Driving instructor wanting help.

[snoozinsusan]

Hi. I am a driving instructor wanting help with teaching a pupil. This pupil did not tell me he had dyspraxia until 2 days before his 3rd test when he got annoyed and said 'Damn the dyspraxia' or words to that effect. He went on to fail his test for reasons which I now know to be due to his dyspraxia.
I do feel guilty that I did not recognise his condition beforehand but if he had told me before his first lesson I would have researched and found the best ways to help.
I consider myself to be very patient and tailor lessons to each pupil and I use several different teaching aids.
So......Over to you to give me some tips and ideas. What methods have helped you? How can I recognise dyspraxic pupils? etc.
I have read other threads and have already learnt more about dyspraxia.
Did any of you tell the DSA (they conduct the tests) about your condition before your test? If so did they help in any way?
All suggestions gratefully received.

[peterkeegan]

Try asking them before the first lesson if they have Dyspraxia or any other Specific Learning Difficulties.

Seek advice from the Dyspraxia Foundation or ask the individual themselves if there is a way that things can be taught to them.

Most Dyspraxics if not all that want to drive tend find driving automatics easier as with mannual there is alot of coordination, concentration and multi tasking involved.

[snoozinsusan]

Thanks for the reply.

I have now put a question into my initial questionnaire so I hope to pick up various learning difficulties before lessons begin.

I had a good relationship with this pupil and he was a friend of my son so I don't think there was a barrier between us preventing him telling me about his dyspraxia. He also has a severe stammer in certain circumstances and I gave him plenty time to express himself.

I only teach in a manual car so will advise him to try auto. He does drive well at times. I would not have let him take his test if he wasn't competent. Would the dyspraxia be worse in stressful situations?

I qualified 2 years ago and I am always aiming to improve and widen my skills so all suggestions welcome.

[peterkeegan]

Dyspraxia does tend to be worse in stressful situations because the individual would be under pressure to think process and act fairly quickly and it can sometimes be the individual themselves that is putting themselves under pressure and stress.

[Starduster]

I passed my driving test and changed instructor while taking classes. My new instructor was very patient and calming, he was saying stuff like don't worry, it's okay, let them wait, and was very specific with his instructions, and gave me plenty of warning time before any maneuver and even talked some of them through. Now you put your foot on the pedal, then look at the mirror

Also stuff like how to put pressure on the pedal, instead of saying put a little pressure on the pedal, he would say imagine you've got chewing gum stuck to your foot and the pedal. He even taught me how to glance at the mirror, instead of saying glance at the mirror, I want you to move your head, glance at the mirror with both eyes open and tell me the colour of the car behind us.
I also took Valerian (herbal remedy) on the day of the test which relaxed me. He was great.

[sanabitur_anima]

That's good.

[Catwoman42]

I feel I only passed my test (4th time!) as I got the dates mixed up and thought my test was the next day. I explained that I was nervous to the instructor and added that part of the problem was that I didn't know which route he would take. He told me where we were going and it helped enormously. I hadn't been diagnosed when I was learning, knowing would have helped enormously. My driving instructor used to lose the rag with me as I would learn something one week and not be able to do it the next...Part of the problem too is that driving requires feet doing one thing, hands doing another and head doing sometjing else again! This is so difficult for dyspraxics! Patience, and thanks for asking.

[agsiul]

I only got diagnosed lately and I've been driving since 1993 so there might be no point asking if someone they're dyspraxic. They might not even know if they are. What helped with me was that my driving instructor was so patient and kept telling what I was doing well. He didn't bullshit me but didn't grind on about what I was doing wrong which is what everyone else would have done. He would talk me through everything. I had to learn in the dark because of timing and it helped because I couldn't look down at my hands which is what I would be expected to do. Whenever I was crawling along and people behind would be getting frustrated he would say not to worry because you were just as entitled to be on the road as they were and then he'd get me to pull in to let them pass with some excuse to explain something to meor something I had to practice. I got loads of lessons because I was really nervous. He gave me plenty of chances to practice the routes and talked me through everything that I needed to know. He would tell me not to panic if I couldn't remember the difference between my right and left hand and told me to tell the examiner if I made a mistake but to remember to check my mirror and change the indicator and not panic if I got confused. He told me that one girl wrote the L on her Left hand to remind herself. There was a sticker on the back window of my car and he showed me how to use it to do my three point turn and reversing round a corner. Mostly he was very calm and patient and made be calm down by his sheer conviction that I could learn. He listened to any worries I had and didn't dismiss them off hand but explained things to me over and over if needed. I moved before my exame so had to do lessons with another instructor....of them acutally cause I didn't like them and I failed the test. Went back later for another test and passed it. Did another few lessons with him before it. To be honest I'd say I'm a very careful driver but am very safe on the road as well

[agsiul]

I thought of something else....I kept using my eyes to look in the mirrors but the instructor would have to keep reminding me to move my head so that the tester could see that I was using the mirrors. This was really hard and he had to keep reminding me about it

[Osymandus]

@agsuil . Lol you just reminded me my instructor used to do that to me as well , and i used my perhiperal vision a lot and kept being told i handt looked (still passed on the 5th test )

[agsiul]

I know....I was trying to do it the other day in the car to see what it would be like...honest to God it felt like the most unnatural thing ever to swing my head around like I was flicking my hair or something!

[agsiul]

I thought of something else that would be a good idea. I drive a micra and when I did the test I was driving a Renault 5. The boot on it is flat so what you see when you are sitting in the diriving seat is what you get...I have driven other cars with a boot poking out at the back but you can't really see what you are doing so you could acidentally hit something when you'd be reversing. This way you have a better idea of how long the car is so it is much easier to parallel park, etc.

[littlemissbump14]

I had a great instructor (although I ran out of time and money for lessons before a test so haven't yet got a license) the main thing she did which really haelped me was to get me to relate space to the car. So, for example, my spatial awareness is awful so driving staright and in the center of a lane was difficult, so she centered me up, and then said look where the white lines disappear under the car, then I would line the car up with that when driving, rather than judging distance. She did similar thongs with manouvers to help me judge where curbs were etc...

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