How will you contribute to the driving training industry?

One of the challenges that meets newly qualified driving instructors is the problem that the behaviour that a pupil intends is not what actually occurs.  Bearing in mind that driving instructors do not require a teaching qualification this problem can sometimes cause great frustration and irritation to the instructor.  In this blog I will expand on this particular issue and discuss why this happens.

James takes a mock test with you which he fails as he was doing 35 in a 30.  Does that seem harsh to you?  Pupils do need to receive good quality feedback. You discuss this with James, it is not a new problem, he has been consistently wanting to drive at just over 30mph for a long time, he knows it, he knows you know it.  Where to go from here?  James is itching to do another mock test, because he just wants to show you that when he really really concentrates on his speed, he can manage to not go over 30mph.  So you do another mock test, sure enough, he passes with no speeding, and James is feeling really good about himself.  Hoorah!  Let’s book the real test then.  Has that speeding problem gone away?  Of course it hasn’t.  There is a disconnect between what James intends to do and what he actually does.  Here we are talking about speeding but it could equally be related to texting while driving, tailgating, drifting between lanes on a multi-lane roundabout, excessive acceleration or braking that makes for an uncomfortable ride.  As the driving instructor, you encourage the pupil to become aware of how they are driving, you check for understanding but there is no change in behaviour.  Hmmmmm…… that’s annoying isn’t it? 

One of the reasons why we have the level of distrust from car insurers about newly qualified drivers is due to how your ‘average’ driving instructor deals with this problem.  Many instructors will say to James after the 2^nd successful mock test “There you go James, you see, you CAN do it.  That’s all it requires, just need to focus like that when you are driving and you will be fine.  A couple of endorsements for speeding James and those points on your licence will mean you have to start all this over again, including the theory…. so, have you got that now then?”  James nods his head whilst thinking “I only wanted to prove I can pass your mock test”.

A glance at the GDE matrix shows us some pertinent considerations:

Regarding risk, we have sensation seeking, acceptation of risk, risky driving style.  Under self-evaluation we have risky tendencies, typically risky motives when driving, personal safety margins, realistic assessment of own skill, strengths and weaknesses regarding driving skills in traffic.  James' attitude to the risk associated with driving at 35 in a 30 may not match yours.   His thoughts on the subject might raise an opinion or belief that will not be changing any time soon – he may have formed this through his upbringing, due to the influence of friends or family members or it may simply be deeply ingrained in James.  My point is, unless we make attempts to understand the influencers on his behaviour, as a professional, how can we ever hope to assess the risk associated with it?

As our driving standard tells us and this blog has mentioned on many occasions, we can help develop a pupil’s self-awareness but at some point, it really is incumbent on our pupils to take responsibility for the outcomes of their learning process.  It will only be through open and honest conversations with pupils that we can ever hope for them to change driving behaviours.  At the core of your relationships with your pupils must be openness, integrity and respect.  On the whole, pupils do not enter into driving training with driving instructors to completely ignore any issue that crops up, what they do need assistance with however, is discovering what is affecting them to make the decisions that they are.  Right now, more than at any time since I have been in this industry, what is needed is some acknowledgement of how poor training affects outcomes – not in terms of passing driving tests, but in terms of developing safe drivers in the long term.  That accountability is sadly very much lacking.  We have car insurers telling our customers after they pass their driving test that the only way to make the insurance premium affordable is if they are continually monitored with telematics fitted to their car.  That consequence of the training provided is shameful and if you are coming into the industry now, it would be good to ask yourself what kind of driving instructor are you wanting to be: one who exacerbates this distrust in newly qualified drivers or one who seeks to assist pupils in truly changing driving behaviours for the better.

The choice is ultimately yours.


Tom Ingram provides payg driving training to trainee driving instructors 0775 607 1464  http://drivinginstructortraining.bigtom.org.uk/