PDI Training. What will you learn

Theory

THE PART 1
One of the biggest factors in becoming a driving instructor is to know your stuff!
Knowing the theory inside out is possibly one of the main tools that you will need on a daily basis when becoming an instructor.
Ensuring you give good quality factual information is paramount.
The information you supply will go on with your students possibly for the rest of their lives, if that information is wrong you could be putting others in danger.

Practical

THE PART 2
Becoming the best at everything to do with driving a car is your next goal.
You need to be able to control a car at all speeds, carry out any manoeuvre anywhere, have an awareness of everything around you at any time, driving completely to the rules and laws of the road, understanding priorities, positioning, speed limits, regulations on parking, about your vehicle and what makes it work as well as how each and every function of your car works.

For a guide of training resources for your Theory,
Part 2 and Part 3
Tests.
Please click the link below

For Resources Click here

Find out more about the Part 2 Test

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Instruction

THE PART 3
To understand how to communicate with your learner, use suitable locations for their training, you should be able to provide clear, realistic and reliable demonstrations of how to apply practical skills – both stationary and moving.
You should be able to explain what you are doing and why you are doing it.
Having provided such demonstrations, you should then be able to support the learner in practising the skills and give them feedback.
Engaging in a conversation with the learner to help them identify obstacles to learning and strategies for overcoming those obstacles.
Be able to manage risk for you , your learner and third parties.
Create lesson plans and objectives leading to an end goal.
You need to be able to adapt a lesson at any time should the need arise, and be able to spot signs that your pupil is out of their depth. This may be by watching them, listening to them and picking up on body language that shows they may be struggling.
You'll need to be extremely diverse to different learning needs as no two learners are the same, and understand that the length of time each individual person needs may vary hugely. 
Being capable of praising all successes, but also be tactful in how you deliver news when things don't go so well without causing the learner to become disengaged with the process, or feel intimidated. You just need to be honest with them tactfully.

Standards Checks

Having passed your Part 3 test the guidelines are that you will have your first Standard Check within 6 months of passing the Part 3.
This is to ensure that your skills are growing and that you are continuing to supply lessons to the National standard for driver and rider training.

Once this has been taken, the guidelines are that you will normally have one standards check within the lifespan of your 4 year licence to teach. 
This has become stretched recently due to the backlogs within the DVSA testing system.

There are now trigger points based on the results your pupils get whilst on their driving tests, and should 3 of the 4 trigger points be passed then you may be requested to undergo a standards check earlier than then normal time span.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a7d7d0fe5274a6b89a50618/national-standard-for-driver-and-rider-training.pdf

The 17 Competencies

LESSON
PLANNING

1. Did the trainer identify the pupil's learning goals and needs?

2. Was the agreed lesson structure appropriate for the pupil's experience and ability?

3. Were the practice areas suitable?

4. Was the lesson plan adapted, when appropriate, to help the pupil work towards their learning goal?

RISK MANAGEMENT

5. Did the trainer ensure that the pupil fully understood how the responsibility for risk would be shared?

6. Were directions and instructions given to the pupil clear and given in good time?

7. Was the trainer aware of the surrounding and the pupils actions?

8. Was any verbal or physical intervention by the trainer timely and appropriate?

9. Was sufficient feedback given to help the pupil understand any potential safety and critical incidents?

Teaching & Learning Strategies

10. Was the teaching and learning style suited to the pupil's learning style and current ability?

11. Was the pupil encouraged to analyse problems and take responsibility for their learning?

12. Were opportunities and examples used to clarify learning outcomes?

13. Was the technical information given comprehensive, appropriate and accurate?

14. Was the pupil given appropriate and timely feedback during the session?

15. Were the pupil's queries followed up and answered?

16. Did the trainer maintain and appropriate non-discriminatory manner throughout the session?

17. At the end of the session - was the pupil encouraged to reflect on their own performance?

Results and Scoring

All competencies are marked from 1-3.
A score of 7 or less on Risk Management will result in an automatic failure.
If at any point during the lesson, if the candidate behaved in a way which puts you, them or any third part in immediate danger, so that the lesson was stopped by the examiner the an automatic failure will be recorded. 

A sore of
0 - shows no evidence 
1 - Shows Evidence demonstrated in a few elements
2 - Shows Evidence demonstrated in most elements
3 - Shows Evidence demonstrated in all elements

The outcome of these scores give the results as:-
0-30 Unsatisfactory performance - Result Fail

31-42 Sufficient competence demonstrated to allow entry to the register of approved driving instructors and a Grade B awarded.

42- 51 A high standard of instruction demonstrated and  a Grade A awarded.

Lesson Planning

1. Did the trainer identify the pupil's goals and needs?

Simply put, this means you need to find out what the needs are of your pupil and the goal they would like to achieve by the end of the lesson/s.
This may mean you are continuing from where you left off at the last lesson to improve whatever that may be or it may be something new based on it being required to extend their skills.
However!  It needs to be realistic and agreed. You would not be expecting to take a pupil on their first lesson onto a motorway, just because they would like to do it.
You need to be able to know, what they know already, whether the plan of action for the lesson would be within the capabilities of that pupil and that by doing it learning will take place to the level that they can cope with, but building those skills at the same time.
If the subject would end up being way out of the comfort zone of the pupil (which could then create a dangerous situation) then a discussion needs to take place to allow the pupils to understand why carrying out a particular subject may cause challenging situations.

For example: The pupil may have only had one lesson and is still getting to grips with moving off as clutch control has not yet become fluent and creates lots of stalls.
For your pupil to ask to try out roundabouts, you would need to discuss with them what problems could arise from attempting roundabouts at this stage, such as stalling onto the roundabout with cars coming at them.

The needs at this time would be that clutch control needs to be at a better level so that a risk is not created by introducing roundabouts.

Therefore a discussion about this can be had on the lines that their needs are to  get better with the clutch control,with a goal in mind that once this is achieved they may then be able to progress on to introducing small quiet roundabouts.
They need to become conscious of how doing something too soon could create dangerous situations. 
The core of this competency is that the needs and goals of your pupil should be met throughout the length of the lesson.
Obviously if things progress then the lesson needs to progress with it.

A method to use for thinking about identifying your pupil's goals and needs could be The SMART Method.
The SMART method stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely.




SMART METHOD

2. Was the agreed lesson structure appropriate for the pupil's experience and ability?

In a similar manner as the first competency you do not want to be letting your pupil do something that is so far out of their skill set that it impacts learning taking place.  
It is quite likely on a Part 3 test that the pupil you take, who may be close to test readiness, reverts back to the pupil they were at about 20 hours in. You'll need to then adapt the lesson to suit the needs at that time.
What they are currently struggling with or what needs attention.
Whatever it is needs to be addressed. 
Although the agreed lesson plan may have been one subject with a goal in mind, if things are going totally wrong and the goal and need cannot be achieved because of the current issue, then that issue needs to be sorted before moving on.
Once resolved then the lesson can be adapted again to the initial needs and goal.
If on the other hand the lesson structure was not challenging the pupil and everything they did was too easy and no learning is taking place, then the lesson needs to be adapted so that learning does take place.

Don't ever be afraid to adapt a lesson.


3. Were the practice areas suitable?

If you're on a motorway when you should be on a very quite backstreet of a housing estate, then the practice area definitely was not suitable.

You need to know your areas for teaching. 
You'll need nursery routes.
Intermediate route.
Good competency routes.
And higher competency routes to challenge a pupil as much as you can before their test and to give them as much experience as possible before becoming a full licence holder.

Ensure that whatever level your pupil is at, that the routes you are taking them on are appropriate to the level of their skill set.
If you find at any stage that the area is not suitable then you need to change your location.

You will never want to be in an area that is out of your pupils depth when undergoing a standards check or Part 3 test.

You may find that an area that could be re-run again and again may be more suitable, where both yourself and your pupil can see changes happening that allows a skill to be built on. This is totally acceptable, but as that skill evolves then so should the area, so that it challenges them further and the skill can be grown.

4. Was the lesson plan adapted, when appropriate, to help the pupil work towards their learning goal?

Let's for arguments sake say that your goal for the lesson was lane discipline on roundabouts, but on your journey to the roundabouts your pupil was constantly stalling when emerging from junctions. 
Would it be safe and appropriate to continue to a roundabout that could then become a safety critical issue because of the potential risks with them stalling when entering a roundabout?
It would be sensible to adapt the lesson plan and revisit clutch control and resolve the issue causing this prior to returning to the original goal of lane discipline on roundabouts.
Your pupil will appreciate the fact that they will be more confident entering a roundabout knowing that they are happy with pulling away, without the anxiety of potentially stalling on a roundabout.

You've adapted to the current circumstances which is appropriate at the time,  you've been able to return to your original goal, and learning has taken place on the original goal.
 

Risk Management.

Or "Role sharing" as I like to call it.

Who is doing what?

This needs to be clear for you and your pupil, to understand where risk needs to be managed.
These roles need to be discussed at the start and during each lesson.
Risk management, is clarifying what you are going to be taking care of (if anything) and what your pupil is going to be taking care of.


5. Did the trainer ensure that the pupil fully understood how the responsibility for risk would be shared?
Is your pupil on their first lesson, and would introducing use of the mirrors when turning into or out of junctions be way too much for them to cope with on day one, whilst they are still having trouble getting used to changing gear?

In this instance, the discussion with your pupil may be "would you like me to take care of the mirrors and things around us for now, whilst you deal with controlling the speed of the car and steering correctly into and out of junctions"?

Your pupil will then get used to the fact for now, that you are carrying out the responsibility for risk of things around the car, whilst they are dealing with the risks of controlling the speed and steering.

Letting them know, and with their consent that you'll only intervene physically or verbally with the speed or steering if a safety critical situation arises, you have agreed the role share for responsibility.
As the lesson progresses and you see that they are becoming comfortable with the speed and steering, you can pull in, have a chat about how they feel those items are coming along and then reassess the role share and whether you could pass some of the additional roles to them.

Something like "I can see that you are finding steering and the speed of the car on approach to and emerging from junctions on your own very well now, would you like to have a go at introducing the responsibility for checking the mirrors as well"?

They might say that they would like to carry on doing what they are doing for now, but maybe on the next lesson add in the role of checking the mirrors themselves.
Now that's fine, you've reassessed the current situation and agreed to continue the responsibility for role sharing.

However, they might say yes they would like to try using the mirrors as well.
At this stage, you will have to reassess that role sharing responsibility by asking "how much input would you like from me"?

They may say "can you still check them so I know we're still safe, but prompt me if I forget to check"

You've now set the role sharing again and you can continue to build on this next level of their learning.

You might say "OK, for now I'll continue to check the mirrors and things around us on every occasion that is necessary, and if you miss a mirror check when they should be used I'll prompt you, is that ok?" 

It is always advisable to repeat back to your pupil what they have asked of you, so that it is crystal clear how the responsible of risk is shared for what, and ensure your pupil agrees to what you have repeated back to them before proceeding.



6. Were directions and instructions given to the pupil clear and given in good time?

You must ensure that directions that you are giving are clear, concise and given in good time.

How you word you instructions can have a massive effect on how a pupil will react.

If you said to your pupil "take the next left" you may find they turn up the next driveway along the road.
If however you said " I'd like you to take the next road on the left just after the post box on the left"

They will understand that it is a road you want them to take, and they can scan the road ahead to see where the post box is and use that as a datum point for where the turning is.

Likewise, if you said to your pupil "just keep going at the roundabout" 
You may well find that you pupil just goes over the roundabout causing a crash into the roundabout.
It may mean they believe they have right of way and will ignore traffic coming from the right and pull out straight in front of other vehicles.

If you rephrased your instruction to " At the roundabout, when it is safe, I would like you to follow the road ahead and take the 2nd exit, giving way to traffic coming from the right" 
It makes your instruction very clear to your pupil.
1. There is a roundabout coming up  (At the roundabout)
2. You've let them know that safety is important here.  (when it is safe)
3. You've given them the direction of where you would like them to leave the roundabout. (follow the road ahead and take the 2nd exit)
4. And you've made them aware that traffic coming from their right has priority over them. (giving way to traffic coming from the right)

If it were a dual approach roundabout and roundabouts are new to your pupil. Your instruction may be.
"At the roundabout there are two approach lanes. I would like you to approach in the left lane of the two available lanes. When it is safe, I would like you to follow the road ahead and take the 2nd exit, giving way to traffic coming from the right. Whilst on the roundabout, you will need to stay in the left lane all the way around the roundabout and exit into the new road in the left lane"

Because this information is more precise but also a lot of information, then it will need to be delivered a lot sooner. 
Waiting to give all this information as you arrive at the roundabout will be way too late and you'll probably cause a lot of confusion to your pupil.

Terminology that you give must be consistent, clear, understandable, accurate and timely.



7. Was the trainer aware of the surrounding and the pupils actions?

Were you aware of what was going on around you?
were you aware of what the pupil was doing?

Getting into the habit of ensuring you're not just a passenger!
You are the instructor sitting in the instructors seat.
When you are in the instructors seat you need to be the instructor all the time.


You need to be able to have the ability to know what your pupil is doing at all times. HANDS, FEET AND FACE.
as well as knowing what is going on around the car at any given time.

For this to work you need to imagine you are still driving. You wouldn't not check your mirrors when slowing down or changing direction when driving, so you still need to carry out those checks from the instructors seat. 
The fact that you are giving directions to your pupil means that you know before they do where you are going.
Prior to giving any direction, you should be carrying out the same risk assessment as you would as a driver.
Once this has been carried out, you can then give your directions to your pupil and will allow you to watch them to see what they are going to do.

Knowing the junction is coming up that you have asked the pupil to take, have you seen the pupil check the relevant mirrors?
Have you seen them place on a direction signal?
Have you seen them come off the gas and prepare to slow down and get their clutch foot ready to change gear?

If you are too busy just looking out of the windscreen you will have missed all these items taking place and will have no idea if your pupil has carried out relevant checks and is preparing for the junction.

You will also need to build your own skills, that does not give the game away to your pupil, as to what checks are required before giving them a chance to have checked them themselves first. 
Obviously in the early days,especially with a learner that may have never driven before, you will probably be guiding and prompting your pupil, but as your interaction with them decreases, you need to know they are carrying out the correct routines at the right time.

When you have asked your pupil "At the end of the road turn right"
You will already have carried out a check in your rear view mirror to see how close a vehicle may be to you, but you'll also need to check whether your pupil has carried out the same check, as well as the right door mirror and place on a right direction signal.
You'll need to know that it is safe for them to position correctly in the road to turn right, but at this stage you'll not want to be looking left to see whether it is safe to proceed, until you have seen your pupil look first.
If you look left just before your pupil looks left, you may miss your pupil carrying out that check and wouldn't know if they have checked at all. Only when it looks like your pupil is ready to emerge can you check that it is safe for them to do so.
If you have dual controls, you will always have the opportunity to stop them before they proceed if it is unsafe, or you could verbally intervene and tell them to stop.
The skill of watching your pupil before emerging is a skill that takes instructors some time to master. It's not natural, especially as a driver of many years to not look left as soon as they arrive at a junction, and you probably do it when sat as a passenger in someone else's car. 
Whilst when turning right and looking at your pupil, you will find that you can look past your pupil to see if traffic coming from the right is clear, and you will have time to check to the left just after your pupil has checked.

Likewise, when moving off from the side of the road.
Allow your pupil to carry out their 6 point check fully before checking over your right shoulder to ensure it is safe for them to move off.
If you check before they do, its a form of prompting them to check. A check that they may not carry out had you not checked first.


8. Was any verbal or physical intervention by the trainer timely and appropriate?

Did you need to intervene in any way, either physically or verbally? 

The ideal intervention is verbally!
If you are constantly using the dual controls you are taking away any confidence from your pupil that they may have grown. 
This can cause your pupil to feel inadequate, or intimidated.
By verbally intervening first, you are giving your learner every chance to bring the car to a stop or take evasive action first. 
Obviously if this doesn't happen or the situation requires it, then you will have to take physical intervention.

If at any time verbal or physical intervention is required, it is necessary to pull in your pupil to discuss why you had to intervene and allow your pupil to understand why you did so, with an understanding of how they could resolve this from happening on other occasions.

Always ensure that if verbal or physical intervention is necessary, then it must be appropriate and carried out in a timely manner.



9. Was sufficient feedback given to help the pupil understand any potential safety and critical incidents?

Is your pupil sat looking dazed?
Do they understand why you intervened?

By pulling over at the earliest opportunity you can explain to them why you intervened and ensure they understand why this happened and how they could avoid it happening again.
This is an excellent opportunity to give your pupil a chance to work out how they could have done things differently to avoid it happening again or in the first place.
Obviously if they can't think of what went wrong or why you had to intervene then it is down to you to fill in the gaps of their knowledge.

On occasion, it may not be convenient to pull over straight away, so you must express to your pupil that you intervened and that you'll find somewhere shortly to discuss it. But always let them know AT THE TIME that it happens that you have intervened.



RISK MANAGEMENT is a crucial part of a Part 3 or Standards check test. A score of 7 or less will result in an instant fail of the test.

Teaching and Learning Strategies

10. Was the teaching style suited to the pupil's learning style and current ability?

In reality it doesn't matter what subject you teach for your Part 3 or Standards check, what matter is that learning takes place.
If what you are doing is not engaging the pupil into learning something new, or what you are doing is just not working, then you need to change the lesson to something that will benefit the pupil and meet their needs at that time.

If the way you are teaching a particular subject isn't working you need to be able to adapt the style in which you are teaching it to something that allows the pupil to understand it. That might be that a demonstration is needed, or refer to books or videos etc so that the information can be understood and then worked with.
Is there something you can "link up" with your pupil to something they may have done in the past.
Lets just use a quick example. 
Your pupil is a keen BMX rider, but during their lesson they are having trouble understanding how to make the car stop smoothly. They keep jamming on the brakes hard.
You could refer to what would happen if they squeezed the brake lever on the front of the BMX really hard at speed. 
Their answer should be, "I'd be thrown off the bike over the handlebars, because the front wheel would lock up".

Now ask them, "how do you resolve that so it doesn't happen"?

The answer should be "I don't squeeze the lever as hard"

You could then say "so how could you resolve the issue with the cars brakes so that we don't screech to a stop"?

The reply should be "If I press the brake pedal more gently"

People generally have 4 different methods of how they learn best.
You need to know what best suits your pupil. 
Most will have a combination of these 4 styles but more often than not they will have a predominant style of learning


Visual
Auditory
Reading & writing
Kinaesthetic

Commonly referred to as the VARK Model

Visual learners.
Prefer to take in information using charts, maps, graphs, diagrams, and more. Using images to explain concepts and ideas is the best way to reach a visual learner. However, this type of learning style does not include photographs or videos. Instead, visual learners learn best when information is presented using patterns, shapes, and other visual aids in the place of written or spoken words. One way teachers can differentiate their instruction for visual learners is by using graphic organizers to teach a lesson. A flow chart might be used to explain a scientific process, for example.

Auditory learners.
This learning style describes students who learn best when information is heard or spoken. They benefit from lectures, group discussion, and other strategies that involve talking things through. “Often people with this preference want to sort things out by speaking first, rather than sorting out their ideas and then speaking,” VARK Learn Limited explains. To help auditory learners learn, teachers can post audio recordings of lessons on the class website, or incorporate group activities that require students to explain concepts to their classmates.

Reading & writing learners.
Learners who have a reading/writing preference prefer information to be presented using words. They love to read and perform well on written assignments such as stories or book reports. “This preference emphasizes text-based input and output – reading and writing in all of its forms,” VARK Learn Limited notes. A great way to help these students learn is by having them describe diagrams or charts using written statements. Then, they can study their notes later to better retain the information.

Kinaesthetic learners.
Kinaesthetic learners learn best when they can use tactile experiences and carry out a physical activity to practice applying new information. “People who prefer this mode are connected to reality, ‘either through concrete personal experiences, examples, practice or simulation.
Give these students a working example of an idea or process, or task them with recreating experiments to illustrate concepts. Sometimes this is just a case of trial and error to find out what works and what doesn't.

Ensuring you give a client centered lesson should mean that you are making the lesson around your pupils needs and this should incorporate how they prefer to learn.


11. Was the pupil encouraged to analyse problems and take responsibility for their learning?

Did you give your pupil a chance to speak?
Did they have chance to analyse what happened, was it good bad or indifferent?
Could they distinguish where things were good and what made it good and could they work out why things maybe didn't go so well and understand what they could do differently to make it not happen again.

One of the biggest reasons why instructors get marked down in this subject is because they over instruct.
If you don't stop talking, how can you pupil analyse what they have just done?

Ask questions such as "How did that go?"

Learning tends to take place more if a pupil can take responsibility for their learning and analyse when things go wrong. Give them a chance to analyse faults. If they have no idea what may have gone wrong there is nothing wrong with you stepping in and assisting (it's what you are there for) but don't jump in straight away, allow them time to think over what happened, how they could change what they did, and how by changing things the result could be different. Then let them put that into practice.

Continue to ask questions such as " How could we do that differently next time?" & "What might we achieve by doing it that way instead?"

Find a way of helping them to understand how they rectified the issue so that it doesn't happen again. This might be by taking notes, watching a video at home as homework, reading a section of the Highway code. Whatever it may be, help them to find a way that they can process the information and instill a way of them taking responsibility for their learning.


12. Were opportunities and examples used to clarify learning outcomes?

Highlight the good drivers on the road, don't highlight the bad ones!
By getting your pupil to point out good drivers it reinforces learning the correct methods.
These good drivers are opportunities and examples to clarify their learning.

Get your pupil to express items that they have an understanding of and also a misunderstanding of.

Ask them if things made sense, give examples of real life situations where things may have gone right and likewise where they may have gone wrong and see if your example makes sense to them. Possibly get them to delve deeper into that particular example and ask them what they feel about it.

As with item 11, give your pupil time to think about their answers, don't just jump in and give them yours.


13. Was the technical information given comprehensive, appropriate and accurate?

This is a crucial subject!
The information you give to your pupil MUST BE ACCURATE! If you do not know the answer that's fine, we can't possibly know everything about everything.
But don't just guess and give an inaccurate answer. Explain to your pupil that at the moment you can't give them a concise answer to their query but to let them leave it with you and you will get back to them. And indeed GET BACK TO THEM.
Obviously, you'll be expected to know the most basic stuff like priorities, road signs, speed limits etc etc, but some more technical information may require a little investigation and that's ok, but just reassure your pupil you will find out the correct information and get back to them.

I've heard stories where pupils have been told if they need to use an emergency phone on a motorway it will cost them £200 just to pick the phone up!
I've heard others that it's illegal to carry out a U-turn on a mini roundabout! It's not advisable due to the limited space, but it's not illegal!

If you supply this sort of mis-information to your pupils they will take it as gospel because YOU are the professional! 

Use language that the DVSA use as well, things like Dead End Road instead of No through Road is not good, it sets up a bad habit with your pupils to not know the true meaning of things. This overtime can get broken down even further and before you no it, that "Dead End" becomes a No Entry. It's a little like Chinese whispers, it just grows and grows.
Using good terminology and facts keeps the information comprehensive, appropriate and accurate.


14. Was the pupil given appropriate and timely feedback during the session?

When feedback needs to be given, ensure that it not too late.
There is no point commenting about something that happened five minutes ago, your pupil will probably have forgotten about it.
If it needs to be given then ensure it is given at the correct time. If it cannot be done on the move, ensure you highlight it there and then and then address it as soon as you can when it is safe to do so.

Appropriate feedback is not by saying things like "that was good"

What was good?

Elaborate! 
"Excellent job with those mirror checks, that's much better than the last junction"
"Well done on reducing your speed before that tight bend"
"Great positioning in the road to allow you to see around the parked vehicle"
Even if it's not a good thing your pupil has done, you may still give appropriate feedback such as
"Good job with your rear view mirror check before slowing down, but was there another mirror we should have checked before turning left?"
"Did we need to signal to exit the roundabout?"

Make sure your pupil understands when things are good or bad but ensure it makes sense to them and is given in good time.


15. Were the pupils queries followed up and answered? 

If your pupil asks a question, ensure that it is answered!
If it's not a suitable time to answer it then make a note and come back to it before the end of the lesson.
Try and ensure that whilst talking with your pupil that you look at them to read their body language. A look of confusion on their face can lead to you asking further questions to ensure they have fully understood what has been said or elaborate on the information so that it does make sense.

As with 13, if you are unsure of the answer to a question, definitely reply to your pupil that you will find the answer and get back to them.


16. Did the trainer maintain an appropriate non-discriminatory manner throughout the session?

This not only covers what is going on inside the car but also outside of the car!
Negative or derogatory comments about other drivers, their driving skills or techniques, the make of their car, their appearance, etc all are information that does not get shared with your pupil.
No subject, whatever your feeling are towards it should be remarked on. Cyclists,Horse riders, BMW's, White van drivers, someones size, how good looking someone may be or how ugly you think someone may be, it's your opinion and should remain in your head at all times.

Your pupil is your pupil, they are not your "flower, petal, darling, babe, mate, sweetie etc. 
You refer to your pupil by their name or a name that they prefer to be referred to as.

It can be really stressful at times, especially with the current level of poor driving that we see on today's roads, but it is not your job to remark on someone else's bad driving. None of us are aware of the true circumstances or state of mind of another driver, and their reasoning for driving as they are, but  there may actually be a justified reason as to why they have just overtaken 20 cars in a really dangerous manner.
It may be that they have a seriously ill child in the car and they are rushing to hospital. It's not be an excuse to the fact that they have put other drivers or pedestrians at risk by doing so, but in the here and now, the only thing that may be going through their mind is that they need to save that child's life.
There will be other drivers that are just not paying attention because someone may have just died in their family and their mind is somewhere else other than on driving and mistakes may be made.
Relationships cause people to do out of the norm driving, and likewise just people being overly happy can also cause they driving to become erratic.
For us, we just have to keep the situation safe and carry on without judgement.


17. At the end of the session, was the pupil encouraged to reflect on their own performance?

Set up the next part of their learning journey based on what they have progressed with today. 
Get the pupil to reflect on how they did. Possibly by scaling them at where they felt they were at the start of the session and where they are at the end.
Find out what made their results better..... or worse, and how they can build their skills even further on the next session
Scaling works well from 1 -10
1 being really inexperienced and 10 being awesome
Irrelevant of where you think their score should be, it's their score in their mind of where they are. It's not for you to judge either way.
If you thought they were a 4 and they reckon they are an 8 that's fine!
Questions that then need to be asked  are things like "Great an 8, so how can we turn that 8 into a 9?" or "What could we do differently to increase that score further?"

Likewise, if they scored themselves with a 4 and you thought what they had done deserved an 8, delve a little deeper with them as to why they felt a 4?
Still ask them what they feel they need to work on to make that score a 5 or 6, if there are only a couple of items that need rectifying, maybe you could consider praising them on spotting the things they need to rectify but also build them up a little saying something like " Based on the things you've told me that need rectifying, which I agree with you on, maybe you've been a little bit harsh on yourself and that because there are only a couple of tiny things to resolve maybe your initial score could have been a little higher? "How do you feel about that?"

They may say for now they want to keep the score as it is and work each week to build it up, which is great as it gives them a target to aim for. 
Alternatively, they may feel that yes maybe they were a little harsh on themselves and that by breaking down what needed working on they've realised they are a bit better than they first thought.
This will do good for their self esteem, but whatever way they score themselves, it is not our job to say whether their score is right or wrong, it is their score not ours, our job is to get them to understand if more is required of a subject and coax the pupil in a way to see that they are on track or that additional improvement needs to be made.

Discuss with your pupil what they would like to look at on the next session and how they can incorporate what they learnt today into the next session.
The more feedback and reflection you can get out of the pupil the better.








Reasons why we ask questions
  1. To enquire Knowledge
  2. To eliminate confusion
  3. To cause someone to feel special/important
  4. To guide a conversation in a direction
  5. To demonstrate humility to another
  6. To enable a person to discover answers
  7. To gain empathy through better understanding
  8. To influence or alter someone's opinion
  9. To begin a relationship
  10. To strengthen a relationship
  11. To humbly show we have knowledge on a specific topic
  12. To stimulate creativity
  13. To gain a person's attention
  14. To solve a problem
  15. To reach and agreement or to agree or disagree with clarity
Ways to start a question
This list is by no means exhaustive, and there are hundreds of other ways to start a question.
It's all about you finding ways to start them to encourage an answer
  1. Is there
  2. Tell me
  3. And that's
  4. Have you
  5. Do you
  6. Is it
  7. Is that
  8. Can
  9. Would
  10. I wonder
  11. OK?
  12. Sound alright?
  13. Show me
  14. Shall
  15. Describe to me
  16. Could you
  17. Give me
  18. What will
  19. What could
  20. How
  21. Why
  22. When might
  23. Who should
  24. If you
  25. Where might
  26. Where can
  27. Who might
  28. Could I

Open or
Closed
Questions.
When looking for a pupil to explore their knowledge we need to be asking them Open questions.
This will lead to them trying to find an answer with more than a one word response and give us a better understanding of their understanding.

Closed questions tend to resolve with just a one word answer and won't give as much response as you may have wanted from your learner.

Unless specifically required based on the circumstances, Open questions will always get a learner thinking more.

A closed question however, might be used to entice some quick action from your learner on something they may have missed.
Let's just make a situation up.
You're driving along a 40mph road, there are traffic lights ahead that have been green for some time. As you get closer the lights change to amber but you have seen no response from your pupil to show they they intend to slow down or stop.
It may be that they are just going to hit the breaks hard as they get closer to the lights, it may be that they think they will make it through before they go red, or it may be that they just haven't seen the lights at all.

An easy closed question could be

"Are you going to stop?"

This could activate their senses to be looking where they had not been looking (the lights) and will evoke them to coming off the gas and introducing the brakes.

As long as the question is asked in good time, you will have given the pupil time to react, or time to step in if the need arises.

Making an open question might take too long to evoke a response from your pupil, and you'll end up intervening anyway. 
Obviously you want to intervene as little as possible, so early communication is essential. 


Open
Question

Why should we slow down on approach to traffic lights?
answer will possibly be, because they could change at anytime and there may be pedestrians crossing.

Closed 
Question.

Is this a 30mph road or a 40mph road?
Answer will be either 30mph or 40mph.

Open Question

Where would it be suitable to leave at least a 2mtr gap and drive at 10mph?
Answer will possibly be,
When we need to pass a horse and rider on the road.

Closed Question

Can we stop here?

Answer will possibly be 
Yes/No.

National Standard for Driver and Rider Training

Understanding your requirements to become an instructor to the National Standards
Click the link below.

NSDRT
Click Here
17 Comp in depth