Time for a New Driving Instructor?
The best driving instructors can turn a one-hour lesson into a long-term customer relationship.
From the learner driver’s perspective, this has numerous advantages. First, it creates a comfortable environment to learn in. Second, it means you’ll approach lessons in a better frame of mind. Third, you’ll get through the basics of driving faster.
Unfortunately, no student-teacher relationship continues on an upward trajectory. There comes a time when receiving a messaging from a new voice can benefit every student.
In this article, Driving Class helps you consider whether that time is approaching for you. Here are a few things to ponder when considering if you should change your driving instructor:
Are you learning something new?
You should feel like you’ve learned something in every driving lesson. This doesn’t have to be profound. It could be something as simple as reducing acceleration sooner when approaching a junction.
As your familiarity with a driving instructor grows, there’s less urgency on everyone’s part to remain on the same learning curve. That’s a good indication that you could benefit from a new driving instructor.
How’s your progress?
Where driving lessons are concerned, being more comfortable behind the wheel is a great sign of progress, but it hasn’t got a lot to do with the driving instructor — confidence tends to come with accumulated driving time.
Your driving instructor should constantly be challenging you to improve in every lesson. For example, if they know you’re weak in an area or lack confidence in another, they should be gently pushing you to confront those challenges.
If not? You know what the answer is.
Are you getting your money’s worth?
Remember that you’re paying upwards of €50 an hour. You deserve to receive a high standard of teaching (the average Irish secondary school teacher earns closer to €20 an hour.)
A good driving instructor can seem like a good friend and begin cutting corners (“I’ll be with you in 10 minutes.”) Sorry to say it, but it’s unusual for a driving instructor to remain a friend after your last driving lesson. They’re providing a service. You’re paying for it. It should be top class.
3 Tips for changing your driving instructor
- Don’t feel guilty: You’re not changing driving instructor because the current one isn’t a good person. You’re changing to benefit from different teaching styles.
- Do your research: Dig a little deeper before choosing a new driving instructor. Ask about their pass rates, and check the feedback that they’ve received from previous students.
- Ask them for a mock driving test: With a lack of familiarity, mock test with a new driving instructor can be a great way to simulate the driving test. A little personal distance is also more conducive to objective feedback.
Concluding remarks
The learner driver-driving instructor relationship is a crucial one. Here at Driving Class, we should know — we developed a platform for it.
But a good driving lesson is only a means to the end. Your goal should be to get your full driving licence as soon as possible. Shop around (we’ll help you). You’ll find there are more outstanding driving instructors out there than you ever considered.
