Drivers Ed’s Role in Reducing Deaths

Aidan Peterson

Drivers Ed’s Role in Reducing Deaths

Many teens feel invincible when they are driving, as if nothing bad could ever happen to them behind the wheel. All of us know this is untrue, and a growing number have experienced this firsthand. Late last year, one of my fellow show choir members got in an accident involving a train, leaving her seriously injured. Just a few weeks ago, another fellow student got into an accident, killing him and injuring his friend. Earlier this spring, a teenager from a neighboring town unbuckled his seatbelt to reach down for something, drove head on into a truck, and died. These tragic incidents that have rocked our community helped me realize the importance of quality drivers ed to combat the destructiveness of distracted driving.

In order to reduce the number of deaths due to driving, especially among new drivers, several steps must be taken. In the classroom, more time should be spent with speakers that have experienced life-changing crashes and first responders that dealt with nasty accidents. During my time in drivers ed, we had two guest speakers, one of which was a man who was paralyzed as a teen in an accident, and one who was a police officer. Out of everything in that class, nothing impacted me more than those two speakers and what they said. The classroom activities used to memorize street signs or the slide shows we created were helpful, but did little in comparison to the speakers. Even my insurance agent felt the need to cite several real world examples of accidents that affected him personally. These lessons with their personal experiences and powerful videos can drive the idea of safe driving into students’ heads. Monetary incentives from insurance companies and safety features on phones are two practical methods to reduce distracted driving, but ultimately it comes down to personal responsibility and the choice of the driver.

Thankfully, I have not been in an accident, but I have been in cars with friends who drive irresponsibly. For example, as a passenger I have had to remind friends to stop texting and driving. Many of these friends drive distracted, and quite a few have had minor accidents. Fortunately, none of my close friends have suffered major injuries, but if they continue to go down the dangerous road of distracted driving, I fear it is only a matter of time before that happens. As a safe driver, I can continue to be a positive influence on these friends when I drive. Though I almost never look at my phone while driving, a good habit would be to put my phone in “do not disturb” mode to reduce the temptation. Every life is precious, and with teenage driving deaths on the rise, it is my hope that constant, gentle reminders to those around me will prevent the heartbreaking consequences of distracted driving. Driving safely is a responsibility for everyone on the road, and improving drivers ed will go a long way to facing this deadly serious problem head on.