Best Way Forward On A Driving Lesson
Completing our step by step run-through of the GROW model concludes with our best way forward on a driving lesson. The GROW model is a popular coaching tool used by driving instructors and driving coaches.
Come have a look at our previous articles to get yourself up to speed with things. Take a quick hop onto Goals, skip to Reality then jump yourself right into Options.
Whats our way forward from here?
After Identifying your goals, getting a handle on your current situation or reality and brainstorming your way through all your possible options – whats next?
What Is The Best Way Forward On A Driving Lesson
To sum things up, Way Forward is the fourth part of the GROW model which is a tool driving instructor can use to help raise self-awareness and responsibility within a learner driver.
Ultimately the final part of the process focusses on self-evaluation and self-reflection but before we get there! How can we help a learner driver to choose the best option? It’s been proven it’s far more effective if the learner driver chooses the options for themselves.
Advantages And Disadvantages
Guiding a student towards evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of their options results in better choices. What initially seemed like the best way forward at the start could chop and change after weighing up the pros and cons. The chosen option can be tested out and self-evaluated afterwords.
Self Evaluation
Scaling
To help facilitate a learner driver to self evaluate the effectiveness of a particular option we can use scaling. Scaling is a self-evaluation tool that can help a student to reflect on the effectiveness of their chosen option. Additionally, scaling is effective at the goal-setting stage and also when planning the next session.
How it works
By using a scale of 1 to 10 a learner driver can first analyze their option and performance. Then move on to decide how successful it is. By rating or scoring themselves they can decide whether this is still the best option.
Scaling works as long as the learner is allowed to come up with their own number. The self-analyzing and reflection cycle will be broken if at any time there is any interference or judgment from the coach.
It’s important to confirm how the scale works. For example, is 1 worst and 10 best or the other way around? As long as it’s agreed it doesn’t matter which way round it is. Some of our instructors even use topics familiar to the learner eg top five films or football teams. Sometimes 1 to 10 scales can get a bit repetitive.
Even the coffee machine at your local garage has got onto it as it asks you to rate your experience!
A possible question to help start the scaling process.
- Based on what just happened there how would you rate your chosen option on a scale of 1 to 10? With 1 being rubbish and 10 being perfect.
After Self Evaluating Performance
Whether or not things went well the learner driver may want to think of other ways or options to move forward. They may even think of new or (sub) options focussed in on the previous attempt or they may feel like going back and choosing another option is best.
Whatever happens, it’s quite likely that it will trigger a recirculation through the GROW model maybe even going back to changing the Goal.
For any questions please find a helpful instructor here!
