Should the Age for Getting a License be Higher Than 16?

1349 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Raising the driving age argument

Throughout the past decade, the rate of teenage automobile crashes has risen. Teens have become more and more careless with their driving over the years. It may be the teens lack of experience or that they are just too young to have the responsibility of driving a car. As the years have gone by, teens have become more distracted while driving. With their cell phones buzzing uncontrollably, the music blaring, and their friends yelling in the back seat; teens are having a hard time focusing on the other drivers around them. Teenagers have a very hard time “multitasking” while driving, posing more of a hazard when on the roads (Zernike). Driving comes with much responsibility and maturity, two things an average teenager lacks. Why are teens more likely to be in a car accident than someone who has been driving for years? Raising the driving age will put teenagers and others on the road out of the risk of getting in an accident. With the pros and cons, teens are inexperienced, putting those around them at risk, and are distracted very easily. The use of appeal to logos and pathos explains the pros and cons of teens and driving.

One claim explaining why the age limit to get a driver’s license should be higher than sixteen is teenagers are very inexperienced when first beginning to drive. Driving comes with much experience, something a sixteen year old driver does not have. According to Williams, the driving experience of a teenager, has been known to being a “major factor” impacting automobile crashes. Although, the driving age of teenagers may only seem to concern a small amount of the world’s population, it does pertain to the safety of everyone around the teenage driver. Using appeal to logos, Williams’ evidence proves a sixteen ye...

... middle of paper ...

...ng Age a Fine Idea?.” McClatchy-Tribune Business News. 10 Sep. 2008: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.

ProQuest Staff. “At Issue: Teens and Driving.” ProQuest LLC. 2014: n.pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 06 Mar. 2014.

Ricks, Dethia. “Teen Text Danger: Deaths and Injuries Among Young Drivers Rising.” Newsday. 09 May. 2013: A.8. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 08 Mar. 2014.

Roan, Shari. “Driving Laws May Be Shifting the Fatalities to Older Teens.” Los Angeles Times. 14 Sep. 2011: A.1. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 08 Mar. 2014.

Williams, Alan F. “Licensing Age and Teenage Driver Crashes: A Review of the Evidence.” Chronicle For Driver Education Professionals. 56.1 (2008): 15. Mas Ultra-School Editions. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.

Zernike, Kate. “Unsafe Behind the Wheel?” New York Times Upfront. 08 Oct. 2012: 6-7. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 08 Mar. 2014.

Show More
Related

  • Texting While Driving in Illinois

    898 Words  | 2 Pages

    Jackson, Nancy Mann. ʺCell Phones and Texting Endanger Teen Drivers.ʺ Teen Driving. Ed. Michele Siuda Jacques. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At Issue. Rpt. from ʺDn't txt n drv: Why You Should Disconnect While Driving.ʺ Current Health Teens (Mar. 2011). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 14 Nov. 2013.

    Read More

  • Teenage Drivers Be Very Afraid: Article Analysis

    638 Words  | 2 Pages

    In this article written by the author Bruce Feiler, titled “Teenage Drivers? Be Very Afraid”, he talks about how he suggest the parents to stop being helicopter parents and allow their children to be independent. However, other professionals’ suggestions are the opposite when teenagers start to drive. As a result of the teenagers’ immaturity, the parents are told to be more involved because their child’s life may be in danger. As stated in the article by Nichole Moris “the most dangerous two years of your life are between 16 and 17, and the reason for that is driving.” There are various factors that play huge roles through this phrase of the teenagers’ life: other passengers, cellphones, and parents. In 2013, under a million teenage drivers were involved in police-reported crashes, according to AAA. The accidents could have been more but many teenage accidents go unreported. As a result, one of their recommendations to the parents is to not allow their children to drive with other passengers: other passengers can big a huge distraction and could increase the rate of crashes by 44 percent. That risk doubles with a second passenger and quadruples with three or more. Furthermore, as technology has taken over teenagers’ lives, the parents should suggest to those teenagers who insists on using the phones that the only safe place for it to be: in a dock, at eye level, on the dashboard. The worst place is the cup holder, the driver’s lap, and the passenger’s seat. Next, professionals also suggest that the parents implement their own rule and even continue the ones like the graduated driver’s licenses regulations. This regulation includes restrictions like not allowing their children to drive between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. To

    Read More

  • Teenage Drunk Driving

    1504 Words  | 4 Pages

    Through out the years teenagers have been driving without a license. In this century teenagers are decreasing to get their license (Teens getting their driver license. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2013, from ). Teenagers tend to think that just because they know how to pump gas press the brakes and rea...

    Read More

  • Drivers Beware

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    Irvine; Gregory.... ... middle of paper ... ... Works Cited CDC - Injury - Teen Drivers: Fact Sheet." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    Read More

  • Increase Driving Age in Arizona to Save Lives

    797 Words  | 2 Pages

    Maturity and rationalization is not yet achieved or experienced by teenagers. In the era of technology there are several distractions for drivers of any age to maneuver. Parents can play an educational role by enrolling their teen into a driver’s educational program. Some states require students to complete a comprehensive graduated drivers licensing (GDL) program prior to receiving their license. The brain function is still developing in teenagers and may impede the quick thinking process necessary to become a responsible driver. For the safety and welfare of teenagers the age requirement in Arizona for a driver’s license should be increased from 16 to 18 years of age.

    Read More

  • Increasing the Minimum Driving Age

    879 Words  | 2 Pages

    Roan, Shari. "Driving Laws May Be Shifting the Fatalities to Older Teens." Los Angeles Times. 14 Sep 2011: A.1. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 06 Feb 2012.

    Read More

  • Legal Driving Age in the State of Iowa

    2135 Words  | 5 Pages

    Irvine, Martha. (2008, September 9). HuffPost Business. “Teen Driving Age Should Be Raised, Says Auto Safety Group.”

    Read More

  • Raising The Driving Age Essay

    516 Words  | 2 Pages

    I. Introduction A. Should 16 year old teenagers be able to drive? B. “Those who favor raising the driving age say that statistics show teenagers are more likely to get into accidents than adults. What they don't say is that statistics also show that men of all ages are 77 percent more likely to kill someone while driving than women.

    Read More

  • Increasing Minimum Driving Age

    932 Words  | 2 Pages

    More than 5,000 teenagers die while driving each year in the United States (Gregory). In my opinion this is due to three different, yet equally important factors. The first factor is that the teenage mind is yet to be fully developed, causing them to make irresponsible and sometimes reckless decisions. The second factor is that the experience of driving has evolved since the original driving age was established in the early 20th century. The third and final aspect to take into consideration would be that driving is the lowest minimum age of any adult restricted activity in the United States. Although, it can be one of the more harmful, not only to the perspective driver but his or her surroundings as well. Taking all three of these factors into account I believe the minimum driving age should be raised to 18 to decrease the accident rate amongst teenagers.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay: The Dangers Of Texting And Driving

    1044 Words  | 3 Pages

    Teenagers don’t want to be inconvenient with having to wait to respond to their friends about the latest party or school event that’s coming up. Driving is just as good of time as any to text their best friends about the upcoming weekend or update their Facebook status in the mind of a young adult. Even though most teens know they shouldn’t text and drive many are guilty of doing it several times a day. An overwhelming 75% of teens even admit to text messaging while driving (“Distracted Driving,” 2016). Young drivers are more likely to get into an accident due to lack of experience than that of any other driver on the road. Add in texting to the mix it is a recipe for disaster. About 54% of teenage motor vehicle crash deaths occur on Friday, Saturday or Sunday – with Saturday being the deadliest day of the week for teens (Hosansky, 2012). Teenage motor vehicle fatalities are at the highest in the summer months.

    Read More

  • The Driving Age Should be Raised

    1842 Words  | 4 Pages

    Davis, Robert. “Is 16 too Young to Drive? Growing Numbers Think So.” USA Today. 1 Mar.

    Read More

  • Are Sixteen Year Olds Ready to Drive?

    1091 Words  | 3 Pages

    Rubin, Rita “Report Makes a Case for Raising Driving Age” 09 Sep 2008: n. page. Web. 27 Oct.

    Read More

  • Teen Drivers Research Paper

    1591 Words  | 4 Pages

    As expected, most if not all teens will disagree with that. But there are some safe teen drivers that are thrown into the bad teen driving category just because they are a teenager that drives. If there are some good teen drivers, then do all teens really need more drivers education? Samantha Williams is a senior at Winchester Community High School that has an answer to this question. “I do consider myself to be a safe driver. I’m always aware of my surroundings when I’m driving, and I always stay away from any distractions” (Question 1). She is intentionally aware of her surroundings and stays focused while driving. The government should not make more regulations and rules for all teen drivers when there are many teen drivers like Samantha on the roads. There are even some adults that believe not all teen drivers are bad drivers. Gregory explains, “ The teen driving issues are not about age and maturity as they are about making good choices and demonstrating exceptional behavior, whether they start that driving experience at 16, 17, or 18” (1). Many teens and parents seem to think the government has not made the best decisions recently when it comes to

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Teenage Driving

    866 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the article Crash Facts on the 16- to 19- Year-Old Age Group, written by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, it is stated that 11.1 percent of sixteen year old drivers are involved in car accidents. Sixteen year olds are less experienced and are accident prone 2.43 percent more than eighteen year olds. According to Ted Gregory, a Chicago Tribune reporter, in New Jersey, teenagers start driving at the age of seventeen unlike other states with a driving age of sixteen. After the law was enacted, the percentage in fatal accidents dropped 33 percent. This report proves that as teenagers get older, car accidents are less likely to happen. Many would argue that age is just a number and eighteen year olds cause many car accidents as well. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation reported that in comparison to sixteen year olds, eighteen year olds are less likely to be involved in car accidents, with a rate of 8.67 percent. Sixteen year old drivers who are involved in car accidents are more likely than older drivers to cause accidents due to carelessness on the

    Read More

  • Should the Driving Age be Raised to 21?

    613 Words  | 2 Pages

    Works Cited Gerdes, Louise I. -. The Driving Age Should Not Be Increased. Teen Driving. Detroit: Greenhaven, 2008. 83-85.

    Read More

More about Should the Age for Getting a License be Higher Than 16?

Open Document