On Friday, May 20th, Kramer Entertainment visited the Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center to present their Edutainment Distracted Driving Simulator to staff and students to show the effects of texting while driving.  The interactive simulator allowed students to drive a simulated car while attempting to receive and send text messages.  Students were surprised with how easy it was to become distracted and cross the center-line.

“I read only one text message and crashed,” stated Office Administration student Aaron Hannah after testing out the simulator.

According to Kramer Entertainment, 23% of drivers are more likely to be involved in a crash because of distracted driving with cell phones being the number one source of driver inattention.  The purpose of the simulator was to safely demonstrate to students how easy it is to get distracted, especially since most drivers believe their own crash risk is lower than others.

In addition to the participating in the simulator, students and staff watched a video and listened to a presentation on the effects and consequences of driving while distracted.  The video recreated true stories and shared real footage of deadly accidents that were a caused by distracted drivers.  Overall, the presentation was a great lesson and learning tool for both students and staff on the potentially negative and deadly impact texting while driving can cause.

“It definitely caused me to stop using my phone while driving,” states Read 180 Instructor Colleen Blaszak, “it is just not worth the potential consequences it could cause.” 

WZZM 13 News: Students learn about distract driving dangers