Preparing to Teach in the Life Long Learning Sector Unit 001 – Roles, Responsibilities and relationships in lifelong learning. Candidate Name: City and Guilds Number: TASK A Guidance Document Driver Training Department. Guidance Document for driver trainers working with learners Overview Instructing, coaching and assessing in the driver training sector can present many challenges and variants when interacting with learners on a day to day basis.
Training scenarios can greatly differ in their aim, practical application or severity of risk assessment and your involvement can then vary to include the protection of personal information, development of training materiel or direct contact with individuals. You should be aware of how your actions could influence or impact on not only learners, but also colleagues the Service and even members of the public. Legislation It is essential you familiarise yourself with the various Legislative acts, regulatory requirements (including codes of practice) and Service policies which have been outlined below.
Though it is not expected for trainers to know these word for word, you will need both an accurate interpretation of them and the ability to refer to them with ease. Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) This Act sets out the general duties which employers have towards employees and members of the public, and duties which employees have to themselves and to each other. The Act is in force to make the working environment a safe and secure place for any individual within it. Generally common sense assures us of this but by raising awareness and understanding then further improvements to the working conditions can be realised.
The main aspects of the act are; •Requirements for the employer to ensure the health and safety of its employees •Requirements for the employer to provide adequate information, training and supervision of its employees along with adequate equipment and systems of work •Requirements for you to take care of yourself or others that may be affected by things you do or neglect to do. •Requirements for you to co-operate with employers and not to misuse or interfere with anything provided in the interests of health, safety or welfare.
You will also be teaching and working within some regulations that are ‘born from’ or linked to the Health and Safety at Work Act. The main ones of these are. •PUWER (Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations) 1998 •LOLER (Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations) 1998 Further information on Health and Safety legislation can be found on the LFRS Service intranet system, http://Pages/Health-and-Safety. aspx where there are also links to www. hse. gov. uk for self- research. You can also find relevant presentations for delivery to learners on the Driver Training Department, server in the presentations folder.
Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 and Road Safety Act 2006 When working in the Emergency Response Driver Training (ERDT) sector, this legislation forms a major influence on not only what you teach but also how you teach it. •Section 19 Road Safety Act 2006 (ne. sect. 87 Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984) gives and exemption for speed limits provided that i)observing the speed limit would hinder the vehicle, ii) the driver has been trained in accordance with this legislation, iii) the vehicle is being used for training purposes. •Contained within the Road Safety Act is the competency requirements of ERDT
You will also be teaching and working within some regulations that are ‘born from’ or linked to the Acts. The main ones of these are. •Traffic Signs and General Directions Regulation 2002 •Zebra, Pelican and Puffin Pedestrian Crossing Regulations 1997 •Motorway Traffic (England & Wales) Regulations 1982 Further information on road traffic legislation can be found on the LFRS Service intranet system, http://Pages/DriverTraining-Material. aspx where there are relevant presentations and also links to Department for Transport section within www. gov. uk/government/orginisations/department-for-transport web sites for self- research.
Service Policy LFRS has a service Health and Safety policy specifically covering all types of vehicle related operations. It is titled Road Risk Management and acts a policy, but also gives guidance to the above legislative requirements. There is an overriding message of ‘drive to arrive’, highlighted by response driving speed limits. •Responding vehicles are subject to a policy enforced limit of the speed limit enforced for that vehicle on that road at that time, + 20 mph. Road Risk Management policy is available on LFRS intranet system http://corporate/policies/Pages/PoliciesProcedures. spx Though not part of your main role, there may be occasions where you come into contact with vulnerable groups. You should make yourself aware of service guidance relating to this subject and the legislation Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. This can be found on www. legislation. gov. uk Professional Qualifications and Membership As a member of the Driver Training team you will be required to hold several qualifications or memberships that may require periodic re-accreditation, CPD and operating within Codes of Practice.
Your role will require registration as a member of the Institute for Learning, IfL. It has a code that was developed by the profession for the profession to outline the behaviours expected of members. The Driver Training department adopts the code and its outlining behaviours; •Integrity •Respect •Care •Practice •Disclosure •Responsibility Further information can be found on the IfL website www. ifl. ac. uk You should also make yourself familiar with The Further Education Teachers’ Qualifications Regulations 2012. This can be found at www. legislation. gov. uk
Professional relationships, responsibilities and boundaries. You should look to behave in a way that is appropriate to your role and promote appropriate behaviour and respect from learners you interact with. You should be aware and operate within any ground rules that are set by your employer and emphasised through your line manager. You are also responsible for ground rules that you should look to install between you and your learners. Below are some examples and scenarios that you should be aware of in your role. The role of a Driver Trainer often brings you into close contact with small roups of learners, in a closed and personal environment and for extended periods of time. The need to create an open and relaxed environment is important, especially during ERDT, but this could lead to a blurring of boundaries between teacher and learner. It is important that you are aware of this and maintain the authority to be able to control situations safely when teaching in a moving vehicle environment. Though you may know students through other avenues such as other work activities or sports clubs you should be aware of discussing aspects of training, especially on social media sites.
You should also be aware of commenting on aspects of your working day which could be open to public view and be easily misinterpreted by other employees or members of the public. You should be aware of the boundaries of your responsibilities during your working day. For example, you may encounter a problem with a training vehicle that you think you may be able to repair. This may cause further damage or not repair the fault adequately which may have implications later in the day. The service has many departments that specialise in different areas that are available for you to call on and will assist you when it is beyond your responsibility.
During the delivery of training courses your main responsibility will be to your students; however there will be other professionals who you will need to interact with. Internally these could include other instructors, colleagues from other departments, your line managers and learner’s line managers. You should aim to deal with each whilst remaining professional and thoughtful of the role they have and to not overstep the boundary of your role. External agencies such as Police, training facilities or members of the public should be dealt with professionally and respectfully.
Remember you are representing the service and the department at all times. If you are ever in doubt of your responsibilities and boundaries of your role, always ask someone, either another teacher, line manager or a colleague related to the task in question. Individual learning needs Though on the surface most driver training courses are ‘pre-programmed’ with times, facilities and outcomes; the learning that is delivered is very flexible and can vary greatly from course to course due to the individual’s needs. It is your responsibility to facilitate this, remembering to stay within the boundaries of your role.
A scenario may occur where a student has personal commitments such has child care or transportation problems that may affect the delivery of the course. Guidance for the flexibility of course timings can be, at the first point, discussed between teacher and learner. This could then be referred to Driver Training line manager or the Specialist Training Manager for clarity or confirmation. If longer periods of time off are needed you can refer the learner to the Absence Management Policy http://corporate/policies/Pages/PoliciesProcedures. spx . There is often a miss conception within the service that the standard of numeracy and literacy skills is fairly similar, or at least above a given standard. The truth is often far from this and you should be aware of a learners need in this area. Though the majority of driver training is of a practical nature you should be aware of learning barriers. These can include factors such as an individual’s learning style or conditions such as dyslexia. Learners may be unaware of these factors or unwilling to disclose them.
For learning styles you can encourage completion of a VAK questionnaire, found on the team site http://team/sites/ds/default. aspx. This will enable you and the learner to better focus the information they receive and may make them more aware of their learning style. When delivering sessions that involve presentations, reading, writing, facts and figures or even discussions, be respectful of individual’s learning needs and be observant of the learner’s reactions. You should be aware of factors linked to dyslexia that may also affect other aspects of driver training.
Disorders such as dyspraxia may be apparent in a mild form and can affect a learner’s movement and coordination. This may become evident when operating lifting hydraulics or following verbal commands in a vehicle. If you experience learners that make you aware of these factors work together with them in a respectful way. If you or they need further information there are many useful websites such as the dyslexia foundation www. dyslexiafoundation. co. uk/ and the dyspraxia foundation. www. dyspraxiafoundation. org. uk/ . Reference List
