In just three summers my oldest will be old enough to get behind the wheel and start practicing for his learner’s permit. I am both excited and anxious about this milestone. I’m excited because this means less driving for me. But I’m nervous because I don’t know if he is responsible or mature enough to drive. With car accidents as the number one cause of death among teens in the United States, I have good reason to worry. Driving requires maturity, responsibility, and quick thinking. I’m not sure most 15 or 16 year-olds have these qualities.
This is part of a sponsored collaboration with Latina Mom Bloggers and State Farm. However, all opinions expressed are my own.
As my son approached age twelve, we began the conversation about what being a young man meant. We talked mostly about what it means to be a gentleman and respectful of girls and their parents.
But as he gets closer to driving age, the conversation is shifting now to him showing us he is responsible and trustworthy. He’s already asking about cars and what he wants to drive when he gets his license. Before we can take him to get his driver’s license, we need to see that he knows how to make smart decisio
ns before he gets behind the wheel.
Thankfully, I’m not alone in this journey. In 2012, State Farm launched an initiative called Celebrate My Drive® . It reinforces safe driving habits in teens like remembering to think 2N2™ whenever they drive – keeping 2 eyes on the road and 2 hands on the wheel. Celebrate My Drive® was created to share the belief that safe driving is a lifelong commitment from the start. Since last year, thousands of students, family, friends and high school staff members have joined the party.
What do most parents think on the issue of safe driving? According to a survey conducted by StateFarm, there is an alarming gap between parents’ and teens’ views on how often teens follow licensing laws. Many parents of teen drivers believe teens are obeying graduated driver licensing (GDL) laws. What parents think, however, and what teens report actually doing don’t match up.
When asked:
- how often do teens follow or will follow texting and driving laws – 72% of teens answered they will almost always follow versus 82% of parents that think that teens will follow the law.
- whether teens’ parents monitored night time driving laws,-32% of teens felt their parents monitored night time driving laws versus 66% of parents that felt they monitored the law.
- whether teens follow passenger restrictions laws (# of passengers in vehicle)-70 % of parents believe their teen almost always obeys versus 43% of teens that they follow restrictions.
How will you prepare your teen for safe driving on the road?
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