just thought this would be a good idea, especially since i've never instructed before.
what tips would you older instructors give to guys like me who have never done this before?
instructor tips
instructor tips
Travis Nordwald
#38 Red Spec Miata
#38 Red Spec Miata
some stuff
i recently attended an instructor development program featuring none other than Ross Bently (speed secrets).
He had a lot of interesting things to say on the subject of instructing.
Primarily you need to make an assessment of where your student is. Do they need to be told what to do, or do they already know what they know, but it needs to be drawn out of them? This distinction is teaching versus coaching.
Another thing to establish and consider is the learning style of the student. The retention rates for various means of presentation of material depend on the students primary mode of comprehension. When the student sees, hears, and _experiences_ something, they are significantly most likely to remember it.
Don't be the instructor that ruins the sport for your student. There's no reason to be abusive - you don't know everything about driving either. Some words ("why?") can be received as judgemental.
Try to dispense knowledge or suggestions in batches of 3. More than that and they wont get everything you said. Work on 3 tasks per lap and when they've demonstrated understanding, move on to new tasks.
Spend some time thinking about the things you take for granted when driving. You know what apexes are, does your student? You know about threshhold braking, does the student? You've taught yourself how to sight braking marks, does your student know that? As you're doing demo laps, call out where you're putting the car, when and how you're using the brakes, what you're looking at, and so on. The things that are second nature to you are brand new for novice drivers. THey need these things to even make 1 lap safely.
For a novice, the first few laps are primarily going to be you telling them where to put the car and what to do when so that they safely take the car around the course. Things as obvious as "squeeze the brakes now" or "roll the car in". Note that your choice of words is important - saying "brake!" will not result in smooth braking. Saying "step on the gas!" will not result in smooth acceleration. Use word pictures that are concise and to the point, like "Squeeze the brakes", "roll onto the gas", "roll in the steering", etc.
Before either of you get in the car, discuss the words you'll be using with the student. Ensure you both have the same understanding of the vocabulary.
Decide up front if you are the type to "assist" with steering from the passenger seat. Make sure the student understands if you'll be doing this or not. The first time someone did it to me, i was pretty pissed off.
Don't talk to a student about a mistake after the fact - their mind needs to be on the next corner, and you're being critical and a distraction at the same time. At MAM this may be difficult as I understand there's no straight to talk about things, but you want to give your feedback in the same turn, before the student needs to be worrying about the next one. Point-to-point driving (i.e. 1 turn at a time) is the best you can hope for from a novice until they start to "Get it" and can think about stringing turns together.
If you feel that the student needs some time to listen to what you've got to explain (but no more than 3 points!), go into the pits and go back out when you're done.
Be extremely watchful for the downturn in performance - when a student that _was_ doing things correctly starts making mistakes, you need to intervene. The student is going to go off --or worse-- if they do not get their mental performance re-aligned. Either pit in, or ask the student to slow down to focus on the line etc because they've missed a few apexes (or whatever). Make sure they understand what they're doing incorrectly so you aren't viewed as just being a party pooper
Pay attention to the students body language. Are the breathing rapidly? Do they have a death grip on the wheel ? Are they moving their hands and head a lot ? If the student is in over their head, get them cooled down.
Pay attention to your own body language. THe student does not need to feel like you are afraid for your safety, or that you have made the determination that they are the worlds worst driver. There's no need to put your hands on the dashboard, roof, or push your feet through the floor boards. If you are honestly frightened, intervene and correct the student, explaining why you were uncomfortable.
When you are doing demo laps, with the student riding, none of the following are your goals
1) impressing the student
2) scaring the student
3) "paying back" the student that scared you
The student should be put at ease by your amazing smoothness. Their ride should be undramatic because undramatic is fast. You are setting an example.
I've found that "demo instructing" (i.e. im driving, and im talking to an instructor like they're a student) consumes some of my mental capacity. I lose 3-4 tenths of "push" (i.e. i drive at 5/10 instead of 8/10) when im trying to talk through what im doing and why to a passenger vs when im silent and focused only on piloting the car. Adjust your driving accordingly when doing a demo lap - the last thing you need is to get mentally behind or mentally taxed while trying to show the student "how it's done". Focus on car placement and smoothness, and run slow enough that you can speak comfortably about what you're doing and why.
He had a lot of interesting things to say on the subject of instructing.
Primarily you need to make an assessment of where your student is. Do they need to be told what to do, or do they already know what they know, but it needs to be drawn out of them? This distinction is teaching versus coaching.
Another thing to establish and consider is the learning style of the student. The retention rates for various means of presentation of material depend on the students primary mode of comprehension. When the student sees, hears, and _experiences_ something, they are significantly most likely to remember it.
Don't be the instructor that ruins the sport for your student. There's no reason to be abusive - you don't know everything about driving either. Some words ("why?") can be received as judgemental.
Try to dispense knowledge or suggestions in batches of 3. More than that and they wont get everything you said. Work on 3 tasks per lap and when they've demonstrated understanding, move on to new tasks.
Spend some time thinking about the things you take for granted when driving. You know what apexes are, does your student? You know about threshhold braking, does the student? You've taught yourself how to sight braking marks, does your student know that? As you're doing demo laps, call out where you're putting the car, when and how you're using the brakes, what you're looking at, and so on. The things that are second nature to you are brand new for novice drivers. THey need these things to even make 1 lap safely.
For a novice, the first few laps are primarily going to be you telling them where to put the car and what to do when so that they safely take the car around the course. Things as obvious as "squeeze the brakes now" or "roll the car in". Note that your choice of words is important - saying "brake!" will not result in smooth braking. Saying "step on the gas!" will not result in smooth acceleration. Use word pictures that are concise and to the point, like "Squeeze the brakes", "roll onto the gas", "roll in the steering", etc.
Before either of you get in the car, discuss the words you'll be using with the student. Ensure you both have the same understanding of the vocabulary.
Decide up front if you are the type to "assist" with steering from the passenger seat. Make sure the student understands if you'll be doing this or not. The first time someone did it to me, i was pretty pissed off.
Don't talk to a student about a mistake after the fact - their mind needs to be on the next corner, and you're being critical and a distraction at the same time. At MAM this may be difficult as I understand there's no straight to talk about things, but you want to give your feedback in the same turn, before the student needs to be worrying about the next one. Point-to-point driving (i.e. 1 turn at a time) is the best you can hope for from a novice until they start to "Get it" and can think about stringing turns together.
If you feel that the student needs some time to listen to what you've got to explain (but no more than 3 points!), go into the pits and go back out when you're done.
Be extremely watchful for the downturn in performance - when a student that _was_ doing things correctly starts making mistakes, you need to intervene. The student is going to go off --or worse-- if they do not get their mental performance re-aligned. Either pit in, or ask the student to slow down to focus on the line etc because they've missed a few apexes (or whatever). Make sure they understand what they're doing incorrectly so you aren't viewed as just being a party pooper
Pay attention to the students body language. Are the breathing rapidly? Do they have a death grip on the wheel ? Are they moving their hands and head a lot ? If the student is in over their head, get them cooled down.
Pay attention to your own body language. THe student does not need to feel like you are afraid for your safety, or that you have made the determination that they are the worlds worst driver. There's no need to put your hands on the dashboard, roof, or push your feet through the floor boards. If you are honestly frightened, intervene and correct the student, explaining why you were uncomfortable.
When you are doing demo laps, with the student riding, none of the following are your goals
1) impressing the student
2) scaring the student
3) "paying back" the student that scared you
The student should be put at ease by your amazing smoothness. Their ride should be undramatic because undramatic is fast. You are setting an example.
I've found that "demo instructing" (i.e. im driving, and im talking to an instructor like they're a student) consumes some of my mental capacity. I lose 3-4 tenths of "push" (i.e. i drive at 5/10 instead of 8/10) when im trying to talk through what im doing and why to a passenger vs when im silent and focused only on piloting the car. Adjust your driving accordingly when doing a demo lap - the last thing you need is to get mentally behind or mentally taxed while trying to show the student "how it's done". Focus on car placement and smoothness, and run slow enough that you can speak comfortably about what you're doing and why.
88 BMW M5
88 Audi 90 Quattro
88 Audi 90 Quattro
That's great info there.
Another suggestion I have is that, even if your student is advanced or intermediate, if this is your first time riding with that student, tell them to HOLD BACK, drive at 5/10 or less, until you are 100% sure what they are doing is safe. Then you can go ahead and *allow* the student to go full speed.
It would most likely happen when we have a situation of change of instructors. After a student has been out on the track for couple sessions, then you, as a new instructor jump in, the student would most likely go full speed right away. It's a good idea to tell him to hold back, until you - the new instructor - feel safe.
Another suggestion I have is that, even if your student is advanced or intermediate, if this is your first time riding with that student, tell them to HOLD BACK, drive at 5/10 or less, until you are 100% sure what they are doing is safe. Then you can go ahead and *allow* the student to go full speed.
It would most likely happen when we have a situation of change of instructors. After a student has been out on the track for couple sessions, then you, as a new instructor jump in, the student would most likely go full speed right away. It's a good idea to tell him to hold back, until you - the new instructor - feel safe.
GT Motoring
ProFunction
Password:JDM
Custom Lightz
ProFunction
Password:JDM
Custom Lightz
this thread did really help me this weekend, thanks for the advice. and thanks to jan also, who i spent a few minutes with discussing what to expect, and how to approach instructing.
overall i found it to be a somewhat scary, but very gratifying experience. thanks to those who had enough faith in me that i had the ability to instruct.
overall i found it to be a somewhat scary, but very gratifying experience. thanks to those who had enough faith in me that i had the ability to instruct.
Travis Nordwald
#38 Red Spec Miata
#38 Red Spec Miata