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sent to MaryEllen Locher.
Re: Monitoring devices tell parents how their teen is
driving
Dear MaryEllen,
Teen driver car crashes are the leading cause of permanent injury and death in
teens across
Truth is though, that these are anything but accidents. We know the leading
causes of teen deaths resulting from car crashes. They include speeding,
reckless driving and not wearing seatbelts.
The article on the black box approach was interesting, but misses the point
when looking to produce better, safer teenaged drivers.
Firstly good teen drivers begin with good role models. Do you think the teens
are only picking up on your good driving habits? Insurance company statistics
show that those parents with a better driving record tend to have teens with a
better driving record.
Secondly, the black box approach undermines the value of the parent-teen
relationship. There is no reciprocity here... Nothing to say that if the teen
must drive safely, so too should the parent. Teens pick up on this hypocrisy
and are very quick to rebel to it.
Thirdly, speeding is only one issue leading to car crashes; What about
drinking, seatbelt use, condition of the car, number of teen passengers, time
of day, etc., to name a few other issues.
Our solution after two years of development and input from teens is the I
Promise Program. With the I Promise Program, parents and teens enter into a
mutual safe driving contract - a 6 page document that has parents and teens sit
down, discuss and negotiate those matters that relate most to safety. As a
mutual contract, hypocrisy is removed, the teen feels empowered and the
parent-teen relationship is strengthened. Then to seal the deal, parent and
teen affix rear window decal to the vehicle that displays a toll-free number.
This enables community reports on driver behavior. Any call received gets
returned to the family via mail. They then determine who was driving by the
date and location of the incident reported and then deal with the information
as predetermined by the family contract. Notwithstanding, because the contract
came first, we receive very few calls. The goal in all of this is to strengthen
the communication between parent and teen and reduce the risk of crash!
Catching kids after the fact is too late. One may have already died!
Edmond Burke once said, said, ""All that is needed for evil to
flourish, is that good men" (and women) "do nothing". So while
good men (and women) do nothing, teens continue to die and become permanently
disabled.
Parents who want to invest in the relationship with their teen and keep them
safer from harm will consider programs such as the I Promise Program.
It is important for parents in looking for similar programs look for ones that
include a mutual safe driving contract and that the program applies to both.
Otherwise, the teen will rebel against the hypocrisy and no one will be better
off for that.
The I Promise Program is available across
I Promise Program
20
(905) 628-4847
gary123@sympatico.ca
www.ipromiseprogram.com