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Choosing the right instructor for you
by Mark Jones
So I decided to have another go at this blog malarkey - I’m getting quite into it now! This time I’m going to take a look at a very important subject in my opinion - how you go about choosing the correct driving instructor for you.
Now this might actually sound a bit flippant right now because of recent events you are probably finding it difficult to even find an instructor with space to fit you in. As I’m sure you are aware, COVID meant that driving instructors stopped working for about 7 months and unfortunately we have not recovered from the backlog that was created. When you combine this with the fact that many instructors left the business or have retired since COVID and we haven't replaced these instructors in the same numbers, although we are trying our best, the demand is simply far greater than the availability. We are doing everything we can to get as many of you driving as possible, however we are only human and can only do so much so please bear with us during this challenging time.
Now, back to the subject at hand. There are many ways that you can look for a driving instructor and the simplest of these is to ask your friends. Ask for recommendations from your friends as usually they will give you an honest opinion of what they actually think of their driving instructor. If they were good for them then there's a good chance that they'll be good for you too. Just one word of caution, however, as good as a recommendation can be it doesn't always mean the instructor that they had will be suited to your needs. Like I have said before, we are all unique and different personalities and backgrounds can require a different approach.
Another popular way to find an instructor at the moment is to post on Facebook sites asking for recommendations in your area. What tends to happen here is that lots of instructors will be recommended and they are usually all very good. The downside to this approach, as well as the friend recommendation, is that if they are very good then they are likely to be booked up for months.
So let’s look at other ways to find an instructor. The most common way after asking friends is to check on the government website which will give you a list of all the instructors in your area. The benefit of doing this is that you can actually access more information about the instructor, including what grade they are. Now at this point I should mention that all instructors have to go through an Ofsted style process where they are assessed to ensure that they still teach to a specified standard. This should ensure that you get a good instructor, or at least an instructor that knows what they're doing. At the very least you would have been able to find an instructor that met a specific set of standards in a single hour on one specific day!
I have also heard of people using MOT data to help them choose a driving instructor! It is very easy to track down which car a specific instructor is using on their Facebook pages and put their number plate onto a government website and it will give you the data on the car’s MOT etc. However, I have to say I think this is an awful way to choose a driving instructor but it's up to you! I mean how can understanding or knowing how a car failed its MOT actually tell you how good the driving instructor is? All it can possibly tell you is roughly how much the driving instructor has spent to keep that car on the road. How can that possibly relate to qualities that the driving instructor may have and their ability to teach you to drive? Just saying...
I suppose you could even look on their website. Most websites will give you all the information that you need about the driving instructor or more specifically the information that the driving instructor wants you to see. Just because the instructor has a flashy website does not mean they are the right instructor for you or even a good instructor. I suppose you can look at reviews from students which is a better way of actually doing things, as these will give you an honest opinion of what the student actually thinks. However, reviews are always subject to interpretation, maybe the driving instructor has even suggested to the the students what sort of things to put on the review, or does that make me just sound really cynical? I also know of many driving instructors that do not ask their students to write reviews, and have basically no interest at all in social media and they are some of the best instructors out there.
I have also seen people choose their driving instructor based on the cheapest package that is out there. And this can mean that they pay quite a considerable chunk of money up front, to then find out that the instructor that they have gone with isn't the right instructor for them! At this point what do you do, cancel your lessons and lose loads of money or have lots of time arguing over how much money you're going to get back or do you carry on having lessons which obviously don't suit you and therefore you continue to not learn in the way that you need? There is a lot to be said for having one lesson where you actually pay the full cost of a driving lesson and don't book a package until you know that the driving instructor that you are with is the right one for you. I understand that learning to drive is a costly process but trying to save money in the outset could end up costing you more in the long run.
So now comes the interesting bit - what makes a good instructor for you? The perfect instructor for you is one that will listen to your needs and adapts their lessons and their teaching strategies to make things easier for you. This modern version of driving tuition is something called client centred learning, which could and should mean a completely new way of teaching people how to drive. To be fair what it should mean is that it's the correct way to teach people to drive because it is based on the needs of the driver and not the needs of the teacher. Over many many years, driving tuition has very much been - I am the instructor, you will do what I tell you to do to pass your test - and this does not necessarily make it easy for the average person to learn to drive. In fact it can actually be quite detrimental to some students, particularly those who have anxiety around driving and those students who are neurodivergent.
When you combine this with the fact that you need somebody that you can actually work with and that you feel comfortable with, it then becomes much more difficult to get the perfect fit for you. I have a student at the moment who came to me after six or seven lessons with somebody else because they were getting back from their lessons in tears. The instructor that they learning with originally is a very good instructor and actually a friend of mine, however, it was obvious that the relationship between the student and the instructor was strained and subsequently it meant that the student was not learning in the way that they needed to. So I take the student on and try a slightly different approach to the other instructor and now the student is learning at an incredibly fast pace and has the confidence to drive their own car with one of their parents sat with them.
So there are lots of ways to choose a driving instructor and lots of things that you should consider before making your final decision. If you are looking for a driving instructor that has specific qualities then you need to make sure that you listen to friends and/or family and look at reviews and these things may point you in the direction of the right kind of instructor for you. Don't pay for a big block before you know that the instructor is the one for you. Make sure that you feel comfortable with them. You are basically putting your trust in that person and if it feels like you can’t do that, then move on and look for someone else. It’s important to go with your gut. Staying with an instructor you don’t feel comfortable with, for whatever reason, could mean you are making an already challenging process more difficult than it needs to be.
The final thing that I would say if you know that you have a certain instructor in mind for either yourself or for a family member then make sure you book early. I have heard the phrase ‘you had 17 years to book a driving lesson and you leave it till a week before their birthday?’ Be that person who has booked in plenty of time so that you can get the instructor that you want.
You may wonder why I am asking this question and it’s simply because I have spent a large amount of time chatting with my driving instructor colleagues and friends and they have told me about the various mistakes that their students do whilst attempting fairly basic manoeuvres on their lessons. And it has occurred to me that a large part of the problem with lots of students is their tendency to rush around like headless chickens (as my grandmother was fond of saying!). And this I’m afraid to say is an absolute waste of your time and money and effort. Now that may sound harsh to some of you, although those of you that know me would think it was pretty standard. So take a deep breath and I will tell you why rushing whilst learning to drive is simply not going to get you anywhere. During what we consider ‘normal driving’, when you are approaching any basic situation that requires a response, such as taking a left turn or approaching a roundabout, your instructor has probably gone through a simple routine with you: • Mirrors – to see what is around you • Signal – to let others know what you are doing • Position – to make the next bit easier and also communicate your intentions • Speed – adjusting speed to allow for the next bit • Look – to see if it’s clear To get all of this done before you get to a junction means that you will have to start going through this procedure quite far away from the junction. Not only that but you also need to think about the following things whilst carrying out and finishing the manoeuvre: • Look • Assess • Decide • Act So looking at it like that, it is clear that there is a lot to deal with when approaching a junction/roundabout. As well as constantly assessing the situation, deciding what to do in the moment based on the traffic conditions and then acting on all this information before getting to the end of the manoeuvre, that is quite a big chunk of stuff to get through. Rushing simply reduces the amount of time you have to do all of this. Think about it - how is it possible to get all of that done in a very small amount of time? Trust me, you can’t. So if you want to feel more in control in these situations, then you quite simply have to slow down. You need to give yourself time, and allow yourself the time to make the decisions that you need to make to drive safely. While we are on the subject of rushing around like a crazy person, you must also realise that when you’re trying to get everything done very quickly, are you actually creating tension. This tension then makes it more difficult to make clear and safe decisions and carry out the actions that are necessary in a timely manner. So this is yet another symptom of being in a rush, increasing your own anxiety levels which will undoubtedly lead to you making further mistakes and thus the cycle of rushing escalates. Trying to get things done too quickly leads to mistakes and in your driving test this can cause problems which can range from failing your driving test to putting yourself and others in danger. As an instructor, I have seen that on countless occasions if a student manages to slow themselves down, and I am not just talking about speed, then they actually manage to drive much better. By slowing yourself down, both physically and mentally, you are giving yourself time. While you are learning to drive, time is a very important commodity. Why do you need time? Simple, having as much time as possible to make the ongoing decisions that you have to make whilst driving is only going to improve your skills, reduce your anxiety and make you a much safer driver. Giving yourselves time is probably one of the best things you can do for yourself when you are behind the wheel. So to illustrate my point about the impact that rushing can have on your driving, I will use one of the most basic things - how you change gear. Now, we do not need to change gear like a scene out of the Fast and Furious franchise do we! I am not Vin Diesel and you are not Paul Walker and I have no desire to watch you change gear with such ferocity that you pull the gearstick out of the floor and hand it to me in the passenger seat saying “Does this belong to you?”. You may laugh, but I have seen numerous students change gear in such a way. Thankful I’m not a sensitive soul but even I have been pretty unimpressed by that, and my car definitely does take offence! You may think that that is me being oversensitive, but if I was to drive your car like that, I am sure that you would complain about the lack of sympathy I showed it. Now let’s talk about braking. If you are in a rush, you are more likely to brake at the last second and you will probably have to brake hard because you’re going faster then you should be. This runs the risk of creating instability in the vehicle and subsequently risking an accident. Now you have moved on from upsetting your instructor to actually being a risk to yourself and those around you. If you rush you have much less control of your vehicle and when you have less control of your vehicle the risk of causing an accident are very much increased. The same can be said about being in a rush when moving away, as you may not have sufficiently checked your surroundings and subsequently may move off putting yourself and others in danger. Steering is another area where people seem to rush what they are doing. Some people seem to yank at the steering wheel like they are a gorilla trying to rip the arms off another gorilla! Again I’ve conjured up a rather bizarre image but I think you get the picture. If you are pulling on the steering wheel too quickly again, you run the risk of unsettling the vehicle and potentially losing control of said vehicle. Why put yourself at that risk? All you have to do is to ensure that you turn the steering wheel smoothly enough to get the vehicle around the bend or object you are trying to pass. So yet again, we keep coming back to this idea, taking your time is going to be much safer than being in a bit of a rush. Taking your time also leads to a sense of calm. And in turn that sense of calm should lead us to a better standard of driving. And ultimately a better standard of driving leads us to feeling happier. Therefore we should always make sure we take our time so that we can enjoy driving because it’s easier than we expected. At the end of the day we want to drive safe and take the time to be able to make the decisions that we need to make. Being able to act on the decisions that we have made. Getting to our destination safely in a great mood with a lack of anxiety, feeling like we could do it all over again. How on earth are we supposed to do this rushing around driving like a cross between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen? Those guys are paid millions and millions of pounds because they are the very best at what they do. If you were that good you wouldn’t be trying to pass your driving test. You would probably have somebody else driving you around on a day-to-day basis. And when you did drive, you would be earning mega money and might be on on your way to becoming the next world champion. So do us all a favour - drive safe, pass your driving test, and enjoy your freedom at a pace that is comfortable, steady, and that which allows you to do all of the things you want to do in a happy and relaxed way :-).
Here are ten of the most common reasons people fail their driving tests and suggested ways to avoid them. From incorrect positioning to a lack of observations, here are the main reasons named by the DVSA that students fail their driving tests.
As a driving instructor one of the worst questions I get asked, before someone even sits in my car for the first time, is “How many lessons will I need, my dad only had 7?” Well, I am one of those dads who only had 7 lessons and I actually didn’t pass first time. I was lucky enough to have had many hours of practice around my home on the Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire border and I also drove to North Wales and back to visit my family. My dad was a very patient guy which no doubt made a huge difference in my journey of learning to drive. So “How many lessons will I need?” you ask - the simple answer is that I have no idea! That may sound flippant but at this stage I don’t actually know you and I have no idea how you drive and more importantly I have no idea of how you learn. The main thing that we as instructors need, to help you, is to understand how you learn. That may sound a little weird as most people think that anyone can teach you to drive but what you actually need is someone who can unlock your ability to learn quickly and safely. The government says that you require approximately 48 hours of tuition as well as private practice. I would like to say that this is massively different for everybody. As a driving school, we try to get you ready in the best way we can and not to focus on the actual number of lessons but on the individual and the way that they learn. And there is a vast difference between people, their backgrounds and the ways in which they learn. To show you what I mean, here are a few examples of some of the people I have taught over the years. First we will start with a guy, let’s say his name is Jeff. The only problem is that when I hear “My name is Jeff” - I cannot help but laugh - as all I see is the scene from 22 Jump Street when they are pretending to be Mexican gangsters. Maybe it’s just me! Anyway, back to the Jeff in my story... Now Jeff had actually been driving a rally car for many years and had more skill than most drivers I will ever teach. So it probably won’t surprise you to learn that Jeff only took 10 hours (including his test!) and he passed with one driver fault. Now I could complain about that one driving fault but we will let him off this time with a warning that he should check his blind spot every single time that he moves away from the side of the road. In fact I did complain and maybe I was possibly a little harsh with him on the way back from the test but it’s OK, he got over it! Next, we have Farmer George, now he only took seven lessons including his test. He actually got three driving faults, mainly for taking too much time. In other words driving too slowly and not making appropriate speed for the road conditions. Farmer George had already passed his tractor test and had been driving on the road in his tractor for approximately 10 months. You could say the failure to make progress was down to the fact he was used to driving slowly because he’d only ever driven a tractor! Or it could have been that was being too careful to make sure that he didn’t speed and get any fault for driving too fast. His success could also have been in part due to the fact that the examiner was the same guy who passed him on his tractor test and this was a massive help in making Farmer George feel at ease with the whole process. Who knows but taking 7 lessons is considerably under the government’s ‘48 hours of tuition’ guidelines! At the other end of the scale is my next example. Her name is Chris and she decided she needed to drive at 62 years of age! Never having had a single lesson before. And when I asked why she had left it until now? She told me that they hadn’t had the money spare to do it before now. Honest and to the point. And I’m sure she wouldn’t mind me saying this but the older you are really does affect the number of lessons you need because it becomes much more difficult to assimilate information and act upon it. Chris actually passed her test at 64 years old on her 5th attempt. Definitely one of my proudest moments as a driving instructor. So before you all shout about the fact that the people I’ve talked about so far are not comparable, that is exactly my point. Of course they are not comparable, everyone is an individual. No two people are alike and they certainly do not learn in the same way. What these examples do show is that it’s impossible for me to answer the question “How many lessons do I need?” before you get in my car because I have no idea who you are and what your background of driving is? Every person is different and every person’s story is different too. Now maybe this is the right time to address the huge elephant in the room - mental health and other issues such as neurodiversity? My middle daughter is neurodiverse or whatever the current terminology is at this point. I have known quite a few different labels for what is currently neurodiverse, so I apologise for digressing. She took 16 weeks to pass her test from when started having lessons to taking her first and only practical test. She would have done it sooner but would not take her theory test until she scored 50/50 on the mock tests. Until she was getting that on a regular basis she would not even let me book the theory test, in case she failed it. When she finally took it, she ended up angry as she only scored 49/50! She found it so hard to deal with that and as a result it took her a few more weeks before she would let me book her practical test. So when it came down to it, it wasn’t her about her natural ability to drive, it came down to the way that she felt about actually doing the tests. I have another student called Harry, also neurodiverse, and he has had many more lessons than my daughter ever did. But the difference here is that he also has anxiety about being on the road. So how can we compare these two people - they are so different and yet labelled the same? So finally there’s Jacob, a very outgoing and seemingly confident young man. But when he got anywhere near a test situation, he actually shook and had one of the worst cases of disco leg that I have ever seen. Could I have done even more lessons to get him to pass in a manual or was it simply changing to an automatic car that gave him the confidence to pass because he no longer feared stalling during his test? And this was not something I simply knew the first time I met him, it was something I figured out as we got to know each other and I started to understand what he needed to help him learn. So where do these different examples leave us in the question of “How many lessons do I need?” Well in simple terms right back at the start! I still cannot say with any definitive certainty as there are so many variables to take into account for every person that I teach. There are factors including the previous experiences of the individual, how old they are, their levels of anxiety, whether or not a student is neurodiverse….I could go on! So how is it even possible to give an answer when some or all of these factors could be in play. All we can do is take you out on the road and try to assess what your needs are and how we can help you to learn as soon as we can. Once we’ve had a look at your needs and combined that with your previous experience, we might be able to suggest how many more hours of training you may possibly need. Did you notice how non-commital that sentence actually was – ‘may’, ‘suggest’, ‘possibly’? The truth is we can only suggest what we actually believe at that time. This may change from lesson to lesson too as you may find that you may have good lessons, which suggest you may need less and yet on other lessons you may have many difficulties which would suggest even more hours than you hoped you would need. All that I can conclude is that everyone is an individual with needs that are individual and that we will be doing our best to help you at every point through the learning process. All I can suggest is that you are as open and honest with your instructor as you feel able to be about any issues or insecurities that you think might affect you during this process so that together we can figure out how you learn and how to help you drive with confidence.
