What Kind of Learner are You ?

There’s more than one way to learn how to drive. What works for one person might not work for another, and the best driving instructors are flexible enough to spot how to get the best out of each pupil. Some of us respond well to a variety of teaching styles, but for many, there’s one method that works best.

Which learning style is best for you ? Of the three methods below, focus on the one that does it for you, so you can learn as effectively as possible. However, for the most effective learning, you’ll probably have to use elements of more than one method.

1 - Seeing or reading:

* Make your own flash cards containing key information.
* Draw up a planner or chart, maybe using colour coding.
* Make plenty of notes to guide yourself through the learning process.
* Watch online resources such as video clips or pages of information.
* Read (and re-read) as many key books as you can find.
* Start with the Highway Code.

2 - Hearing:

* Listen as an instructor or tutor guides you.
* Talk yourself through whatever it is you’re learning.
* Buy a dictaphone so you can record yourself speaking, then play it back.
* Listen to online videos, taking in the soundtrack as you go along.

3 - Doing:

* Practise doing things as much as possible, ideally with your instructor.
* Continue this practice with a parent or friend.
* Set up some short study sessions with someone, so you can continue to practise.
* Watch what your instructor does, and copy them afterwards.

Top tip: Set yourself a schedule with deadlines - then make sure you stick to those deadlines. If you don’t, your learning process may just keep dragging on. Use mnemonics to help remember stuff. These are sayings, stories or techniques that you use to remember things that would otherwise be hard to remember. For example, the five key ingredients for safe driving spell COAST: Concentration, Observation, Anticipation, Space, Time.