspection Organization, should ensure that a mandatory drivers education class is taken before issuance of a license. They should put the lives of road users ahead of their quest for money. Drivers should be taught extensively the dangers of being lackadaisical on the road. We can all do better, my self-included towards our safety on the road so as to avoid destroying our lives and the lives of other road users alike.

Thank you.