Train the Trainer: Monkeys, Late Apexes & Classroom Sessions
Why do we continue to do the same thing over and over again?
Have you ever heard the story of the 5 Monkeys Experiment? It may sound familiar, even if it’s possible that it’s more fable than real research. If you haven’t heard it, it goes like this.
Five monkeys were placed in a cage as part of an experiment. In the middle of the cage was a ladder with bananas on the top rung. Every time a monkey tried to climb the ladder to get to the bananas the experimenter sprayed all of the monkeys with icy water. Eventually, each time a monkey started to climb the ladder, the other ones pulled him off and beat him up so they could avoid the icy spray. Soon, no monkey dared go up the ladder.
The experimenter then substituted one of the monkeys in the cage with a new monkey. The first thing the new monkey did was try to climb the ladder to reach the bananas. After several beatings, the new monkey learned the social norm. He never knew why the other monkeys wouldn’t let him go for the bananas because he had never been sprayed with ice water, but he quickly learned that this behavior would not be tolerated by the other monkeys.
One by one, each of the monkeys in the cage was substituted for a new monkey until none of the original group remained. Every time a new monkey went up the ladder, the rest of the group pulled him off, even those who had never been sprayed with the icy water.
By the end of the experiment, the five monkeys in the cage had learned to follow the rule (don’t go for the bananas), without any of them knowing the reason why. If we could have asked the monkeys for their rationale behind not letting their cage mates climb the ladder, their answer would probably be: “I don’t know, that’s just how it’s always been done.”
This story, whether real or a fable, sounds familiar because it captures a theme in many organizations, one that you can probably relate to: We tend to do things the way we’re told they’ve always been done without questioning or revisiting the reason behind it, even long after that reason ceases to exist.
Next time someone tells you, “That’s not how we do things,” ask them why. If they can’t tell you, tell them about the five monkeys.
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So, why do we teach drivers to late apex corners when we know for a fact that the best drivers in the world would never turn in and apex as late as we teach new drivers? Before you answer with something about them being elite, talented drivers; or, that we have to teach novices something different than we do experienced, skilled drivers, stop and think about that.
Let me share an analogy I’ve used before.
Imagine this: fifteen 4- and 5-year-olds are in a kindergarten class, and the teacher holds up an image of a dog while asking what it is. Excitedly, there is a scream, “Dog.” The teacher then holds up a photo of a cat and asks what it is. When the kids yell out, “Cat,” they’re told “No, it’s a dog.” Then a photo of a bird is held up; when the teacher asks what it is, only about half the group cautiously replies, “Bird.” Once again, the teacher says, “No, it’s a dog.” This goes on with images of elephants, fish, spiders, and snakes; in each case the kids are told that the animal they’re seeing is a “dog.”
What’s going on? The teacher has decided that these young minds are not smart enough to be able to hear the truth, to know the real name of each animal. Instead, the teacher has decided that the kids will be told that all animals are called “dogs,” and at some time in the future, “when I’ve decided they’re ready,” they will be told what each of the animals really are.
Silly, right?
Now, imagine this: fifteen adults, ranging in age from 25 to 65, are sitting in a classroom at a race track, listening to the instructor at a High-Performance Driver Education (HPDE) event talk about “How to work a corner.” The gray-haired instructor (I can say that because I’m one of them) says, “Corners should be driven with a late turn-in and apex.” Essentially, “You’re not ready to learn the right way to drive, so we’re going to teach you the wrong way, and then someday you’ll have to learn the right way.”
How is this any different from telling kids that all animals are called “dogs,” only to have to correct them when they get older?
Late Apexes
I know many instructors believe that a late turn-in and apex is safer, but when I ask them why they think that I often get some stumbling response about “that’s the way novices should be taught because it’s safer.” And when I prod them for why it’s safer, it’s common that they can’t answer it other than saying that “an early apex means they will run out of track at the exit and crash.”
Too late an apex is no safer than too early an apex. Turning in late, aiming for an apex which is too late, requires turning sharper (a tighter radius), and turning more increases the likelihood of spinning or losing control of the car. Once again, an artificially late turn-in and apex is absolutely no safer than an artificially early one.
What we should be doing is teaching the “right” turn-in and apex, not one that is too late (or too early) and increases the chances of the driver losing control of their car; and one that needs “fixing” later as the driver gains experience.
Trail Braking
Of course, this is no different from the way many drivers are taught to use their brakes: brake in a straight line before the corner. In other words, never trail brake.
Why do we teach drivers to do all their braking in a straight line before corners? Some instructors will respond to this question by saying that they and many others are no longer doing that. Great! How many generations of monkeys… err, drivers and instructors did it take for this to change? And how many instructors are still teaching this?
Classroom Instruction
Now, why do we have novices (and some intermediates) show up for their first few HPDE events and have them sit through a “classroom session”?
Because that’s how it’s been done for so long. So, we don’t get sprayed with icy cold water!
Is it time for a change?
As an instructor, have you ever noticed the difference between students who did some self-study by either reading or watching videos before they arrived at the track for their first HPDE experiences, and those who did not – those who waited until they were at the track, in a classroom? We all know that those who know the basic terms and what they mean (oversteer, apex, load transfer, etc.) are easier to instruct, are safer, learn more in less time, and have more fun (meaning they’re more likely to come back). We also know those who have not done any basic preparation are, at best, a challenge.
Once again, I’m going to ask my fellow gray-haired instructors to re-consider how things are different from when we went to school, whether that was high school or our first high-performance driving event. If you’re anything like me, you spent a lot of time sitting in rows of desks in a classroom where the teacher talked, wrote on a chalk or whiteboard, and every once in a blue moon an AV cart was wheeled in so we could watch a “film.” Classes lasted in the range of one hour, and we had multiple ones throughout the day. When we attended our first high-performance driving school, the experience wasn’t that dissimilar. Most of us baby boomers and even some Gen-xers learned best in this way.
Now, ask yourself how millennials learn best. Do they absorb information when talked to for an hour at a time, even if they have a series of PowerPoint slides (many of which are fighting for space on that slide with lines and lines and lines and lines… of text) presented to them? Or, is it possible that they would learn more if that same information was presented to them in a different way, a different format?
What if…
The day after a new-to-our-sport driver signed up to participate in a HPDE event, they got a message by text, email or some other social media platform that included a link that took them to an e-learning experience.
The e-learning experience was a series of short modules, none that would take the learner more than three or so minutes to watch.
These modules covered everything that is traditionally covered in a typical HPDE classroom, but using a variety of short videos, illustrations, animations, text, and questions. Perhaps even more topics could be covered because everything wasn’t being crammed into the block of time on the at-track schedule.
These modules would be experienced and learned from over the days/weeks leading up to the HPDE event, giving learners the opportunity to do their own “homework” of Googling various terms, topics and skills; we know that self-discovery is the best kind of learning because it sticks.
The learning modules were designed to “trickle out” the information over time, rather than them being crammed into one long classroom session, and they could be reviewed multiple times.
The e-learning platform provided a way of tracking progress, giving them a score not unlike many of the online games they likely have and/or continue to play; it also provided the progress tracking to the HPDE event organizers/instructors.
There was a group discussion “forum” where learners could post questions for fellow learners, as well as having a chief instructor answer; because there would be profiles for each person, online relationships would begin here before the learners arrived at the track.
As in-car instructors were assigned a student, they could check on the progress through the e-learning course, as well as connect on this platform and become a support resource before the HPDE at-track event began.
In-car instructors would also have access to the full e-learning course, therefore knowing what is “being taught in the classroom” – something that many instructors don’t know now. The “classroom-to-in-car” learning experience would be integrated.
When learners arrive at the track, there would be some comradery amongst the students and instructors who connected and communicated in the “forum,” putting them in a better learning state of mind (reduced anxiety, nervousness, and even fear).
Rather than a long classroom session, there would now be a shorter one where a group discussion could take place about what they learned from the e-learning course and self-learning, a reinforcement of critical information (i.e., flags, event rules), and details about the outline/schedule for the event. It even opened up opportunities to do things like walking the group over to pre-grid, and talking about entering and exiting the track.
Of course, because the entire e-learning material is online, on smartphones and tablets, students could review pertinent modules in between on-track sessions. At the end of an on-track session, an instructor could refer their student to a specific module to review that related to something they’d been working on while on track.
I think we all know what the results of this change in thinking would have, such as:
Students not arriving for their very first track driving experience and being told right away that they needed to go sit in a classroom for an hour and listen to an instructor tell them what to do (we know that is almost the last thing in the world most students really want when they show up at a race track!). We have all experienced at least one classroom instructor that – despite the very best intentions – is a less-than-ideal teacher, perhaps even creating a bad experience from the very start of what should only ever be one of the best experiences the student has ever had. We also know that first-time students are nervous, anxious, excited… especially while sitting in the classroom (which is often a less-than-ideal learning environment because it’s hot or cold, noisy and uncomfortable) listening to cars zipping by on the track (where they really, really want to be). All in all, this is one of the worst learning environments we can put students into, expecting them to absorb information that is critical to them being safe participating in what is a risky sport. And we place in-car instructors in the passenger seats with them, expecting them to fill in the gaps in the learning that the classroom learning experience failed on; and raising the risk level for these volunteer instructors.
Many existing classroom instructors will push back on any change like this because it would take away something that they love to do, and get enjoyment from by giving back to the sport. Plus, it’s not the way they learned – the way it’s always been done. But, rather than the learning environment being best for the instructor, it will be best for the students.
The entire learning experience will be better for students, especially younger ones who learn in very different ways than most of us who are now running HPDE events and classroom sessions. But don’t worry, even baby boomers will benefit from this approach.
In-car instructors will not only know exactly what content has been taught to their students because they will have access to the same e-learning course, but they’ll be able to refer students to the appropriate module to review after an on-track session where a specific topic was addressed.
This new approach to helping students learn will lead to them having a better all-round experience, leading to a higher retention rate, and them spreading the word with others. Consider what happens when you purchase a big vacation, such as a cruise (not my favorite vacation because it’s a long, wet walk to the mountains to hike in): the anticipation and preparation is part of what makes it enjoyable, and when the cruise company sends you reminders of what’s coming up, it makes it even better – and something you can’t wait to do again, even before you’ve done the first one. The e-learning experience extends the length of the entire HPDE event.
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Many in our sport doubt that young people are interested in driving in general, and especially high-performance driving. But is it possible that our approach to instructing, and the resulting experience is part of the problem?
Perhaps a new way of thinking, rather than how it’s always been done is a big part of the answer to the question about attracting new and young drivers to our sport.
Perhaps, by not simply following what we’ve always done in the past, we can provide an even better learning experience for all drivers.
Well, just as long as we don’t spray drivers and instructors with icy cold water when they climb the ladder to grab the bananas!
I’d love to hear your thoughts in the Comments below.
An excellent article, and a compelling challenge for all of us.
I’ve undergone cervical surgery that restricts me from driving or riding in a car at HPDE or competitive speeds. Bar-room story, not for here. So my focus has shifted to walking the paddock, making myself available to any driver or group, and “chatting”. My experiences with after action reviews aligns with our “what is the car doing, where is it doing it, why …..” model. In the Classroom, even if I’m an server, I listen for this “we don’t do it that way” mentality. I suppose I broke my own mental-model with my first introduction to Lead/Follow sessions. Hey, it worked! So, an epiphany occurred and I started a new journey.
As an instructor/coach, I broke down the physic and mental models into small bites, shared videos and instructional material (much of it fro Ross Bentley), and did my best to let the student “see and feel” the experience before showing up in the paddock. I also began to appreciate classroom sessions that focused on things that can’t be communicated well except face-to-face. BOB (beginning of braking) and EOB (end of braking) took more than just a graphic, but it didn’t need more than 5 min. SO my Classroom style shifted from delivery to setup: “Your instructor is focusing on these things during this session.” I was then reinforcing previous material and asking students to relate their intellectual learning to their seat-of-the-pants learning. I opine I became a better classroom and in-car instructor as a result.
In the end, classroom and Novice sessions are meant to qualify a driver and introduce her or him to skills they otherwise don’t have, not develop proficiency. We can (and should) introduce concepts like trail braking once the students all can brake effectively and manage the grip of their cars. But repetition and post-run AARs are the best teaching experience in this endeavor. Proficiency is the ability to perform a complex task under varying conditions and achieving the end state consistently. Breaking tracks down into drill events (let’s work this entire session on your braking at the following turns…..) seems a better inflection point than hours of classroom.
Heresy? NO- as instructors we have to show and uphold standards of safety, and foster respect for the kinetic energy our sport. Change is inevitable; misery is optional.
You’ve nailed it.
Where could we put a shared repository of best-practice training videos?
I agree they need to be by topic and NO MORE than three minutes in length.
I’d like to see some of the registration sites we use (clubregistration.net and motorsportreg.com) add the capability for tracking training modules completed (with pre- and post-test scores?)- if they don’t already have it.