tachograph:
No amount of DCPC courses will make you an expert on every subject, in fact no 7 hour DCPC course on it’s own will make you an expert in any subject
Agree totally with that. However, if you start off with no, or very little, info, and carry on by listening to other drivers passing on what they know, you can come very unstuck, very quickly. How often has the subject of split breaks come up across these fora, and how often has the 3 x 15 minute break option been passed on as acceptable. If you don’t already know these regs, you’ll just be helping to pay off the country’s national debt a bit quicker than you would otherwise do so.
tachograph:
You’ve mentioned certain criteria for courses that you want, (Not too expensive, Relevant syllabus, Good delivery, Interesting material, Ideally local to me).
All of that criteria can be fulfilled with a little time and an Internet connection, furthermore I would suggest that if you really want to learn virtually any transport related subject then it’s never in the history of mankind been easier or cheaper with just an Internet connection, so how is sitting in a classroom listening to someone who may or may-not know what he’s talking about going to change anything.
People who want to learn will and people who don’t want to learn or who think they already know it all won’t, DCPC courses in the current format will not make any difference to that.
I’m not saying that CPC in the current format is brilliant - I replied to a question some time ago saying that I thought it was good for us newbies, but not so good for time-hardened veterans. I stand by that. However, I don’t see how an internet delivered course would be any better, especially for me - firstly, how do you guarantee the accuracy etc of that course? I for one would be asleep if I had to sit in front of a computer screen for 7 hours at a stretch - I’d much rather be in a setting with other people, where you can learn a lot more from their experiences, the course can be more interactive and address individual queries etc.
As for learning from the net goes, I do use it for that, but it has to be driven by me, not someone else - For example, I decided recently to learn the technical ins and outs of air brakes (I know, I won’t deny that I’m a bit of a geek on technical stuff!). Doing this led me on to ABS systems, then onto forces under braking, which led onto loading & CG issues, and so on. I learned a lot more from that than I would if somebody had sat me down in front of a pre-scripted session, with no input from me.
I’m probably coming from a different viewpoint to a lot of people - by trade, I’m an electrician, and I have to re-qualify regularly. As a Qualified Supervisor (basically meaning that I need to ensure that everybody else is working to the regs), I have to attend training sessions whenever the regs change - which is too often. As such, I’m used to regular training & development, and tend to see it as a professional necessity. Maybe one thing which DCPC will help to achieve, if publicised correctly*, is to improve the public perception of drivers, even if only slightly.
Gary
- This is probably one of major areas where the haulage industry as a whole lets itself down. There are 2 mainstream programmes on TV which cover the haulage industry, and one of them isn’t even set in Britain. EST&T may be (rightly at times) seen as a joke, but it’s the only insight 90% of the public get into how haulage works, and why it matters so much to their lives. Drivers in other countries are viewed with a lot more respect, it seems, than in this country. I’ll admit I don’t know how to get the message across, but sure as eggs is eggs, if the message doesn’t get over, lorry drivers are always going to be seen as something nasty on the bottom of the public’s shoes.
Tin hat on!
(joke!!))