Anarchistbanjo's World

I was a driving instructor for 14 years teaching teenagers how to drive and get their drivers license. Before that I did family crisis counseling and I briefly worked as a children’s mental health social worker. I loved working with teenagers! But I soon realized that being a driver’s ed instructor was much more to my liking than working with families in crisis.

In both cases I tried to be consistent, serious and sincere. I tried to be matter-of-fact and tell it like it was and I treated people like I would want to be treated. The difference between social work and driver’s ed was that in social work I was often working against the will and attitude of the teenager because they didn’t really want any help. What they really wanted to do was act out! In the end social work and crisis counseling often turned out to be helping the parents cope with rebellious teenagers as they went ahead and did what they damned well pleased.

But being a driving instructor was completely different. I was working cooperatively with teenagers who wanted to learn how to drive and wanted to get their drivers license as quickly as possible. What a remarkable difference! I was simply myself and I allowed them to be their selves as well. I was not threatening and they did not feel threatened. The driving sessions were so powerful that it was very satisfying and amazing to watch as their skills and self-esteem flourished and as their confidence grew through a two hour driving session.

I was the only driving instructor that turned the radio on during the first behind the wheel and I spoke as little as possible, allowing the road itself to teach the students what they had to do. We all learn best and fastest by physically doing things and that’s what I taught!

I didn’t try to fill their heads with my own knowledge and rationale, but instead created a specific route that challenged these new drivers in very specific ways over and over again until they got it right. I’d simply tell them to turn right or turn left and left the rest up to them to figure out in their own way through the physical actions of driving the vehicle. I didn’t let them do anything dangerous and there were times when I had to grab the wheel or slam on the brake myself but those times were very rare. I also told them when they did something wrong so they wouldn’t do it again.

I had high expectations for my students and they never let me down! Each driving session was a unqualified success! That’s the way life should be for everyone!