Competencies

Lesson Planning

Risk Management

Teaching and Learning Strategies

Lesson Planning

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

Do

• Encourage the pupil to say what they want from the lesson

• Ask questions to check the pupil's understanding

• Continue to check to understanding  as the lesson progresses

• Listen to what the pupil says

• Take note of the pupil's body language

Don’t

• Make assumptions about the pupil's experience or understanding

• Fail to notice negative or concerned emotions communicated through comments or body language

• Undermine the pupil’s confidence by continually asking questions clearly beyond their knowledge or understanding

• Push the pupil to address issues that they are not happy talking about unless there is a clear need such as an identified risk or a safety-critical issue

Top Tip

Encourage your student to set SMART goals.

The pupil’s learning goals should have been set at the end of the previous lesson. If your pupils are used to this, when you start your Standards Check lesson, you can ask a question along the lines of:

“Based on what we agreed last time, what would you like to achieve by the end of this lesson?”

SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-bound

 

Was the agreed lesson structure appropriate for the pupil's ability?

 

Do

• Check that the pupil understands what they plan to do and agrees to the plan

• Ensure the lesson reflects the information given by the pupil and the learning goals that they have set

• Build in opportunities to check statements that the pupil has made before moving to more challenging situations

• Check the pupil's theoretical understanding

Don’t

• Deliver a pre-planned lesson that does not take into account the pupil’s expressed needs or concerns

• Fail to deliver a suitable balance of practice and theory

Top Tip

The route and lesson structure should allow the pupil to progress at a manageable rate.

Ensure that you are 100% familiar with the area near the test centre where your Standards Check will be conducted. If this is not the case, either take plenty of time to familiarise yourself with the area or request that the Standards Check be conducted at a different test centre.

Plan a route that allows your pupil to develop as the lesson progresses. However, always be prepared to alter this route and/or repeat sections as necessary to best help the pupil improve.

 

Were the practice areas suitable?

 

Do

• Ensure your route contains a range of opportunities to work on the agreed learning objectives

• Ensure your route is challenging but realistic in terms of the pupil’s capabilities and confidence

Don’t

• Take the pupil to areas beyond their competence level

• Expose the pupil to risks they cannot manage

Top Tip

Use an area or route appropriate to your pupil’s ability level.

If the pupil has some local knowledge of the area why not include them in the choice of the route? For example:

“Do you feel ready to have a go on the big roundabout?”

 

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

 

Do

• Compare the actual performance of the pupil with their perceived performance level and clarify any differences

• Respond to any faults or weaknesses that undermine the original plan for the session

• Respond to any concerns or issues raised by the pupil

• Pickup on non-verbal signs of discomfort or confusion

Don’t

• Persist with a plan despite the pupil being clearly out of their depth

• Persist with a plan despite the pupil demonstrating faults or weaknesses that should lead to a rethink of the plan

• Change the plan without reason

• Fail to explain to the pupil why the plan has been changed

Top Tip

You should adapt the lesson plan if the student is: feeling uncomfortable, unable to deal with what is happening, or suggests to you that they are not enjoying the lesson or do not feel that they are learning anything.

 

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

 

Do

• Compare the actual performance of the pupil with their perceived performance level and clarify any differences

• Respond to any faults or weaknesses that undermine the original plan for the session

• Respond to any concerns or issues raised by the pupil

• Pickup on non-verbal signs of discomfort or confusion

Don’t

• Persist with a plan despite the pupil being clearly out of their depth

• Persist with a plan despite the pupil demonstrating faults or weaknesses that should lead to a rethink of the plan

• Change the plan without reason

• Fail to explain to the pupil why the plan has been changed

Top Tip

You should adapt the lesson plan if the student is: feeling uncomfortable, unable to deal with what is happening, or suggests to you that they are not enjoying the lesson or do not feel that they are learning anything.

 

Risk Management

 

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

 

Do

• Ask the pupil what is meant by risk

• In any given situation ask the pupil what has the potential to create risk

• Explain clearly what is expected of the pupil and what the pupil can reasonably expect from you

• Check that the pupil understands what is required of them whenever there is a change of plan or they are asked to repeat an exercise

Don’t

• Ask the pupil what is meant by risk

• In any given situation ask the pupil what has the potential to create risk

• Explain clearly what is expected of the pupil and what the pupil can reasonably expect from you

• Check that the pupil understands what is required of them whenever there is a change of plan or they are asked to repeat an exercise

Top Tip

Risk needs to be actively managed throughout the duration of a lesson. It is not just about mentioning the dual controls at the start (though on a Standards Check you should do that).

 

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

 

Do

• Give clear, concise directions

• Ensure that the pupil understands what they plan to do and agrees with that plan

• Give directions in good time so the pupil can respond suitably

Don’t

• Give confusing directions

• Give directions too late

• Give unnecessary directions

• Fail to recognise when your input is causing overload or confusion

Top Tip

Make sure you take the pupil's ability level into consideration when giving directions.

 

 

Was the trainer aware of the surroundings and the pupil's actions?

 

Do

• Take in everything that is happening outside the car

• Observe the actions of the pupil, including comments and body language

• Judge whether the pupil’s actions are suitable in any given situation

• Respond accordingly

Don’t

• Fail to observe both the pupil and the road environment

Top Tip

Any serious lapses in this area are likely to lead to a 0 marking on a real Standards Check.

 

 

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

 

Do

• Intervene in a way that actively supports the pupil’s learning process and safety during the lesson

• Allow the pupil to deal with situations appropriately

• Take control of the situation when the pupil is clearly out of their depth

Don’t

• Ignore a developing situation, leaving the pupil to flounder

• Take control of a situation that the pupil is clearly dealing with appropriately

• Constantly intervene when unnecessary

• Intervene inappropriately, creating distractions

• Undermine the pupil’s confidence

• Reinforce the idea that you, as the ADI, are solely in control of the lesson

Top Tip

Remember that your overall approach should be client-centred. There is a fine balance between providing enough and too much input. When stationary, inputs and interventions should be a dialogue between the pupil and yourself. On the move, for safety reasons, interventions may need to be direct and active.

 

 

Was sufficient feedback given to help the pupil understand any potentially safety-critical incidents?

 

Do

• Find a safe place to stop and examine the critical incident

• Allow the pupil time to express any fears or concerns the incident might have caused

• Support the pupil to reflect clearly on what happened

• Clarify aspects of the incident that the pupil does not understand

• Support the pupil to identify strategies for similar situations in the future

• Help the pupil when they do not understand what they should do differently

• Check that the student feels able to put the new strategy in place

• Agree with the pupil on ways of developing their competence, if they feel the need

Don’t

• Fail to examine the incident

• Take too long to address issues generated by an incident

• Prevent the pupil from exploring their own understanding

• Fail to check the pupil’s ability to put in place the agreed strategy

Top Tip

If a potential or actual safety-critical incident occurs, you must deal with it as soon as possible. It is vital that the pupil fully understands what happened and how they could have avoided it or handled it better. This will most likely mean having a discussion about the incident at the side of the road.

 

 

Teaching and Learning Strategies

 

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

 

Do

• Actively attempt to understand how you can best support the pupil’s learning process

• Modify your teaching style when or if you realise there is a need to do so

• Provide accurate and technically correct demonstrations, instruction and information

• Use practical examples and other similar tools to provide different ways of looking at things

• Link learning in theory to learning in practice

• Encourage and help the pupil to take ownership of their learning process

• Respond to faults in a timely manner

• Provide sufficient uninterrupted time to practice new skills

• Provide the pupil with clear guidance about how they might practice outside of the session

Don’t

• Adopt a teaching style that is clearly at odds with the pupil’s learning style

• Fail to check with the pupil whether the approach they are taking is acceptable

• Fail to explore other ways of addressing a particular learning point

• Concentrate on delivering teaching tools rather than looking for learning outcomes

• Ignore safety issues

Top Tip

Take everything that you know about your pupil into account to help you judge the best teaching style. Modern research shows that most people learn best from a mix of teaching styles and that learning styles can change over time based on situational and emotional factors.

One trick is to recognise when the pupil stops learning. If this happens take time to discuss with the student why this might be and agree or suggest different teaching methods that may encourage learning to take place.

 

 

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

 

Do

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

Don’t

• Leave the pupil feeling that you were in control of the teaching process

• Fail to explore alternative ways of addressing a problem in response to evidence of different learning preferences

• Provide unsuitable or incorrect inputs

Top Tip

• Leave the pupil feeling that you were in control of the teaching process

• Fail to explore alternative ways of addressing a problem in response to evidence of different learning preferences

• Provide unsuitable or incorrect inputs

 

Were opportunities and examples used to clarify learning outcomes?

 

Do

• Use examples identified during a lesson in a suitable way and at a suitable time to confirm or reinforce understanding

• Explore different ways to use examples in order to respond to differences in preferred learning styles

• Use examples that are within the pupil’s range of experience and ability

• Recognise that some pupils will be able to respond instantly while others will want to think about the

Don’t

• Use examples that the pupil cannot fully understand through lack of experience

• Use complex examples that the pupil doesn’t have the ability to respond to

• Fail to give the pupil time to think through the issues and come up with their own conclusion

• Impose your own interpretation

Top Tip

Use real-world situations during the lesson that help the pupil to understand when, how and why to use a particular technique. For example, ask the pupil to think about why mirrors are important when changing direction.

 

 

 

Was the technical information given comprehensive, appropriate and accurate?

 

Do

• Give clear, timely and technically accurate demonstrations or explanations

• Check the pupil's understanding and, if necessary, repeat any demonstrations or explanations

• Find a different way to demonstrate or explain if the pupil still does not understand

Don’t

• Provide inaccurate or unclear information, too late or too early in the learning process

• Fail to check understanding

• Fail to explore alternative ways of presenting information where the pupil does not understand the first offering

Top Tip

Make sure that you back up any information given with the appropriate amount of detail and explanation. For example, “you’re a bit close to these parked cars” is a reasonable statement to start a dialogue, but by itself may not help your pupil to understand or improve. How close? Why? What issues may this cause? How can the pupil improve?

 

 

 

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

 

Do

• Provide feedback in response to questions from the pupil

• Seek appropriate opportunities to provide feedback that reinforces understanding or confirms achievement of learning objectives

• Provide feedback about failure to achieve learning objectives that helps the pupil gain an understanding of what they need to do in order to improve

• Provide feedback that the pupil can understand

• Provide consistent feedback that is reinforced by body language

Don’t

• Provide feedback a long time after an incident so that the pupil cannot link the feedback to what happened

• Provide feedback that overlooks a safety-critical incident

• Continuously provide feedback when this may be distracting to the pupil

• Fail to check the pupil’s understanding of feedback

• Provide feedback that is irrelevant to the pupil’s learning objectives, for example commenting on their personal appearance

• Refuse to hear reasonable feedback from the pupil about your own performance

Top Tip

Feedback should take place throughout a lesson. Pupils should be encouraged when performing well and coached when a problem or learning opportunity arises. Feedback should be relevant, positive and honest. Remember that sitting quietly can also be a very powerful form of feedback in some situations.

 

 

 

Were the pupil's queries followed up and answered?

 

Do

• Respond openly and readily to queries

• Provide helpful answers or direct the pupil to suitable sources of information

• Actively check with pupils if their comments or body language suggest they may have a question

• Encourage the pupil to explore possible solutions for themselves

Don’t

• Refuse to respond to queries

• Provide inaccurate information in response to queries

• Avoid the question or deny responsibility for answering it

Top Tip

When the student asks a question you should deal with it as soon as possible. Remember that the pupil should be encouraged to discover solutions for themselves. However, you must provide the correct information where necessary and ensure the pupil understands it.

 

 

 

Did the trainer maintain an appropriate, non-discriminatory manner throughout the lesson?

 

Do

• Keep a respectful distance from your pupil

• Ask the pupil how they wish to be addressed

• Ask a disabled driver to explain to you what you need to know about their condition

• Adopt an appropriate position in the car

• Use language about other road users that is not derogatory and that does not invite the pupil to collude with any discriminatory attitude

Don’t

• Invade somebody’s physical space

• Touch the pupil, including trying to shake hands, unless it is necessary for safety reasons

• Use somebody’s first name unless they have said it is acceptable

• Comment on the pupil’s appearance or any other personal attribute unless it has a direct impact on their ability to drive safely. For example, wearing shoes that make it difficult for them to operate the vehicle’s pedals

Top Tip

Create an open, friendly environment for learning within your car. Actively respect your pupil, their values and what constitutes appropriate behaviour in their culture. If the pupil displays an inappropriate attitude towards other road users, be sure to challenge it.