Steps to getting your licence – for the supervisor

Step 1 – preparing for the first lesson

If you are teaching someone to drive, you play an important role in developing their lifelong driving habits; however, teaching someone to drive can be difficult – particularly in the early stages.

If you are teaching someone to drive, whether as a professional driving instructor or a parent, friend or relative, the information contained on this page is a valuable resource.

Supervisors do not have to take full responsibility for teaching their learner to drive. Where a professional driver trainer is available, you may wish to combine driving school lessons with practice sessions given by other supervisors. Learners can benefit from driving with all kinds of supervisors.

Parents and friends can:

• provide a wide range of practice opportunities
• allow learners to proceed at their own pace
• promote a safe driving attitude and behaviour
• provide a relaxed and familiar learning environment
• monitor and guide
• offer feedback
• give encouragement.

Professional driver trainers can:

• teach correct driving techniques
• correct mistakes in a patient and constructive manner
• teach how to apply the road rules
• promote a safe driving attitude and behaviour.

Before the lesson

Here are a few things that you must remember when teaching someone to drive:

• Make sure you are up to date with current Queensland road rules.
• Professional driver trainers must comply with the no alcohol limit (0.00).
• You must hold and have held an open licence for at least one year for the class of vehicle you are teaching a learner to drive or ride.
• Your learner driver must also hold a valid learner licence.
• You must be seated in the front passenger seat of the car, next to the learner at all times, even during parking exercises.
• The car, when driven on a road, must be registered, capable of passing a basic safety test, and have compulsory third party insurance.
• You must ensure that the vehicle clearly displays L-plates. 

Tips for successful driving lessons

You should:

• take the time with your learner to plan each practice drive. Plan where you will drive and what skills you will practise. RACQ has a list of learner drives* to test a learner in all situations
• take the learner logbook each time you take your learner out for practice, and record the conditions in which they drove and how long they were driving
• have a notebook and pen with you to draw diagrams to explain traffic conditions or new skills.

Spread your practice and driving lessons over the full 12 months of the learner licence period rather than concentrating lessons just before the driving test. Weekly practice is important to gain the necessary experience.

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Step 2 – getting started

Taking your learner out for the first time can be nerve-racking; however, if you and your learner plan ahead and keep a sense of humour, all should go well.

In the first lesson you should:

• make sure your learner driver understands the car controls
• introduce driving skills in a low-traffic area, for example, quiet suburban streets or a back paddock
• encourage your learner to observe everything that is happening around them.

Helpful hints

You should:

• start with short, frequent practice sessions and do not try to cover too many points in each session. One new driving skill per session is enough to begin with
• have realistic expectations. Some things you think are obvious and simple might be new and very difficult for your learner
• demonstrate each new skill to your learner. When you show your learner a new skill, talk about what you are doing
• have your learner describe what they are going to do before starting a task
• discuss mistakes as they happen. You may like to stop and demonstrate what you mean before asking your learner to try it again
• avoid starting or continuing driving if you or your learner are upset or frustrated. Stop and wait until everyone is calm
• ensure your learner does not drive at a speed faster than they feel comfortable with
• begin each practice session with a revision of previously learnt skills by driving over familiar routes
• remember to set a good example when you're driving and your learner is in the car with you
• describe to your learner what you are seeing and reacting to when you're driving with them in the car, for example, 'car pulling out of driveway on left'. It will help them to know what to look out for when they are driving
• be patient and use as much praise as possible.

Safe driving tips for your learner

The learner should:

• avoid getting behind the wheel when their mind is not on the driving task
• stop for a break if they become tired
• remember to be considerate of other road users and how their driving affects them.

Checklist – car controls

It is important that your learner becomes familiar with the car and its controls before driving on the road. Walk around the car while the learner watches in the mirrors so they can identify blind spots and see what they need to be aware of. Make sure that your learner has the following skills (tick accordingly) before moving onto Step 3.

Skill practised	Skill acquired
Open the bonnet
Locate the battery
Inflate tyres to the correct level
Change a tyre
Check engine oil dipstick and fill if necessary
Locate the fuel inlet
Fill the radiator/overflow bottle

Tick the items in the following list of car controls when your learner knows where they are and how to use them.

Car control	Located/used	Car control	Located/used
Seat adjustment		Handbrake
Warning lights/gauges		Mirrors
Windscreen wipers		Horn
Clutch		Speedometer
Hazard lights		Accelerator
Lights		Demister/air-conditioner

Checklist – driving skills (introductory)

Your learner should now be ready to start driving in a very low-traffic area. Tick the skills in the following list when your learner is able to perform them smoothly.

Skill practised	Skill acquired	Skill practised	Skill acquired
Put on the seatbelt		Reverse
Adjust the seat		Control clutch
Adjust the mirrors		Use indicators
Move off and stop		Turn right and left
Check passengers have seatbelts on		Change gears up and down
Drive in a straight line		Start/stop the engine
Control speed smoothly		Follow a planned course using all of the above skills

Checklist – seeing and reacting

Before your learner drives in traffic, they must be able to observe what is happening around them and use the mirrors properly. Tick the skills in the following list when your learner is able to perform them consistently.

Skill practised	Skill acquired
Focus on the road ahead, not the car controls
Use the side and rear vision mirrors
Glance at the car controls to check speed
Watch for traffic to the rear and side of the car as well as in front

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• Move into moderate traffic as confidence and ability develop.
• Have your learner see and react to what is happening around them.
• Your learner should begin to recognise possible hazardous situations and react to them.

Step 4 – gaining experience

Once the basic skills have been mastered, it's most important for the learner to get plenty of practice in a variety of conditions. Research indicates that learners who have a lot of practice are less likely to have a crash after obtaining their provisional licence.

All learner drivers under the age of 25 years must gain and record 100 hours of on-road driving experience, including 10 hours of night driving in their learner logbook. The learner logbook is given to learners by the Department of Transport and Main Roads when they get their learner licence.

You should:

• have your learner see and react safely to possible hazardous situations
• record practice and conditions in the learner's logbook
• have the professional driver trainer make suggestions on what you should practice with your learner.

Helpful hints

Your learner should get plenty of practice in all driving conditions. The more experience they get, the safer they will be.

Remember:

• Keep your learner describing what they are seeing and reacting to. The more your learner can describe, the more likely they are to see a possible hazard.
• The standard accident prevention formula is:
• 1. recognise the hazard
  2. know the defence
  3. react in time.
• Continue to stress the importance of becoming a safer driver. Have your learner ask the professional driver trainer to write suggestions for follow-up practice sessions in their logbook.

Safe driving tips for your learner

The learner should:

• always plan and take a 15 minute break every two hours on a long journey
• drive at a speed appropriate for the conditions
• comply with the no alcohol limit (0.00) 
• be aware of any medication that may adversely affect their driving – check the effects of medication with your doctor or chemist
• not drive if they are tired or have been drinking
• take special care when driving in wet weather by keeping more than a two-second following distance, driving at a slower speed and braking smoothly to prevent skidding.

Young drivers aged 17-24 years are twice as likely to be involved in fatal crashes than drivers aged between 25-59 years of age. They are over-represented in the following types of crashes:

• single-vehicle crashes on both straight and curved roads where the vehicle over-turns or hits a fixed object, such as a post or a tree
• two-vehicle crashes on straight roads where young drivers are hit by vehicles from the opposite direction turning across in front of them
• nose to tail crashes
• crashes involving pedestrians.

The following skills are particularly important for avoiding these accidents. Tick the skills when your learner demonstrates them consistently.

Skill practised	Skill acquired
Maintain control of the car by driving within the speed limit and at a speed appropriate for the conditions
Adjust speed appropriate for cornering (safely)
Slow down when driving around curves
Maintain a safe following distance and be ready for the vehicle in front to brake unexpectedly
Approach intersections with caution and watch for unexpected actions from other drivers or pedestrians
Do not compete with other drivers
Check rear vision mirror before slowing, diverting or stopping

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Step 5 – going solo

Tutors should continue to play an active role in guiding their newly licensed driver as they expand their driving experience. In the first 12 months after obtaining their provisional licence, drivers are exposed to a wide range of new experiences. They are more likely to become competent and safer drivers if you continue to support and guide them during this time.

Some ways you can help

You should:

• advise your new driver to drive by themselves at first. This will help them become more confident without other distractions, such as passengers
• remind them that music can be a major distraction when they are not very experienced and that it is illegal to use a mobile phone while driving
• get them to describe what they are seeing and reacting to when you are out with your newly licensed driver – this will help them to improve their ability to recognise possible hazards
• discuss the problems of peer pressure with your new driver and discuss peer passenger restrictions
• encourage them to avoid getting into situations such as speeding, drink driving, drag racing and general 'show-off' behaviour
• remind them that, at night, a driver's ability to perceive hazards is reduced. Research also indicates crashes at night involving newly licensed drivers are mainly caused by alcohol, peer group pressure and fatigue
• caution them about driving while tired at night and driving to venues where alcohol might be available
• discuss the negative effects of drugs, including medications, on driving ability
• familiarise your new driver with procedures to follow in case of crashes and breakdowns
• discuss the implications of driving other people's vehicles, such as lack of familiarity with a different vehicle and insurance. Encourage the new driver to enrol in a post-licence driver training course.

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