Final Theory Test and 2nd Driving Lesson

I passed my Final Theory Test last Wednesday, with a perfect score of 50/50 again.

The Test started at 6.45pm. I glanced at the time the moment I finished: 6.53pm.

If anyone who is taking the theory test wonders how I seem to pass my Theory Tests effortlessly and with a perfect score each time, there is no secret: just do the practices available at the driving school. For the Final Theory, I booked four sessions, two back-to-back sessions on Monday, and two back-to-back sessions on Wednesday just right before the actual test.

You see, just about every question tested in the Tests is in the practices. Within a span of 45 minutes, which is the length of a practice session, you would be able to cover about 100 questions with explanation for the answers. For vanity's sake, as well as for keeping tab on the number of questions I covered, I counted the number of questions I did within a session.

Unfortunately, the computer that prints the 'Pass/Fail' slips was not in working order the night I took the Test, so this time round, they just stamped a 'Pass' on the identification paper they gave you before the Test.


I went for my second driving lesson yesterday.

Not fruitful at all.

I was disappointed when I saw that the same Malay instructor was allocated to me again.

Again, he asked me to take Auto-car for driving lessons. Again, I did not learn much from him. He does not really teach in a tangible manner which you can apply to a general situation. For every situation I encountered, he merely told me the steps without explaining why to me.

Instance 1

I saw a car stopping in front of me.

Me: Oh dear, what should I do? Should I stop?

Instructor: Go up somemore ... step on the clutch ... get ready to stop ...

I did a full clutch and stepped on the brake upon hearing the word 'stop'.

Instructor: I didn't ask you to step on the brake, but you go and brake.

Me: (Huh? 'Stop' is not 'brake' meh?)

There was a slow-moving traffic, really slow, sometimes stopping.

I did not know if I should step on the accelerator when the gap between the car in front and mine widened. He also did not say anything when I stepped on it.

It was later when we exchanged seats that I observed what he did that I understood: when in slow-moving traffic like a jam, step on the clutch to stop, and half-release the clutch to move.

He could have explained this to me very simply, but he failed to arrest my inability to understand his point when he gave only step-by-step instructions without explanation.


Instance 2

Instructor: You need to look at your rear mirror before you move off.

Me: Oh why?

Instructor: ... Good question! You will be penalised 2 points in the test if you don't do it. Is it good enough?


Instance 3

Instructor: You need to look at your rear mirror before you turn and after you turn.

Me: Oh why?

Instructor: ... You will be penalised 2 points in the test if you don't do it.


Other than the above instances, I felt that there must be a way to show me how to gauge if I am at the centre of the lane instead of just reminding me that I am drifting (which I already know) and that I need to remain in the centre of the lane.

For turning, he did tell me to turn the steering wheel when the centre line of the road disappears below the car corner, but I felt that it did not seem to apply all the time as when I did what he said, he had to help me steer at times. I got the feeling that the guidelines he gave me are not a rule-of-thumb for general situations, but for a learner driver, I need rule-of-thumb guidelines.

For all his obvious hints of 'go and learn auto-car', I was thinking to myself,"If I continue to be under you, I definitely would fail the test and would need to learn Auto." and something told me that the females who learn under him did not learn well.

Quietly frustrated, I approached the reception counter and spoke to a lady wearing a tudung,"Can I have just Chinese instructors for my driving lessons?"

I was not expecting a positive reply, but to my pleasant surprise, she asked me for my blue driving booklet, and after tapping on some keys at the computer, she stuck up her thumb and told me she had put a note there saying that I needed 'Mandarin instructors'.

Yay!

I had felt that the two sessions I spent was only fruitful for about 15 to 20 minutes when the Chinese instructor was with me. And each session cost me $71.69 (off-peak)! I simply did not want to continue wasting money learning nothing, or minimal, at the price I was paying.