5 Lessons From A Driving School Experience
Some weeks back, a lady cried out on twitter and my heart broke. I could tell she was weeping as she shared tales about her driving teacher who talks down on her, calling her unprintable names for making mistakes behind the wheel.
Like who expects perfection from someone who has only spent a day or two learning?
Apart from the fact that she paid for the session, the teacher had no right to call her dull. The student concluded that she would drop out but people tried to talk her out of it knowing she would learn with a great teacher.
For anyone who is passionate about teaching, knowing that students have a morbid fear of the unknown comes with the terrain. Wisdom and experience will make the job easier.
The first level of teaching is helping your students build self confidence.
This is why good teachers/tutors take out time to help their students feel good about the 'unknown' until it is demystified and becomes the 'known'.
Here are some tips to make this happen.
1. Put yourself in their shoes and take out time to be vulnerable with them.
2. Share your stories with them. Let them know how you overcame your fear before you became a Pro in the field.
3. Be patient but firm in pushing them until they become a better version of themselves.
4. Have set parameters + a course outline to help measure the progress of the student and let them know what to expect as you go on
5. Know when to refer your student to someone else
One of the reasons I take out time to teach is tied to my experience as a Copywriter. I knew I could write but I wasn't confident because of the feedback I got or didn't get. I improved when I signed up for learning programs.
As a teacher, students come to you for guidance and knowledge transfer out of trust. Don't worsen their case if you cannot help them.
It is also fine to refund and refer them to another tutor if you keep hitting a brick wall with them than to dash their hopes with unkind words.
Preserve your brand, treat your students right and keep learning.
Do you have a similar story? What changed?
Image credit: Unsplash
