Standards Check & Teaching & Learning Strategies

4. Standards Check & Teaching & Learning Strategies

You’ll remember from my earlier articles that there are three broad competencies against which ADIs are assessed in the new Standards Check introduced from April 2014. These competences are a means of assessing how well the ADI meets the National Driver and Rider Training Standard. (https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/226617/dsa-national-standard-driver-rider-training.pdf. ) 

I have already looked at the first two competences: Lesson Planning and Risk Management and described how many of the indicators that assess the competence of the driving instructor are interlinked. This article looks at the third competency: Teaching and Learning Strategies. Under this heading there are eight competency indicators:

• Was the teaching style suited to the pupil’s learning style and level of ability?
  
  
• Was the pupil encouraged to analyse problems and take responsibility for their learning?
  
  
• Were opportunities and examples used to clarify learning outcomes?
  
  
• Was the technical information given comprehensive, appropriate and accurate?
  
  
• Was the pupil given appropriate and timely feedback during the session?
  
  
• Were the pupil’s queries followed up and answered?
  
  
• Did the trainer maintain an appropriate non-discriminatory manner throughout the session?
  
  
• At the end of the session was the pupil encouraged to reflect on their own performance?
  
   
  
  
• Was the teaching style suited to the pupil’s learning style and level of ability?
  
  This is about adapting the way you teach to suit the way someone learns. If you are in the habit of giving briefings to everyone of your customers then you may be slowing down the learning of some of them, particularly if they have a more kinaesthetic learning preference. It is simply not true that the most effective way to learn is following the ‘Explain – Demonstrate – Practice’ (EDP) route. Unfortunately, for many of us, training to become a driving instructor was all about passing the Part 3 test with very little emphasis – if any - on how people learn; and now we have become conditioned to believe that this is therefore the way things should be.
  
   
  
  Consider how you got on at school. Did you have teachers you preferred over others or favourite subjects? Did everyone in your class share your preferences? ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ respectively is probably how you answered those two questions because everyone is different and each of us is unique in how we absorb and process information and therefore how we learn new things. Our interpretation of the world and our individual set of experiences, existing knowledge and understanding influence how we learn new knowledge and experiences. 
  
   
  
  When you are teaching someone to drive you need to adapt the way you teach to suit the way someone learns most effectively. This is not a hard and fast science and most people process information through a number of different channels. However, the most important thing to take on board is that when your customer is yawning whilst you are giving them a briefing, it is not necessarily because they were out partying the night before; it is far more likely to be because you are boring the pants off them and you need to change your method of communication. 
  
   
  
  My advice is to experiment with the way you do things in the car. Be creative and consider whether your customer is engaged in the lesson or bored and has switched off.
  
   
  
  
• Was the pupil encouraged to analyse problems and take responsibility for their learning?
  
  There is no need to jump in with the answer every time a fault occurs. If your customer stalls the car, for example, ask them if they know what just happened. This develops their ability to analyse problems, which is a crucial skill when they are driving independently. It might be obvious to you that the reason they stalled is because they have just tried to pull away in third gear; or that they brought the clutch up too quickly; or they forgot to release the handbrake; or they didn’t have enough gas. But is it obvious to them? No one gets things right all the time and, particularly in driving, it is easy to make mistakes. However, the ability to analyse why something is not working and put it right is very important and could easily mean the difference between a crash occurring or not. 
  
   
  
  
• Were opportunities and examples used to clarify learning outcomes?
  
  Learning outcomes are the same as goals and these were established at the beginning of the session. This links back to the Lesson Planning competency and is about taking advantage of the environment and recognising that there are plenty of opportunities that can be drawn on during the session that will help ensure the goals are achieved. For example, the skills involved in planning and anticipation can be developed on a number of different occasions so a goal, that has been set around deciding whether to give way or continue in meeting situations, could be developed when judging a safe gap on the approach to a roundabout or anticipating whether to give way at a pedestrian crossing.
  
   
  
  
• Was the technical information given comprehensive, appropriate and accurate?
  
  Taking a client-centred approach to learning does not mean that you cannot give information where relevant. Your expertise as an ADI is of vital importance when teaching people to drive safely for life. Some people seem to think that coaching is all about asking questions and nothing to do with giving information. This is an inaccurate interpretation of coaching or client-centred learning. Your role as a driving instructor is to teach someone safe driving skills that they will be able to apply and develop throughout their lives. Using a client-centred learning approach ensures that you engage with them in the way that is most conducive to their learning because research shows that this kind of learning sticks. Telling people how to behave /drive does not necessarily stay with them beyond the driving test. You have to determine when it is necessary to give technical information and when it would be more effective for the pupil to go away and research it. Nevertheless, when you give technical information you do need to be certain that it is comprehensive, appropriate and accurate. If you are not sure, go away and find out.  
  
   
  
  
• Was the pupil given appropriate and timely feedback during the session?
  
  Giving appropriate and timely feedback is about ensuring the goals agreed for the session will be met within the timescales and lesson plan already discussed. This particular competency indicator is not necessarily about dealing with faults because the overall competency is aimed at assessing your teaching and learning strategies. The use of feedback is a strategy that will enhance the pupil’s learning and therefore will be solution focused taking strengths (as well as weaknesses) into consideration.  In this respect, this indicator is linked to the others under this competency heading and, perhaps especially, the one about drawing on opportunities and examples to clarify learning outcomes. 
  
   
  
  
• Were the pupil’s queries followed up and answered?
  
  With good rapport any driving lesson becomes a two-way exchange of information, ideas and opinions. If the pupil is fully engaged in their learning then they may need to ask questions to check their understanding and assess their progress towards achieving their goal. It is important that you attend to their queries and ensure you are listening and remaining focused on their learning more so than your teaching. This does not mean that pupil’s queries should be answered immediately because sometimes this would simply not be safe or appropriate. Deflecting a question until a more appropriate time – pulled up at the side of the road – is all about you applying appropriate teaching strategies to maximise their learning. You might, for example, say, ‘Good question – let’s deal with this situation first and then we can discuss it in more detail when we are parked.’ 
  
   
  
  
• Did the trainer maintain an appropriate non-discriminatory manner throughout the session?
  
  There are two aspects to being non-discriminatory. One is ensuring that your attitude and approach to your customer is consistently non-judgemental. The other is not expressing what might be construed as judgemental views about other road users. 
  
   
  
  You might find yourself feeling frustrated or impatient with your customer because they don’t seem able to grasp the skills you are teaching. Remaining non-discriminatory or non-judgemental encourages you to consider different methods of engaging with them. It might be that the teaching strategy you are using does not suit their learning preferences and therefore they are really struggling to meet your expectations. Pupils are neither thick nor stupid – they simply need a different approach. 
  
   
  
  Commenting on other road users – whether the appearance of pedestrians or the way someone is driving – does little to accelerate the pupil’s learning or achievement of the goal set for the lesson. However, using the way someone is driving, or the potential outcomes of distraction caused by focusing on a particular type of pedestrian, as discussion points can be valid and constructive.
  
   
  
  
• At the end of the session was the pupil encouraged to reflect on their own performance?
  
  Reflection is a necessary part of learning. Reflecting on one’s own performance helps embed the learning that has taken place and determine whether or not the goal has been achieved. Reflection also develops self-evaluation skills and the ability to recognise strengths, limitations and development needs. This is crucial in ensuring your customer has the best chance of reducing their risk when driving on their own. At the end of the session you could ask your pupil to name three things they were particularly pleased with in their driving and discuss these with them so that they are able to articulate what it is that pleased them about each of these three things and whether there is anything they would want to improve on and develop further. This is an ideal opportunity for your pupil to consider what goals they would like to set for next lesson. 
  
   
  
  The new Standards Check has a focus on client-centred learning and offers for many of us the opportunity to realistically demonstrate what we do in our day-to-day driving lessons. Some of you will want to spend time developing your client-centred learning approaches and one of the most effective ways of doing this is to start the lesson by asking one or two of the following questions:
  
  
• Do you know how you learn best?
  
  
• What would you like to achieve out of today’s lesson?
  
  
• How can I help you?