Effort and outcomes

You would like to think that when you go for your Part 3 test (or Standards Check once you have qualified), that the pupil you take with you will be focussed, high in energy, and putting in maximum effort.  Once again, this is where these DVSA tests differ with reality.  

Effort levels can vary enormously between pupils in daily driving instruction.  It is a subjective measure, so it can be hard to identify and quantify.

A pupil can be tired or lacking in motivation; disinterested, they could be thinking they are a complete failure.  There are many potential reasons why effort levels are low.

On normal 'pay as you go' driving lessons, I dare say that if an instructor detects a lack of effort, the session is a write off in terms of making progress in learning.  A waste of time and money for the pupil?  You could say that; if a pupil isn't learning or gaining positive experience.

In my driving school franchise, we do pay attention to this subject.  It is a necessary skill because younger pupils might not have the life experience to recognise that reduced effort levels in a learning situation do affect achievements in fixed hour scenarios.  

With pay as you go, if a lesson goes begging, the pupil books up another, there is no particular time pressure.  With fixed-hour contracts, pupils do need to know if their effort levels will affect outcomes.  

I spotted this with one pupil and enquired as to the reason for the reduced effort, and I received the response of: "Apathy".  Which is fine, of course, but as long as the pupil realises, it will very likely have an impact on outcomes.