How to handle the Tester! The tester can be a reason for worry for many learners in the test. People get intimidated or nervous just by the testers presence. Very often, this is all in the pupils head.
Before I get into the Do’s & Dont’s, here is a tale to maybe give you a different view. One of my pupils last week told me about her test last January (she wasn’t my pupil at the time). She arrived to the test centre, did all the questions and road signs, and headed to the car only to discover one of her L Plates had fallen off! Now, this normally means, test cancelled, no refund and apply again. This time…not so! The tester told her lets go back into the office. Whilst back at the desk, he took out apiece of paper and a red marker and proceeded to help her draw a new L Plate!! Off she went and did the test. Whilst she unluckily failed on that occasion, I just thought this is the best story of kindness from a tester I’ve ever seen. When I heard which tester it was, I was not one bit surprised. This person has endlessly been kind and helpful to pupils over the years I’ve been in the job.
There are mixed stories over the years about testers and I do wish, in general, there was a more warm and friendly welcome for all pupils to help them relax. At the same time, you can only control yourself so remember the below points before the test!
-The Tester is there to help you through the test, not laugh, get angry or frustrated (and they 99% don’t).
-You can ask for a breather during the test. (I usually say do this after parking up before a manoeuvre, and just say to tester you need 10 seconds to gather yourself).
-You can talk to the tester. Now, not a full blown chat about the weather, but some small talk, or asking to repeat an instruction if fine.
-Different testers are more chatty than others, and remember, they are also conscious of distracting you if they chat too much.
-You can talk out loud to yourself in the test. Lots of pupils will say things like “Mirrors, Signal, Mirrors, Manoeuvre” to themselves before a turn to help run their checklist.
-Just imagine they are an instructor and it’s a shorter lesson.
Brendan Tierney is a Brand Ambassador of KennCo Insurance. KennCo Insurance understands that getting car insurance for your first car can be challenging. That’s why they offer affordable and reliable young driver car insurance. KennCo Underwriting Ltd T/A KennCo Insurance is regulated by The Central Bank of Ireland. #brandambassador
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