Welcome to Section Two
This section starts with some of the basics of better driving. Many people fail advanced driving tests, or worse, have accidents because they take the 'obvious' aspects of driving for granted.
Because you are an experienced driver, you probably never give a second thought to things like moving off and stopping. But these basics are all important – you'd be amazed at how many crashes happen during these simple manoeuvres.
It's easy to ignore the basics, but if the foundation is shaky, the building will fall down!
To become an expert driver, you need to know the nitty-gritty details inside out, back to front and upside down! (As well as the right way around) By the end of this section, you will become a 'thinking driver'.
Some of the content in this section may seem very basic, for example, completing a 'Cockpit Drill'; however, in order to advance your driving skills, it's important to consider all aspects of your driving in some detail.
As you do your Cockpit Drill and drive your car, you need to start thinking about why each action is important and why it's good to get into the habit of doing things in a specific way.
This week starts with your regular vehicle checks plus changing a wheel. If you have never changed a wheel on your current car, this project is essential.
If you are doing this course as part of a driving instructor training course, consider how you would teach various aspects of basic car care – essential for the 'Show me - Tell me' aspect of the 'L' test.
The eyesight project will ensure that your eyesight meets the legal minimum requirement .
In addition, for student instructors this project will teach you how to complete the simple eyesight check necessary for new drivers at the start of their training.
'Blind spot basics' and 'Moving off and Stopping' will heighten your awareness of how much detail is involved in even the most basic driving activities. Although these exercises are fairly basic, it's important to remember that the foundations must be firmly in place in order to achieve excellence behind the wheel.
The ability to move off and stop smoothly is essential for all drivers (novice or advanced). You are learning to drive at an advanced standard. This means that you must be able to move off and stop at an advanced standard - the only way to achieve this is to pay attention to detail!
Throughout this section you will be encouraged to think in terms of: "What", "When", "Where", "How", and "Why".
Considering each aspect of your driving in this way will help accelerate your progress towards an advanced driving test or driving instructor's test pass.
Finally, the introduction to Commentary Driving will help with your hazard recognition, perception and prioritising. If you are a student instructor, learning to give a commentary will also start to develop your 'talk-through' skills – essential later on in your training.
ADI Students
Instructor's Question Time:
These questions are provided for those who are training to become driving instructors and are developed to integrate driving and teaching knowledge.
The link to the 'ADI students' material requires students to log in to the members area.
