Many students at Oakton High School can drive, and many are just beginning to get their permits and start driving. But isn’t 15 pretty young to be driving on the real road? Driving can be very scary, and teens/new drivers especially need to be paying attention to being a safe driver. There have been a lot of recorded accidents with teen drivers, mainly due to distractions, like passengers, food, loud music, or the direction of focus towards something other than driving. This can be very dangerous, which is why many people believe that 15 is to young of an age and 45 hours is not enough to be driving.

Annie Clark, a sophomore at Oakton High School, recently got her permit and is beginning to drive on the real roads. Annie drives with the guidance of her mom, who she feels comfortable with. She believes the best way to start out driving at a young age is driving in her neighborhood and on roads at times of the day where there are not a lot of cars around.

“I feel fine driving at such a young age because I think I am mature enough and I know my limits,” said Annie. However, she definitely does not think the state law of having 45 hours is a suitable amount of time to get a license at 16. Annie believes that new drivers should be required to drive for more like 65 hours so that they get extensive practice and have enough experience on various roads.

Furthermore, a mom of two high school girls was interviewed as well, but she would like to remain anonymous. This mom has a daughter with her license and another daughter that just got her permit. She believes that 15 is a good age to begin driving, but 16 is too young to have a license. That is because she, too, thinks 45 hours is not a sufficient amount of time before getting a license and driving without a parent. “Teenagers need to drive for more hours because their brains aren’t mature enough to make the right decisions. The hours should definitely be extended.”

Points of view from a student with a permit and a mom with daughters who can drive have been seen, and they are very similar. Both people agree that the amount of driving hours should increase so that kids should not get their license right at 16 years old. Some teenagers just aren’t mature enough and they need more practice driving with a parent.