Educating New Drivers

Safe driving can be achieved with practice and more experience.  Driver’s Education classes are the first defense in reducing the number of fatalities as a result of driving.  My Driver’s Education experience was short and did not allow me the opportunity to gain experience behind the wheel.  I took the book work portion of the class over the course of one month after school.  Then I drove for approximately six hours over three days with an instructor.  During these three days, I made a lot of mistakes as a new driver.  I know I made mistakes because at one point my instructor raised his voice at me because I scared him.  I did not feel that I had adequate time to improve my driving before I graduated from the class to then drive on my own with a permit.

To improve driver’s safety, I submit that we begin with Driver’s Education Courses.  I feel the time spent on the book work portion was sufficient.   However, I needed to practice my driving skills for much longer than the class required.  New drivers should be required to drive more hours with an instructor.  There should be a list of driving safety items the student must pass before the driving portion of the education requirement is complete.  I understand that all new drivers may not need as much practice as I needed.  Therefore, there should be a minimum amount of required time in addition to the required safety items.  Students who need the additional practice to meet the safety requirements would then have the extra time to practice with an educated instructor.   I feel the extra time behind the wheel of a car could be a major step in reducing the number of deaths each year because it gives time for better understanding of how to operate a car safely.

Additionally, insurance for a new driver is very expensive.  As stated above, I feel the more practice a person can complete, the safer the driving experience.  Some health insurance companies offer discounts to individuals who will complete steps to better their health.  For example, if a tobacco user will agree to take steps to stop their tobacco use, the insurance company will offer a discount on the insurance premium.  I would like to propose that automobile insurance companies establish a similar program.  Offer drivers an opportunity to take additional driver’s safety classes to improve their driving skills.  At the passed completion of the class, offer drivers a reduction in their insurance premiums.  Reward drivers for taking a step to improve their everyday driving skills.  I feel that my parents would have enrolled me in a class to improve my driving skills to offset the insurance cost if a class would have been available.  This program could be available to parents too.  Offer classes to parents of new drivers to give them the tools they need to help instruct their child as a new driver on the road.  My parents, especially my mom, were nervous when I first began driving.  Her nervousness did not help make me more comfortable behind the wheel.  Parents need to be able to help guide their new driver so everyone in the car is calm. A program to reduce insurance premiums in response to taking additional driver safety classes would be a win win for the driver and the insurance company if the result is less accidents and less deaths. 

Every athlete knows that practice makes perfect.  As a society we should use this same belief with driving.  Although the death statistics are alarming, I do not feel that exposing young drivers to them will make a huge difference in their driving habits.  Young people are exposed to death in both video games and movies on a daily basis.  Many of these show death in a glorified, unrealistic manner, and many video games give the player multiple lives.  Multiple times to die but be given a new life to die again.  I do not feel that death has the same weight with younger people as it does with older, more mature individuals.  The death statistics should be used in advertisements to parents as a reason to have their child take additional courses in driver’s safety for an insurance premium reduction.  Most parents have lived during a time of war and will better understand the death comparison.  Allowing multiple opportunities for drivers to practice their skills will be the most significant improvement to driving.  Allowing new drivers to create good driving habits through practice will be more beneficial than trying to change bad habits after they are already formed.