Coaching is not just a case of asking questions (which instructors do already as part of their everyday teaching).  It is about asking questions which raise the awareness and responsibility from within the coachee.  There are many tools that instructors can use from within the coaching toolbox and the effects of using coaching with learners can be quite profound.

Sir John Whitmore & Ged Wilmot

To date, there has been little information available about coaching specifically for driving instructors. Last year, the University of East London ran its pilot course – a Postgraduate qualification in ‘Coaching for Driver Development’ in which a handful of the best professional driver trainers and coaches from all aspects of the driving world were invited to attend.  I was fortunate enough to be one of the delegates invited to attend that course, along with my good friend and colleague Kathy Higgins of Insight2Drive. We have recognised that courses and workshops for driving instructors are few and far between and so we have developed a one day coaching course specifically designed for Approved Driving Instructors.

The one day ‘Practical Coaching Techniques for Driving Instructors’ interactive workshop offers driving instructors essential information which can be incorporated into the everyday work of an ADI.  The content will include basic principles and benefits of using coaching in driver training, what makes a good coach, and lots of practical coaching techniques.  There are two workshop dates currently available, Monday 22nd February 2010 in Oldham and Thursday 18th March 2010 in Liverpool.

Both courses will be run by me (Ged Wilmot), Claire Wilmot and Kathy Higgins. Having a wealth of driver coaching experience, we are excited to be able to offer such a course to ADI’s throughout the North West of England.

The course fee is £139, which includes lunch and refreshments. Spaces are limited and going fast, so you’ll need to act quickly!

If you would like further information about the course, please contact Claire Wilmot on 07956 104160 or complete the contact form on the Active Driving Solutions website.

It seems to be a little known fact that a driver taking their driving test will not be faulted for simply failing to adopt the ‘pull-push’ steering technique.  In truth, this has been the case for over 20 years, but the ‘pull-push’ method has become so ingrained within the industry that many driving instructors still vehemently insist on its use.

A new paragraph has appeared in the latest amendments to the DT1 (DSA Examiners Guidance Notes) with regard to ‘control’.  You can access the full document here.

“To ensure uniformity, when conducting car or vocational tests and ADI qualifying examinations, only assess the candidate’s ability to control the vehicle and do not consider it as a fault if, for example, they do not hold the steering wheel at ten to two or quarter to three or if they cross their hands when turning the steering wheel. The assessment should be based on whether the steering is smooth, safe and under control.” (Crown Copyright)

Driver coaches are delighted that this important steering issue has been clarified, not because the pull-push technique is incorrect or dangerous, but because it opens the door for the introduction of coaching as a primary training method in driver training.

It seems that up to now many examiners and perhaps the majority of driving instructors have not got the message.  But at long last, this small amendment to the DT1 should help clarify the issue.

This has personally been welcomed by myself, who has had first-hand experience of ADI Part 3 examiners marking PDI’s down for not advocating use of the pull-push method during their instructional examination.

The main reason instructors give for insisting on the use of the pull-push technique is because of the increased risk of arm or facial injury due to the deployment of the airbag during a crash.  Indeed, I myself have perpetuated this belief over the years.  However, it has emerged that there are no factual studies to back up this claim – simply hearsay and quotes from unverifiable sources.  In any case, it is likely that the driver will cross their hands anyway, just before the point of impact, in an attempt to avoid the collision.

And what is one of the first things most new drivers do after passing their driving test?  They leave the pull-push method behind and begin to steer ‘naturally’.  Drivers do not crash because of how they steer – they have crashes because of the way they plan (or fail to plan) their driving.

The ethos of driver coaching is that the learner is allowed to develop their own safe driving style, to become more aware and responsible drivers.  Insisting on an un-natural steering technique undermines this principle.

“So where do we go from here” I hear you ask?  Simple – allow your pupil to steer in the way that is most comfortable for them.  I’m not suggesting that you dismiss the pull-push technique – it is simply one of the methods for turning the wheel.  As long as the driver maintains safe control over the steering of the vehicle at all times, they can adopt whichever steering technique with which they feel most comfortable.

Remember here that the only part of steering methodology to which I am referring is in the way the wheel is physically turned.  It is still safer to hold the wheel in the conventional “ten-to-two” or “quarter-to-three” position, just as it is still safer to drive with both hands on the wheel.

But if we are to eliminate the damaging public belief that “you drive one way to pass your test, and another way when you’re on your own”, driving instructors need to ‘get real’ and begin to instil a true level of awareness and responsibility from the very first lesson.

But pass rates mean nothing when young drivers pass their tests and go on to have crashes.  The facts:

• An 18-year-old driver is more than three times as likely to be involved in a crash as a 48 year-old.
• One in five new drivers has a crash within six months of passing their test.

So at long last, it appears that the DSA are supporting the approaches that many driver trainers like myself have been pushing for for years – progressing from short-term instructional methods which tend to help learners pass the driving test, towards more active-learning methods which prepare learners for solo driving and to foster ongoing learning after passing their driving test.

The HERMES project began in March 2007 and will finish in March 2010.  Its main aim is to create a short 3-5 day training course for driving instructors to allow them to develop their ‘coaching” skills.  Click here to read the full state of the art report on “Coaching and optimal communication skills” for driving instructors – I would strongly recommend that all driver trainers read it, because this is the future of our industry.

I will be going down to the London next week for an exclusive Driver Coaching event with Sir John Whitmore and Dr Jonathan Passmore, along with 15 other leading industry specialists.  I will keep you up-to-date with what I find out, so keep checking the blog for more information