Does Raising the Score Raise the Standards?
As I am sure you are all well aware, the DVSA released a statement this week about their proposed changes to raise the pass mark of the standards check from 31 out of 51 to 33 out of 51.
If you want to have your say regarding the proposed changes, you have until the 15th March to do this. The link to the survey is here: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/DVSAADISC/
The reason behind the change is to help raise the standards of instruction from ADIs.
It is worth confirming that these proposed changes are only for the standards check and the pass mark for part 3 will remain at 31.
I’ve spoken to different instructors this week regarding these changes and interestingly there were more PDIs agreeing with the changes than ADIs. Most were saying that they were aiming for a better score than 31 on their part 3 anyway and they hoped to increase that even more on their first standards check. This was encouraging to hear from trainee instructors, the ADIs I spoke to were less positive about the proposed change. Some were worried about the stress it would cause them, and others mentioned that they were concerned as they only scored 31 in their part 3.
I think as with most things in life, we need to look at the situation with a critical mind and highlight the positives as well as the negatives, and to come up with solutions to any problems this may cause. These changes are going to affect many instructors, some in a good way and some not so much.
Yes, this may cause extra stress and anxiety for some instructors who are concerned they may not be able to reach a pass mark of 33. A large amount of my work is delivering remedial training to ADIs and PDIs who have failed either a standards check or part 3. A common phrase I hear is “I only failed by 1 mark”. I am in no way disagreeing with the fact that “a pass is a pass”. However, it is important to look at the other end of the spectrum, they may have only failed by 1 mark but they have also missed out on a potential 21 extra marks. Just like the driving test, passing only demonstrates that the minimum standard has been achieved. That doesn’t mean that by scoring 51 you are the best you can be, and I believe we are all still on the learning path, but it does show your standard of training is above average. I think it is important to recognise that it should not just be down to the DVSA to “force us” to be better, it should be that as instructors and trainers we should want to be better.
I am always rather surprised to hear how many instructors and trainees are on their last attempt before they seek extra training or help. Why would you want that extra pressure? As I mentioned above, our focus should be on more that just a pass, and I feel this is where some go wrong after their first attempt. Raising the pass mark may be one way of helping instructors to do this. Two marks may not seem like very much to some, as that still leaves an extra 18 marks to a maximum of 51, others may disagree. Is it really that unreasonable to think that after qualifying our standards should at least increase?
Personally, I do believe that the standards in our industry should be, and need to be, improved, whether raising the standards check mark to 33 is going to be a successful way to do this is, only time will tell. I am sure there are many trainees and instructors out there who have passed well over the required mark and are not that concerned by these proposed changes. Remember, the survey isn’t only for those that disagree!
Whatever your thoughts are on the pass mark being increased, I’m sure you will all agree that raising the standards is a good thing and can only be beneficial to our industry and road safety. As with the changes that were made to the qualifying exams previously, I do hope that in the years to come we get to see these benefits.