Defensive Driving Training

Most drivers learn the basics behind the wheel: how to obey traffic signs, how to operate the car, and how to maneuver it on the road.

"Every driver needs to learn the basics, but a safe driving course can add to those entry-level skills," explains Asfaw Tilahun, SNA driver instructor and national program director for the safe driving course. For example, it is a good idea to spend time teaching drivers how to recover the car in bad situations.

"If drivers aren't taught how to handle the car when it slides into a skid from muddy road conditions, or what to do when the brakes lock up, they just react. Every driver, no matter their age, should practice how to respond to these kinds of situations."

Driving is usually a skill that is passed down from one generation to another. Through the years, there is no telling how many bad habits are picked up and taught to young drivers.

"Drivers might take a class in school that teaches driving skills, but many times the most influential teacher is a parent. Most parents don't have any formal training — they just show their kids what they do, and it's not always right." By taking a class, drivers learn skills from qualified instructors.

Every driver likes to think he or she is a safe driver, but with wireless phones ringing, chirping instructions, and radios taking music requests, it is not hard to get distracted while driving.

"Distracted driving is usually associated with drivers and their cell phones, but distractions come in many forms these days," Asfaw says. Every driver should learn how to remove or handle distractions — and this is best taught through a safe driving course.

Some drivers were taught to think of the steering wheel like a clock and keep their hands at 10 and 2 for safe driving. With the advances in airbags and changes in steering technology, the correct position is now 9 and 3.

Rules like this change over time, which is why taking a safe driving course is important: students receive the most accurate, up-to-date information. "I can't tell you how many parents listen in during our class instruction and come up to me at the end of the course and say, 'I had no idea that changed,' or 'I've been doing this wrong the whole time.' It just goes to show that a safe driving course is valuable at any age."