Turning 16 and obtaining a driver’s license is a major milestone in a young person’s life. A license is a symbol of responsibility, maturity and, most importantly, freedom.

Imagine having that freedom taken away. Imagine having parents with the ability to see exactly how their child was driving; whether he or she was driving the speed limit, making complete stops or wearing a seatbelt.

This is something that is not just something to imagine; it’s happening right now. American Family Insurance is offering parents with teen drivers the option of installing free cameras into cars.

These cameras are capable of recording what takes place inside and in front of the car in 20 second audio-video clips. Parents will then receive a report on how their little angel is driving, along with the capability of viewing the clips through the computer.

At a first glance, these cameras just sounded like another way to give teens more rules to follow and to put them under even stronger restrictions. This really frustrated me. I cannot figure out why adults were so into putting teens into their places and making us feel like we could not even take a breath without first receiving written consent from a legal parent or guardian. That is, however, until I put on my detective hat and found out what these little devices were all about.

I did many searches, read through several articles, such as an article in USA Today, and learned quite a bit. I learned that these cameras are a lot less “Big Brother-ish” than I had thought.

The camera records all of what is done while driving, but it does not remember anything unless it is triggered by a strange car movement. This includes sudden braking and accelerating, or a collision.

Once I learned how the cameras really worked, they didn’t seem quite so bad. Yes, so maybe my parents could see how I was driving and what I was doing wrong, but it would also give me a chance to take a look at my own driving. I could then see what I needed to improve on to become a safer driver.

Another positive side to these cameras involves the law. The cameras ‘remember’ what is done ten seconds before and after it is triggered. If there was a dispute about a traffic violation, it could easily be resolved simply by reviewing what was recorded.

According to NHTSA.dot.gov, car accidents are the leading cause of teenage deaths; nearly 5,000 teens are killed each year from car accidents. Reducing that number, by any means, is something that I completely support.

If that means having a camera monitor all of my driving mistakes, I guess I would have to agree to it.