How much of a barrier to
learning is the Instructor?
Dyslexia, dyspraxia,
dyscalculia, aspergers, auditory processing problems, ADHD and other learning differences all present additional challenges to people when it comes to learning to drive and
dealing with the complexities that driving a car involves. Thankfully,
assessment and recognition of such differences appears to have improved greatly in recent years, as has awareness in schools and the
workplace, so there is now less chance of a person with a learning difference being considered in any way "defective" or other negative terms which serve only to undermine self-esteem and lead to discrimination and disadvantage.
Outside of formal education, there are other educative bodies which will regularly come into contact with
people with learning differences, where those differences may present significant challenges to getting to grips with the nature of the
subject matter being taught. If you started a list of such bodies, I'm guessing Driving Instructors would be pretty likely to be on it.
So, in a profession with a high likelihood that you will
encounter pupils with learning differences, the majority of whom are in an age
group who happen to be finding their way into “adulthood” (which is difficult
enough) and learning a skill which
virtually everyone finds anxiety-inducing anyway, you would think that the
professional ADI (Approved Driving Instructor) would be in a great position to
be understanding and provide a fantastic opportunity to help someone achieve
something really special to them (perhaps even life changing) regardless of any difficulties with learning that the person seeks to overcome. Sadly, based on conversations I've had with pupils with previous driver training experiences, all too often I have found this not to be the case.
