ADI Part Three - Levels of Instruction

ADI Part 3 Levels of Instruction

ADI Part 3 Levels of Instruction - Who came third in the 1994 World Cup? It's a European country. It's a Northern European country. It's a well-known European country. In today's video we're going to talk about the different levels of instruction. We'll also cover why that's important for passing the ADI part 3 and ADI standards check test.

Welcome to Driver Training. There are three main levels of instruction. Fully guided or commentary driving is the first level. This is where you tell the pupil everything they need to do. You also tell them when they need to do it. You have prompted, which uses questions. These find out if the person has gaps in their knowledge or understanding.

 ADI Part 3 Training

And then you have independent. Here you basically just leave the decisions up to the pupil. You see how they're going to deal with a particular situation. Now most lessons are a mixture of perhaps all three.

You know because you might fully guide them or commentary them to turn left. However as you're going down the road, things may change. If it's fairly straight and empty you might not need to say anything. You can stay quiet if the steering is okay.

 ADI Part 3 - Levels of Instruction and ADI Part 3 Assessment

So suddenly you're going from fully guided to saying nothing, which is independent. Then you might ask them to take the next road on the left. So you might go back into fully guided or commentary. You may go to prompted if you've done it a few times.

So the difference. Well as we said, if we're turning left it would be full commentary. It would be okay Chris so we can see the junction up ahead. We've got the road sign telling us there is a junction. We can see the white lines across the road. We can see the gap in the pavement. So we've identified our junction.

So now check the mirror, check the left mirror, signal down. Prompted would be questions. Okay Chris so we're going to take the next road on the left. Can you see where our junction is? Oh yeah it's just past the shops. Good, so what mirrors are we going to check first? Or you may go, so can you identify the junction? So what are we going to check first then? What's the first thing we do? Oh check the mirrors. Good, which ones? Centre and left. Good, what are we checking the left one for? It depends on how much time you've got. It also depends what the road situations are. That affects how many questions you want to ask.

Independent is just okay Chris we've done this loads. You've been really good at it. I'm gonna leave the next few to you. I'd like you to take the next road on the left. That's where you have to look at them and watch them. You think, are they doing the mirrors, are they doing the signal? So it's a mixture of all three. You have fully guided, prompted and independent.

ADI Part 3 Training

When it comes to levels of instruction one thing we need to say is important. One of the common mistakes PDIs trainee instructors make for the ADI part 3 involves lesson structure. They may take someone who's perhaps taken a driving test or a full licence holder. If they have a problem with something, this can cause issues. We hear quite a lot that the examiner has failed them. This is because the level of instruction didn't match what the pupil needed. The structure of the lesson also didn't match what the pupil needed.

So that's where you need to alter the level. Even if somebody's a full licence holder, they may struggle. If they're not good at something, it probably still needs you to fully guide them through it. For instance the other day we had someone who failed their ADI part 3. They took a full licence holder to a roundabout. It was a pretty busy roundabout. The person wasn't confident in finding gaps on roundabouts. The instructor just basically asked questions. They said so think we can go?

No. Do you think we can go now? No. When do you think we can go? Oh not yet. Well at some point you've got to show them by means of, if you like, a demonstration. What would you be doing on the ADI part two?

Well I can see there's a gap coming after this blue car. As this blue car starts to come past me, I will move. I'm going to move into the gap. That's what you should be saying to your learner or to your student. This applies even if they're a full licence holder because they can't do something.

They're not good at it. They need help, which is why you've taken them on your part three. You are showing this person needs to work on this, this or this. Then once you've given them a few examples, you can change approach.

You can start going to prompted and questions. Then hopefully they've got an idea of what to look for. I'll give you an example. If I said to you who came third in the 1994 Football World Cup, you might guess. Who came third? You might go I don't know. Well, it's a European country. Don't know. It's a well-known European country. Don't know. Think of northern Europe.

Perhaps it's a northern European country. I don't know. See, unless somebody actually says to me clearly, I may not know. Do you know what, Sweden came third in the 1994 World Cup. Now at some point in the future someone might ask again. If somebody said to me hey Chris, you know the 1994 World Cup, who came third? Sweden. Well done.

Because somebody's already given me the answer. In effect they told me what I need to know. Someone fully guided me to the answer.

They told it me. Now they can prompt me. What was Sweden known for in the 1994 World Cup Chris? Oh coming third. Well done because somebody's talked me through. Somebody's given me the answer. But until somebody does that, questions may fail. You can ask me all the questions in the world. I'm not going to get the right answer. That's the same with your pupils regardless of whether they pass their driving test. They may have passed the driving test because of favourable conditions on the day.

There weren't any cars at that roundabout. I've lost track of all the times when we're doing ADI part two and part threes. We're working on dual carriageways and cars coming down slip roads. Just Murphy's law as you go down the whole length of the dual carriageway, nothing happens. Nobody's coming on at the right point. That point could potentially cause us a problem.

They're either in front of us going faster, or they're about a minute behind us. Nobody's level with us. That's what can happen with your pupils on the driving test. So remember if you're taking them on a subject because they're not good at it, start carefully. If they need to improve on it, that's where to begin with guidance.

Once you've identified those faults you need to give them fully guided help. This will support them through it. Then mix the level of instruction up to prompted and then to independent.

Understanding the ADI Part 3 levels of instruction is essential for anyone training to become a driving instructor in the UK. These levels—basic, prompted, and independent—help assess a trainee’s ability to adapt teaching strategies to each learner's needs. For example: • Basic instruction offers clear, step-by-step guidance; • Prompted instruction encourages learner input with supportive cues; • Independent instruction lets the learner take full responsibility with minimal intervention. Mastering each level ensures safer, more confident drivers while showcasing an instructor’s expertise and commitment to high teaching standards.