DriversEd.com Contributing Writer Alexis David has kept an ongoing diary for us as she takes our California online drivers ed course . Here’s her fourth entry.
As my drivers ed experience comes to a close, I’ve been thinking ahead to the future driving lessons I’ll soon be able to take. Then, I’ll finally be able to drive! In the meantime, here are some of the major takeaways I learned in the final modules of the course.
“Driving Conditions and Emergencies” module
This module included what to do in any type of car failure. Drivers ed teaches you the steps to take for brake fails, tire blowout, steering wheel failure, a stuck accelerator, and overheating. In a tire blowout, the module instructs you to hold the steering wheel tight and drive straight, remove your foot from the accelerator and stop alongside the road, only applying the brakes when the car is almost stopped. This information helped me answer my examination test and my practice permit tests, which I’ll be talking about later.
I’ve also learned what to do when driving at night. I know driving at night is way more dangerous and accidents happens three to four times more at night than during the day. As a driver, you need to be more alert knowing that there can be vehicles in places you can’t see and that there can be tired drivers. When I grew up, the only lights on a car that I thought there were the brake lights in the back of a car and headlights in the front. But now there are low-beam lights, high-beam lights, fog lights and parking lights, each with their own specific purposes. In particular, I now know that low-beam lights are the best to use in fog or rain. In order to drive, you should know the parts of the car, how to control it, and expecting anything the road may present, and night driving tests all of these.
“Sharing the Road” module
Sharing the road doesn’t just include cars, it includes every vehicle and living thing; trucks, trains, LRVs, motorcycles, bicyclists, pedestrians, and animals. Sharing the road in the right way ensures other people’s safety and the driver’s safety. These are some basics and rules I’ve picked up from sharing the road.
Since trucks are bigger and have a heavier load than cars, they can cause wind drafts, they take a longer time to stop, and the drivers of trucks have bigger blind spots. Trains can cause a lot of damage with the speed they’re going. No vehicle should cross the tracks if they know their whole car can’t pass or if red lights are flashing. No one should turn in front of light rail vehicles, or LRVs. Motorcyclists can hide in a driver’s blind spots, so you should always check if there are any coming your way. Motorcyclists are typically allowed to lane split with you — something that’s really sharing the road — and it is preferred to follow with a four-second following distance. Bicycles are also small and can easily fit inside a driver’s blind spot. Pedestrians always have the right-of-way at any marked or unmarked crosswalk. By following these acts, any driver can keep the flow of traffic proper and harm free.
Nearing the end
Finally, after all 12 modules, I’m at the examination. The final test that’ll determine if I understood what the course taught me. I was incredibly nervous to take it, even if it does just give a certificate of my completed course. So, before taking the test, I took extra steps to study before I took it. No one is prohibiting me from taking notes, so that’s exactly what I did. I went back on each module to reread and took notes on main ideas laws that I need to remember. After taking notes to refresh myself when I was ready. So, I took the final examination, and found that I didn’t really have anything to worry about. I passed with a 93%! After seven months, I’ve finished the course, and I was insanely overjoyed to have finished it! It was like relief and content filled my whole body. A few days later, I got my certificate of completion.
During the course, I didn’t think it would take so long. However, there were other things I had to take care of like school, sports, and family events. I got confused on some modules and others were a simple, refreshing reading. If anyone is going to take the course soon, I suggest going at a pace that suits you so you can let the knowledge you’ve learned sink in, but don’t leave the course too long. I’m completely blissful and thankful to have had the online drivers ed to shape me into a soon-to-be driver.
Learn more about DriversEd.com:
- Read Alexis’ previous California online drivers ed diary entry
- How Does DriversEd.com Develop the Best Online Drivers Ed Courses ?
- Parents: Enroll your teenager in DriversEd.com’s Online Teen Drivers Education
- Parents: Refresh your driving skills and sign up for DriversEd.com’s In-Car Driving Lessons