Parents
You need a driving instructor you can trust to teach your loved one to drive. Pete Davies is experienced at teaching pupils of all ages to drive. Please remember it is a lot more than passing the driving test. You need someone you can trust to teach them to drive safely for life, and teach them to be a good responsible and safe driver.
Notes for Supervising a Learner
The DSA driving test is very demanding. The sheer volume of traffic, the complexity of junctions, the speed of traffic and other drivers lack of manners, signals or basic understanding of the highway code make learning to drive extremely difficult for todays learners.
I welcome private practice for all pupils provided it is constructive and beneficial. Here are some tips to help make private practice more enjoyable and rewarding.
Supervising a Learner, The Law
You must be over 21 and have held a full license for the category of vehicle for at least 3 years.
The car must have insurance cover for the learner driver.
The car must have proper L plates fitted front and rear, so as not to restrict vision through windows.
L plates must be of the prescribed size, you can’t just make them up with a red biro!
You must not use a mobile phone whilst supervising a learner.
The supervising driver and the learner must not exceed the drink drive limits. So you can’t let them drive you home from the pub!
Safety
Fit an additional suction mirror so you can see what’s going on behind you. You can buy one from Halford’s for about £5.
Sit in the front seat and be ready to steer the car.
Don’t put yourself or your learner in a dangerous situation, plan out your route.
Structured learning
Each lesson with an ADI is designed to develop independence in an area of the pupils driving. The syllabus follows a proven structure beginning with car control then introduces road procedure.
Private practice should reflect the level of the pupils ability so that they can “practice”.
My system of teaching starts with talking about how the car works, what everything does then how to move the car and then stop it again safely. Then how to change gear. Then moving on to learn about basic corners, junctions and emerging.
Ideally the private practice should deal solely with the items covered on the previous lessons. The supervising driver may need to drive the learner to the same location that I used for the lesson to allow the practice then drive home again. I am happy to give guidance on what to practice and where to practice it.
Remember
Driving methods have changed a lot in the last few years, if you are paying for the services of an ADI please try not to tell the pupil that the ADI is wrong. If you disagree with, or are unsure why the pupil is doing something different from the way you would please phone me or speak to me after a lesson. Otherwise this could hinder the pupil rather than help them towards their learning and passing the test.
I am happy to discuss any aspect of the DSA test with supervising drivers to ensure that my pupils gain the most benefit from their private practice.
