Diary Of An ADI

This is an old post. A very old one. DSA is now DVSA. However, the points made are still valid.

While I was searching for news articles concerned with the impending change to the driving test, I came upon this one on the BBC website from May 1999. It relates to a previous change to the driving test, and makes hilarious reading.

Referring to the DSA’s Test Timeline , the changes made in 1999 were:

…extending the length of the test, randomising the emergency stop manoeuvre and failing candidates for committing 16 or more driving faults.

Today, we take this for granted and no one gives it a second thought. But look at the rubbish being spouted back then.

Keith Cameron, the head of road safety policy at the British School of Motoring (BSM), said: “Minor faults are minor faults, let’s face it.”

…Mr Cameron, a former chief examiner with the Driving Standards Agency, told BBC News Online: “Their argument is that if someone commits 15 faults they are not very good at driving so they should not be on the road.

“But nerves can affect someone’s performance on the day and if it’s only affecting in terms of minor faults then it should not matter.”

Mr Cameron said the Driving Standards Agency had conceded there would be a drop in the pass rate, but he said he thought they had underestimated how many people would fail under the new rules.

“It really is not difficult to ratchet up 15 minor errors,” he said.

This is hilarious! If someone gets anywhere near 15 faults they are a crap driver – on the day of the test, at least. Examiners can tell if someone is a poor driver or not, just as I can when I’m taking someone out for the first time who can allegedly drive.

Furthermore, he claims that the pass rate was going to fall. Let’s take a look at the reality – the DSA’s own pass rates for every year since 1935 (up until 2004 in this table) . Notice how the pass rate gradually fell from 63% in 1935 – with no big steps, and almost completely in a downwards direction year-on-year – to 45% in 1977, and then rose gradually back up to around 52% in the early 90s. It then gradually fell again to 47% in 1997.

There was a hiccup to 48% in 1998, and it dropped to 46% in 1999. It has been at 43-44% since then.

So, the worst you can say happened is that the new test introduced in 1999 caused the pass rate to fall by 5% (and that’s by taking the most extreme values). In reality, it was more like 2-3% – and even that doesn’t allow for any background fall that might have occurred anyway.

It’s not a lot when you consider that according to BSM’s Keith Cameron, the end of the world was nigh, is it?

So, just bear that in mind when you hear some of the rubbish being spread around about Independent Driving.

This is an old story. DVSA (then known as DSA) used to publish complete test routes for all parts of the UK. However, they ceased publication of the routes from 4 October 2010.

They were simply text directions, and to be honest I gave up after only a couple of attempts to follow them just after I qualified as an ADI, when I realised it was pointless. Any ADI who has a bit of experience can easily identify where examiners take their pupils and teach tricky elements on lessons accordingly. But there is absolutely no point trying to teach precise routes, since examiners can vary them to suit road conditions on the actual test.

As mentioned in the press release in the previous post, driving test routes are to be withdrawn. This BBC story repeats the press release, but I mention it because it is likely to link to further related stories as we approach October 4th. Already – since the press release – hits to the blog have risen dramatically for this topic.

An email alert from the DSA:

Road Safety Minister Mike Penning has announced today that the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) will no longer publish details of test routes after 4 October.

This change will help make the test more representative of real driving. It also supports the introduction of independent driving, which will allow candidates to demonstrate their ability to drive safely in more realistic situations.

You can read more in the press release.

Since the press release is quite short, I’ve reproduced it here:

DSA press release

Real driving experience for learners

To help make the driving test more representative of real driving, the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) will no longer publish details of test routes, Road Safety Minister Mike Penning announced today.

Currently test routes used by each driving test centre are published online but this will stop when new routes are introduced at the beginning of October.

This change is being made to support the introduction of independent driving, which will allow candidates to demonstrate their ability to drive safely in more realistic driving situations rather than memorising a particular test route.

Mike Penning said:

“We want new drivers to be able to drive safely and independently and learning to drive test routes by rote isn’t the way to achieve this.

“Stopping the publication of test routes will help to make sure that the driving test better reflects realistic driving conditions and will give new drivers the skills and confidence they need to stay safe on the roads.”

DSA’s Chief Driving Examiner Trevor Wedge said:

“Evidence shows that the biggest challenge newly qualified drivers face after passing their test is learning how to cope when they no longer have their instructor there to help and prompt them.”

“We want to make sure that new drivers and riders are ready to make their own decisions when driving alone; learning how to do that in preparation for their test should lead to better and safer drivers.”

To better assess whether a learner driver is ready to drive unsupervised, independent driving will be introduced into the test on 4 October 2010. Candidates will drive for about 10 minutes, without step-by-step direction from their examiner. This will involve either following a series of directions, following traffic signs, or a combination of both. To help candidates visualise the directions, the examiner may also show them a simple diagram. The remainder of the test is unchanged.

In January 2010, DSA published independent research showing that with careful route design, candidates were able to complete the independent driving tasks without any significant impact on pass rates. Additional research found widespread support for inclusion of independent driving in the practical test.

I’ve been trying it out on my pupils (actually, I always expected them to drive properly so it isn’t much of a change), and they are all doing fine – even ones who have not been driving long and who aren’t test-ready yet.

As for driving test routes – the only time I ever downloaded one was just after I qualified as an instructor. I never deliberately took a pupil on the published routes, but what I did do was pick up from pupils after their tests where they went (bit by bit – most people can’t recall much of their test, and especially not road names). My view is that if a pupil can drive anywhere I take them, they can drive anywhere, full stop. It hasn’t let me down yet.