BLOGGIN!

To be honest that article got a little ridiculous towards the end. I have my license and I did my Drivers Ed and my six driving lessons. So it's hard for me to have sympathy but I understand what these kids feel like. The way the economy is at the moment would make anyone stray from getting their license. Buying a car and paying for your own insurance and gas is extremely difficult. I manage to pay for it all but at least seventy percent of my pay check each week will filter into some sort of payment for my car. I am a witness of these teens not having the motivation to go out and do the Drivers Ed program. One of my good friends Dan is 17 right now and will be 18 in July and he hasn't even gone for his permit. His main excuse is that his friends will just drive him around.

The few paragraphs in this article that bothered me were towards the end. That mother who won't allow her daughter to drive is in my opinion crazy. She made her daughter drive with a police officer to look at accidents? That is so stupid. Your average teenage realizes how dangerous cars are and by you keeping her in the closet like that she may never go out and drive. In the last paragraph she says now she doesn't want to get her license. I believe that was a direct result of her mother. My answer to her is let your kid grow up and do what she wants. Just make sure she has the restrictions you want but there is no reason to keep her in fear of getting her license. But who am I to make decisions for others.

Linda and Neal

    It is true that more and more parents are becoming wary about letting their kid's drive by themselves due to all the risks. What I don't agree with is that many schools don't want to pay for the training that us teenagers need. When I did my driving school it only cost me $150 because the school picked up the rest of the cost for class time and I paid $20 each road lesson, but when Neal did it at a private school it cost him around $330. I believe that the cost is becoming too expensive and if schools want their students to get proper training then they should help with the cost. A lot of the reason that teenagers don't get proper training and wait until they are 18 to get their license is because of the cost and they either have to pay their self or their parents can't afford it.

Melanie and Steve!

Melanie: After reading the article entitled "Fewer Youths Jump Behind the Wheel at 16" many thoughts crossed my mind. When reading the first sentence the first thing that came to mind was "I Totally Agree!". Turning 16 can be a milestone in many teenage lives. The most common first thing to do is get your license! To some people getting your license is your ticket to freedom as the article says. Having your license means no more depending on others to get to places, and also a way to show maturity. Having my license for just about over a year now, I can relate greatly to that theory. I no longer depend on my parents for anything! I go where I please, and when I please. At first it wasn't as easy of course. I first got my license in August of 2007 and got my first car just about 3 weeks into the month of September. Getting my first car was truly the happiest day of my life; I didn't want to quit driving! I rove just about everywhere to show as many people as I could. Now of course when you're new at the game your parents are going to be somewhat strict and have some rules till you prove to them that you can handle yourself out there on the road. It took just about a year to finally prove to my parents that I have grown up and can handle myself responsibly on the road. I now have more freedom then I ever had in my life! But knowing that I still try my hardest to stay smart and responsible so that things will stay like this for a while!

Steve: I can relate to the article "Fewer Youths Jump Behind the Wheel at 16". I am currently 17 years old and I have chosen to not get my license just yet. I have really not been in a rush to get my license for a few reasons. Reason one being I have a ride when ever I need to go somewhere and reason two it has now gotten to expensive to get your license before you are 18. The numbers of road lessons have increased the cost of road lessons have increased along with the prices of classes. Yes I know that if you decide to go there and get everything done your insurance might not be as high but you truly are saving yourself a lot of money now, waiting until you're 18 and getting your license without none of those. The price increase in my opinion is why many teenagers have not yet gotten their license, especially with where our economy is at right now. I think waiting is your best option.

Decrease in 16 year-olds jumping for their license – Paige & Megan

In all honesty, I think it's good that kids are waiting to get their license. Whether it's because of money, practice or lack of interest, I think it's in a teen's best interest to wait. The whole bundle of getting your license can be extremely expense. Driver's education is around $150 if you don't go through your high school. Then, for your road lessons, its $40 per each, and there are 12 you have to complete. So, road lessons roughly cost $480. That's crazy! If I was money-savvy, I would've waited until I was 18 and just got my permit and went for my license. Another reason teens should wait is to practice more. Although we have to complete driver's education, and also road lessons... some teens just don't get enough practice. I know a boy that has had his license for less than a year and has managed to get into 2 accidents within a time span of 2 months. Not only should he get his license taken away but he should have to retake the courses. He is a threat to other drivers. Getting your license does have it's benefits, though. Instead of your parents having to cart you around 24/7, now you can do it yourself. It also teaches responsibility. Now that you have the chance to get your license, you may have more of a motivate to actually get a job.

Becca and Breanne Blog

According to the article, the number of 16-year-olds getting their license has plummeted nearly half to less than one-third in the last decade. I think that it is the way it is because we have public transportation
Statistic: The national rate of licensed 16-year-olds dropped to 29.8% in 2006 from 43.8% in 1998. I think that it is the way it is because we have public transportation, parents and friends to drive us around, or they don't leave the house. Kids stay glued to the television and computers.

Statistic: 25 years ago most teenagers took driver's education in their local schools. But the number of school systems offering the program has plummeted to about 20% today, from 90% in the late 1980s. I think it would be better if they made it more available to do driver's education through school, because then kids can just stay after which makes it easier for some kids and parents.

Statistic: High schools are out of business because of the cost.
Commercial driving academies have stepped in to fill the gap. Private schools have grown to 60 this year, just two in 1993. I believe that more kids are going to driving school but it's too costly for some so they just wait until their 18 instead of paying the cost.

Statistic: Insurance costs are rising. It now costs 80% to 100% more to add a 16-year-old to a family's auto policy. The highest rate is charged if the teenager owns a vehicle. I think that insurance is a little ridiculous; I understand that were inexperienced but kids these days have to pay for it their selves on top of other bills and expenses that they have to pay.

Statistic: Teenage drivers have the highest crash risk of any group. Car accidents account for one-third of all deaths of 16- to 18-year-olds. Well it is true that teenagers do drive reckless, but that's not all teens and sometimes it's not even their fault for the accidents that's why there called accidents.

Statistic: Graduated driver-licensing laws, which delay awarding a full license until a teenager spends time with a parent or driving under certain conditions, are also keeping down the number of 16-year-olds on the road. Most parents don't have time or just don't care about taking time out to drive with their kids. Kids shouldn't be punished for their parent's laziness.

Statistic: These laws, in existence for about a decade, have helped reduce the number of fatal crashes involving 16-year-old drivers by about 11 percent, according to a 2006 study. That average increases to 20% for states with the strictest laws. I do have to agree with most of them because your safety should be the most important thing not what's fair or not.

Statistic: Forty-nine states allow young drivers to obtain restricted licenses before, on or within a few months of their sixteenth birthday. (The age for a restricted license is as low as 14 in some states.) New Jersey requires a driver to be 17 years old. I think that 14 years-old is way too young for any person to have a driver's license.

Statistic: Sweeping changes to teenage driving laws in Illinois ranked the state among the nations most restrictive. An Illinois law, weekend driving curfew is 11 p.m. (10 p.m. on week nights) for drivers 17 years old. They also tripled the length of a learner's permit from 3 to 9 month; they also increased the number of training hours behind the wheel to 6 hours from 1hour of actual driving time. I agree with this law besides the curfew, that is up to the parents and some kids are still at work or just about getting out.

Statistic: In Delaware teenagers not fully licensed may not drive between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. Again I think that 10 p.m. is too early.

Statistic: The fatal crash rate for 16 year-olds driving at night is twice as high as it is during the day. At night kids are trying to make it home for curfew so they tend to avoid the speed limit.

Statistic: In North Dakota, they allow a learner's permit at 14 and has no minimum supervised-driving requirements. I believe that they have to get stricter on every single law they have on driving, because 14 is way to long and they need to have supervised-driving.

Statistic: Beyond the tighter regulations, some parents are just not encouraging lessons. I think it sucks for the kids whose parents don't help them learn or don't give them rules.

Teen Driving Project Chelsea & Brittny

The article "Fewer Youths Jump Behind the Wheel at 16" is about how, due to newer laws and expenses, fewer teenagers are eager to get their licenses. Massachusetts recently started enforcing new laws, starting in September 2008. Even though we thought these laws were strict, other states have laws that are even stricter. For example, the curfews are earlier, in places like Delaware and Illinois, to make sure that teenagers stay safer. I think that since more teenagers are getting killed in car accidents, rules need to be strongly enforced in order for the percent to decrease. We both think that the cost of driver's education is too expensive and should be cheaper, since the cost of gas is going down. Since the costs are so high, many teenagers are not able to afford the number of road lessons needed for them to be able to get their licenses. With the gas prices dropping and raising on a daily basis, teenagers can not afford to pay to have a car, which results in them not getting their license.

Welcome to the Senior Blog!

Welcome seniors! I hope to be able to share a lot of insightful ideas through our Senior Writis Blog! We'll be able to cover a lot of content here. Please remember to keep the content appropriate for school. Avoid using last names. Language should be appropriate and definitely no name-calling. Respect each other's opinions and feel free to share your opinion without being slammed.