Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Should teenagers be driving?
A lot of parents argue as to whether or not 16 is a good age to let adolescents start driving. A lot studies show that teenagers lack proper judgment and as a result engage in risk taking behaviors. It is bad enough that adolescents think they are right no matter what because there are not yet mature. Driving is a skill that can easily be acquired by a teen but it also has a lot of dangers that come with it and require good judgment to be safe. I remember in high school what I looked forward to most was getting my driver’s license because it was a sign of independence. I also thought for some reason that I would be able to get away from my parents faster and for a longer time because they would start seeing me as more of an adult now. Man was I wrong. I remember making some of the dumbest decisions while I was driving. I would speed for no reason, I would text and talk on the phone, drive with my legs, I was very aggressive and impatient, and basically made dumb decisions. There were so many times when I almost got in accidents but I never thought any of it could have been my fault. I feel that for the safety of others and the adolescents themselves the driving age should be increased to an age where adolescents are capable of better judgment. I feel that at 15 and 16 teens should still be watching and learning from a responsible driver and drive along with a responsible driver until maybe 18 years of age. I would have hated that rule when I was 16 but I am myself am guilty of wreck less behavior while driving and I realize now that it would benefit others to have teens off the street. It is not their fault that they lack good as good judgment at that age and a lot can be to prevent all the teen deaths and accidents that occur because of teen drivers.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I agree with that.. but i also think if they were to raise the driving age you would still have problems with raising it to 18. New drivers speed because they are not use to being behind the wheel so its a sense of freedom... i think you would find that at any age with a new driver honestly. and I think anyone in this generation is guilty of texting and drving. i heard on the news the other day they banned it in maryland..but idk how much thats really going to be enforced lol.
ReplyDeleteI think this depends on the child because when I was 16 and I got my licenses I was responsible and I wouldn’t really do crazy shit. I think you learn with experience. Teenagers usually want to show to friends and drive fast and do dumb shit like race on the streets but it depends on the person and how responsible they are and their knowledge on what could occur in certain situations. Raising the age I think wouldn’t really help because I don’t think you want your parents riving you around until you get to college. The younger you drive the more experience you gain.
ReplyDeleteI dont think they driving age is really the problem. I dont think that people put enough emphasis on responsible driving. I also dont think that the test is hard enough for having control over such a huge machine. I dont believe there should be an age limit on driving. I do believe however that the test should be made more challenging.
ReplyDeletePeronally i agree with Heather on this issue. Driving age i beleive should depend on the tennager. Just because the teenager is 16 does not mean he or she is thinking like a teenager. Age does not say anything about the maturity or reponableness of a teenager. I beleive that a parent should be the determiner of wheater or not their child should drive at the age of 16. I beleive that a parent or caregiver would be a good determiner. SO i think changing the age to an older limit will not neccessairly be fair to other teenages who are ready to drive.
ReplyDeleteI agree that younger drivers has the ablity to be in more accident then older people. I say this because younger drivers are not used to being behind the wheel and sometimes they like to show off that they can drive but i also think that there should be more programs out there to help young drives know the safety about driving and how dangerous it can be
ReplyDeleteI think the age should be raised. Most teenagers think they're invincible (I know I did) and that's just part of being young. It's that feeling of invincibility that lead many teens to drive recklessly. I can see this today, when I'm around some of the teens in my family.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if that feeling of invincibility really fades much by the age of 18, but I do think 15 or 16 is too young to be driving. I say this in retrospect, because I'm sure I would have disagreed at 16.
A longer training period or provisional license is a possible solution. More time behind the wheel but under the supervision of a responsible adult would allow teens to be better acquainted with the skill of driving while removing the opportunity to be reckless.
I was in a pretty bad car accident the first week I had my license. I was lucky to come out of it without a scratch and without killing anyone. I am definitely in the “raising the driving age” camp, simply because 16 year olds think they know everything, but, in reality, they are still just kids. The “teenager-me” would be really pissed off at the “now-me” for thinking that, but it’s simply something you learn when you get older. Cars are dangerous tools and can kill innocent people if the person driving behind the wheel is not responsible (drunk driving), and although age isn’t a meter for how responsible someone is, we know that the human brain doesn’t fully develop until well after the teenage years.
ReplyDelete