Unit 35: Partly Trained – Mirrors and the Emergency Stop.

Research Material:
The Driving Instructor’s Handbook – Chapter 5
Driving: The Essential Skills – Part 4 and Pages 73 & 74, 254-257
Lesson Presenter
PST sheets
PST 5 – Emergency stop – mirrors/Progress, hesitancy – normal position
Examiner’s Part 3 Guidelines

This is a 2 in 1 lesson. The emergency stop will need to be dealt with at an appropriate place, on the journey there mirrors should be dealt with.

Recap: (1-2 Minutes)
At this stage your customer will be able to drive to a suitable area for the emergency stop. Ask them whether they have driven away from where they are before (if you are unsure of the area as may be the case in part 3, ask them whether there are any problem areas or junctions on the way to site). Ask questions re:

Objective: (30 Seconds)
To develop a greater understanding of the use of mirrors (specific), and to use them appropriately and independently (measurable and realistic). How do you feel about trying to do that over the next short drive? (agreed & timed).

Practise: (5 Minutes? – drive to site for Emergency Stop)
At first allow the customer to be quite independent, picking up immediately with the Core Competencies when faults are noted, from here judge the level of instruction necessary to keep all further instruction positive where possible.

Recap: (for the Emergency Stop – 1-2 Minutes)
Once at the site for the emergency stop, look carefully at the road ahead of you, and decide on your plan of action for the Emergency stop itself. While doing this, question your customer for knowledge of the emergency stop – if they have needed to perform it, or been a passenger during one. Question about braking systems and skids.

Objective: (30 Seconds)
To be able to stop the car as if in an emergency while guided with a full talk through (specific, measurable and realistic). How do you feel about being able to do that a couple of times over the next 10 minutes? (agreed and timed)

Main Points: (5-8 Minutes)
After a quick chat about how to avoid an emergency stop, explain how you will talk through the procedure itself. When explaining how to perform the Stop itself, explain:
Quick reactions: unlike under other braking conditions, mirrors are not necessary, and why.
Use of Footbrake/Clutch: Use of footbrake and clutch in an ABS car. Explain how to do this in a non-ABS car. Practise a dry run with the pedals before moving.
Skidding: Avoidance, cadence braking, dealing with skids.

Practise:
Once explained and agreed – full talk through will be necessary, and you will need to be ready for strange reactions – this is something which tends to cause an adrenaline rush. Be aware of hands leaving the wheel, feet coming off brakes inappropriately and the like. Be absolutely certain that it is safe to perform the manoeuvre. Once performed, move to the side of the road and discuss how it went. Hopefully there will be time for a second attempt before the end of the lesson.

Summary:
Feedback at this point is hugely important – carefully question your customer for their knowledge and attitude, this isn‘t something that can be practised all the time, so you need to know how much they have taken on. Be enthusiastic about how it all went, but ensure that you put into place an action plan to deal with any problems with control or observations which you couldn’t fix during the time you had in the lesson. Remember to acknowledge any mistakes, but to keep very positive about both your ability and your customer’s. Give your customer ownership of what they have done by asking them where their weak and strong points are. Fill out their track record.

On your part 3 examination, the phase 1 will usually over-run leaving little or no time for a summary.

Discussion Points:
Mirrors – common faults in knowledge, skill and attitude
Emergency Stop – the script
Emergency Stop – ABS confusion
Emergency Stop – common faults – the ‘unrealistic situation’