How fast we learn

I keep an eye on forums, I keep in touch with fellow trainers.  One subject that often crops up is how fast someone can learn.  Everyone has an opinion on it.  I’ve just witnessed for myself how fast my 9 year old son can learn how to navigate around and operate ‘Sky’ along with a new Smart 3D tv; his parents could not assist him at all, and I don’t recall him referring to any instruction booklets!  It’s fair to say that in the space of a few days, he is a wizard on it!

But for the purpose of this blog, let’s set the scope of talking about learners who have never driven before getting to the standard of passing the learner test first time.  That way, it sets the context.

I’ve had good friends of mine openly question my stats on the rate of learning for my pupils.  They feel comfortable doing that, because they know me, they know I wont react to that question.  It’s a perfectly legitimate question.  One friend said that he normally expects it to take 3 times longer than the figure I was quoting in 2010.  I’m talking here about how many instructional hours on average it takes. 

The moment that a ‘teacher’ of anything, treats every single one of their ‘learners’ the same way, you are in danger of the effects of standardising.  Give a teacher in a secondary school a class full of 33 kids and give another teacher a class of 17 kids, leave them be for a term then bring them together to discuss ‘transfer of learning’ and I reckon within 30 seconds the theme of differentiation will crop up.   

“Right folks, THIS is what we are going to do today.  Those 3 objectives.  THIS is how we’re going to do it.  I need ALL OF YOUR ATTENTION.  It is very important we get through this, as we have much to do”.  Off they go.  The teacher then goes about setting tasks to aid learning.  It can be done a whole variety of ways, some may appeal to some kids, other kids will be switched off.  One consequence is that you get the enthusiastic, bright young lass at the front who always has her hand up to answer questions being held back by ‘Johnny’ who’s only contribution to the class is to slow everything down, like a heavy weight on the shoulders of the teacher. 

What factors affect the rate of learning to drive?

The instructor: What are his thoughts on the rate of learning?  He may well think that going too fast restricts the depth of learning, he may well want to earn more money by slowing down the rate of learning.  How motivated is he to get the learner to pass first time?  Passing first time might not be his idea of running a business.  Is he interested in adapting his methods of teaching so that they are interesting, fun, informative, meaningful and engaging to the learner?  Does he have any willingness to discover how his learner likes/prefers to learn?

The learner:  How motivated is he to learn to drive?  Is he physically able and willing to undertake a course of lessons on time?  What standard of driving is he wanting to achieve?  Does he feel any responsibility or ownership for how he learns, and what happens on his test?  Is he comfortable and happy with the car, the instructor, the timing and duration of lessons?  Are there any barriers to learning such as previous experiences causing fear/anxiety, learning difficulties, physical disabilities, problems of physical/mental alertness.  Is he prepared to consider his own attitudes and responsibilities as a driver?

The method:  Will there be any other learning going on outside of the driving lessons that supplement/reinforce the training?  Is the learner receiving training that meets his needs?  Does the scope of training meet the standard of the test?  Is the style of teaching effective for that learner?  Are there any factors such as budget or time that affect how regularly the training occurs and for what duration?  How is the progress of the learner measured?   How effective is the structure of the training sessions for that learner?  Is there opportunity for self-learning?

As driving instructors we have a say on the vast majority of the above.  We really can control many of the factors that affect rate of learning.  The only ones that our direct control is restricted on are the factors to do with the attitude/approach to learning from the actual learner.  I recall a couple of years ago not being made aware of learning difficulties of a learner.  He didn’t feel it necessary to tell  me, nor did the Father.  And yet both were openly frustrated with me for the inconsistent standard of driving he was attaining.  With the best will in the world, if parents are not going to disclose medical conditions to someone who is teaching their child a life skill, then any high expectations to do with rate of learning is completely irrational. 

You can be the best ‘teacher’ in the world, but until the ‘learner’ is wanting to learn, you have a job on your hands.  I make efforts at the very start to discover where the learner and his parents are on this subject of motivation.  I don’t feel it’s my responsibility to wake up one of my learners, so that they take a driving lesson with me.  Getting them out of bed is not part of the service!

Two examples spring to my mind straight away.  I have one learner who regularly turns up 5-10 minutes late.  He has missed 2 lessons so far because he couldn’t get out of bed.  He has got himself to a certain standard of about 20 hours in and has just stopped any lessons as he is too busy with exams.  This is a hard way to learn to drive.  The consequence of this approach of needing more lessons is not a problem for this particular learner who has wealthy parents.  The other example is with one learner who has completely changed his attitude to learning.  Previously he had a rather blasé, ‘what will be will be’ bordering on reckless approach to learning to drive.  He has very recently made a connection that this attitude to learning was affecting his rate of learning which was directly affecting the cost to him of learning to drive.  He is employed, his parents don’t pay for his lessons, so although that took a while for him to make that connection, boy has he made it now, this is one motivated person I now have. 

One last very real example I can give before I close.  I will never forget how demoralised I felt as a PDI when I was banished to the back seat while training with my trainer.  If when doing an exercise, I was struggling, he would say “Oh here we go again, Tom is thinking too much, swap over”, and the PDI in the back would take over, and I would go in the back seat.  Although I was in my late 30’s, I felt humiliated, demoralised, inadequate, delinquent, sad, angry, frustrated.  You can bet your house that affected my rate of learning.  I still see this trainer out and about to this day.  We must all be very careful indeed and aware that what we say and do cannot only affect the rate of learning, it can have deep effects on our learners.  If there is one thing I learnt from that experience it is that my customers (either learners or PDI’s) don’t pay me, for me to make them feel inadequate.  

It’s quite a complex subject.  This is probably why it generates so much interest and discussion amongst driver trainers.  But the important message I have for my PDI’s is that you can control to a very large extent the rate of learning to your learners if you choose to. 

The question is .... do you want to?