Bridging the gap

Bridging the gap is a term I use a lot when training instructors and is something I do on all my lessons. Role 6 unit 2 of the national standards (NDRTS) states “This unit uses a ‘client-centred’ learning approach. It is about maximising learning by taking into account the status, prior experience and particular needs of the learner”.
It’s the prior experience which I use to bridge the gap. When I first trained as an ADI, my training was based around the PSTs, pre set tests. For those of you who don’t know, the old style part 3 exam was conducted with an examiner role playing.
Most of the PSTs involved the instructor giving a briefing for a set time to demonstrate to the examiner the instructor’s knowledge on the subjects.

When these briefings were delivered in real lessons, they did not take into account the pupils prior experience, it was just a way of dumping the information in one go. This style of information delivery is, unfortunately, still used today.

Here are some examples of bridging the gap:

Cockpit drill – Instead of telling the pupil all about the DSSSM and boring them senseless, these are some of the questions I ask.
Before swapping seats with the pupil I will ask “Before exiting the car, what might you need to consider?”. Nearly every time I’ve asked this question, I’ve been given the correct answer, “If it’s safe to open the door”.
Once we have swapped seats, I normally ask “What things have you seen other drivers do when they get into a car?” More often than not, the pupil will tell me most elements of how to set themselves up in the car. If there is anything missing, I can now bridge the gap by filling in what they don’t know.

When reversing – Instead of talking through the made up six-point check (if you’ve read my previous article, you will no I’m not a fan) I will ask something like this: “How will you know it’s safe to reverse?” The answer is nearly always “by checking my mirrors”. Now I can bridge the gap by talking about blind spots.

Reversing into a bay – Every pupil I’ve ever taught has seen someone reverse into a parking bay at some point in their life. As long as the instructor manages the risk, giving the pupil the opportunity to have a go a reversing into a bay, we can find out how much the pupil can do, and then fill in the blanks after. I would usually set this up by giving the pupil a goal to reverse into any empty bay of their choice, finishing in the bay even if they must shunt back and forth to succeed.

Bridging the gap can also be done when practicing subjects. If the pupil can cover all aspects of the MSPSGL routine when turning left into a minor road, bridging the gap to turning left at a roundabout shouldn’t be that difficult. After that has been mastered, bridging the gap to follow the road a head at a roundabout shouldn’t take too much either. The same should go with turning right or doing a U-turn. This is often referred to as moving from THE KNOWN, TO THE UNKNOWN. They know how to turn left into a junction, but they have never turned left at a roundabout.

Another example is the pull up on the right exercise. If the pupil has practiced several times to pull up on the left, we should be able to bridge the gap to pull up on the right. The pupil should know how to use effective observations, signal if necessary, steer and position the car to where they want to go, and then how stop alongside the kerb. They should also know how to cross oncoming traffic due to turning right into junctions. So now, there isn’t much of a gap left to bridge! If you don’t already, try this on your next lessons and see how you get on. Instead of dumping the assumed information onto the pupil, find out what they already know and bridge the gap. Move from the known, to the unknown. And hopefully, not only will your pupils find this easier, so should you.