Flashing Vehicle Headlights - The Misleading Signal

According to the Highway Code the flashing of headlights may be used to warn others of your presence. It has no other meaning attached to it. Originally used as a courtesy signal by lorry drivers, it became part of their accepted vocabulary and has since been adopted by car drivers. Some other signals have accepted meanings outside their official meaning such as giving one flash of the hazard lights to thank others for giving way. The problem with these unofficial signals is that they can easily be misinterpreted and lead to accidents.

Advice given by driving instructors is generally to avoid flashing the headlights during lessons and certainly do not use this signal on a test. If using it after the test then always make sure that two drivers cannot see the signal at the same time as they have no way of deciding who the signal is intended for. If another motorist flashes at you then always check the way is clear before proceeding. It is easy to interpret the signal as an order or request and act without checking which can bring you into conflict with other drivers.

Modern cars are fitted with a flasher switch usually located on the indicator stalk. As the switch is easily reached it is tempting to use it. The fact that the car has this function legitimises the signal and can lead to overuse. Flashing headlights is often used aggressively to demand another motorist to move out of the way. This occurs on motorways when one car closes up on another in the fast lane and then flashes to be allowed past. Used courteously it can mean that the driver intends to give way especially on crowded streets with cars parked on both sides. As the same signal can have opposite meanings it can often be difficult to distinguish between the two depending on the situation.

I have seen flashing headlights used to warn of speed cameras nearby, prompt another driver to switch on their lights and invite pedestrians to cross the road. Problems can occur when driving in darkness and the car behind goes over a speed bump. The sudden change in angle of the following headlights looks like a flash and can be worrying until you figure out what it is.

Always ask yourself what the other driver is trying to tell you before doing anything. Is the signal intended for you or is there another driver nearby? If you are about to use the signal yourself, think how it might be interpreted before using it.

Who's Doing The Driving These Days?

Traditionally the main market for teaching driving was young men in their teens to early twenties. This age group has always been the main market for driving instructors. Times have changed for this social group. The rising cost of fuel and car insurance has made vehicle ownership a much less attractive proposition for young men. Combined with higher unemployment figures leading to less disposable income in this group the number of people actually learning to drive has dwindled.

Many young men tend to live at home with parents for longer owing to a lack of affordable properties to rent and fewer job opportunities. This means they do not have to travel so much to visit their relatives. Having parents on hand to taxi them around is hardly an incentive to own their own car. Internet services mean that young people can keep in touch with each other without actually having to meet, cutting down on the need to travel. Online gaming also means not having to leave the house. The promotion of cycling as a means of travel as well as improved public transport also negate the need for driving.

Men in the middle age group also drive less. The reduced mileage allowance for company vehicles plays a big part in this. City roads are becoming increasingly more congested making for longer business journeys and a greater amount of lost time. Add to this the stress of modern driving and working from home or on the internet from the office makes a lot more sense than driving to meet clients. This has consequences for fleet driver trainers and those who teach defensive driving in the workplace.

On the other hand women from all age groups are driving more than ever. Mileage driven by women has rocketed over recent years but is still less than that of men.There has been a big increase in the number of female license holders who now see learning to drive as desirable. Changing roles in the workplace have lead to much more work related travel and also a greater amount of disposable income to spend on owning and driving a vehicle. Fear of travelling alone on public transport, especially at night makes car ownership much more attractive.

Women therefore represent an expanding market sector for the driving instructor. Female driver trainers and women only driving schools will find themselves in a much stronger market position for the future.

School Teaching Jobs: Moulding And Creating A Better Future

These days, people opt for solutions that are practical and useful for their daily lives. They also seize every opportunity available to gain more knowledge that can help them improve their functions and lead them to the path they dream of. Schools are the essential foundation for individuals, in which they can sharpen their skills and expand their knowledge and practices. This is why, a lot of individuals consider school teaching jobs as great opportunities to get profit from. With this being the case, teachers must not disregard the quality of teaching.

We often hear about teachers of today who are not focused on their occupation. This leads to poor teaching strategies, restricting the skills of students and promoting improper schooling behaviour to students. The need for skilled and passionate teachers is intensified in order to bring back the quality and credibility of the educational system. Aspiring job seekers must have sufficient knowledge and expertise, in addition to having the right character, in order that they can help create a much better generation.

Parents must seek for competent and skilled teachers to hone the skills and knowledge of their children. A person who can guide kids to achieve their goals and encourage them to create innovative solutions that can be useful for their future. In addition, teachers must provide kids the essential lessons that are useful in their daily lives since not all teachings in school can be used in their everyday functions. These lessons can motivate and inspire them and help them understand the world.

Moreover, schools must also evaluate their faculty to ensure that their students can attain the best and ideal knowledge in their studies. This would help improve the standards of the school and maximise their function as an institution that provides excellent education and service. So, having exceptional teachers in their institution whose goal is not just to get extra pay can truly help kids in their schooling and personal issues, which will help develop great and intelligent students.

Teaching Students An Effective Checking Technique In Mathematics

Teaching Students An Effective Checking Technique In Mathematics

Why is a checking procedure necessary in Maths? Here are four reasons.

It ensures that each student can achieve their best possible result.

It saves time in examination situations allowing the student to spend more time on other questions that he/she can attempt. This means the possibility of more marks and better results.

It helps maintain confidence.

It means that the student should never get it wrong if he/she knows and understands the Maths involved. Subbing your 'answers' into each equation to make sure they make all the equations true is an example of what I mean here.

Below are the strategies I used when teaching students a checking process in Mathematics. Many of these strategies could be effective in other subject areas.

Strategy 1: Preparation for checking.

By this I mean that the teacher must inculcate a checking strategy as an automatic procedure within every student's consciousness. That means it is done with every exercise every day and not just done at assessment time.

Strategy 2: Setting out.

Logical, clear and neat setting out allow ease of checking. Teachers should constantly model appropriate setting out for each new procedure.

Strategy 3: Working down the page.

Logical setting out that goes done the page, line by line, makes it easy for the eye to check that the student has transposed the correct numbers or symbols.

Strategy 4: Step by step checking.

This I think is the most important strategy in the process. The student must develop a mindset that does the checking line by line as each step/line is completed. This strategy saves time, maintains confidence and increases the success the student has in assessment tasks.

Strategy 5: Answering the question.

Did you do what the question asked you to do?

Did you answer every part of the question?

Strategy 6: Estimating the answer.

When the student reads the question, the type of answer required should become apparent to him/her. There should be an expectation of what is the expected answer. This allows the student to compare what he/she gets for an answer with what he/she expects the answer to be. This allows him/her to consider the correctness of the answer that he/she gets.

Strategy 7: Calculators and checking.

The student must remember that the calculator is only as correct as the data imputed and the keys punched. Therefore, every calculator use must be checked by doing the calculation again. The student must record the first calculator answer before he/she does the calculation check. If the answers are different, then a third calculation is required to find the correct answer.

Strategy 8: Copying data from the written question.

This is the first and often most common of all errors made by students. It is essential that copying down of the data is checked automatically.

Stagey 9: Diagrams.

Diagrams are an essential part of some Mathematical exercises. Transposing the data from the question onto the diagram needs again to be correct before a student can begin to solve a problem. Diagrams need to be large to be useful.

Obviously, a successful checking process will not enhance a student's Mathematical ability but will always lead the student to the best possible results.

One last strategy:

It is important to make reference to where individual students make mistakes in their work. This last strategy is to point out, after each assessment task, where the errors were made and what checking strategy was required to eliminate that error. Point out, also, how many marks that those avoidable mistakes cost the student. This should be motivation enough for students to adopt a daily checking regime.