Part 3 · Topic 01 of 37
Part 3 overview
What the ADI Part 3 exam involves: giving a real client-centred lesson to one of your own pupils while a DVSA examiner marks 17 competencies across lesson planning, risk management, and teaching and learning strategies.
Key facts
- You bring your own pupil and give a real lesson — there is no role-play or simulated option
- 17 competencies grouped into 3 categories: lesson planning, risk management, and teaching and learning strategies
- The observed lesson is about 45 minutes; the whole appointment runs to roughly an hour with feedback
Well done on passing your ADI Part 2 exam. Your own driving is now at the standard the DVSA expects of an instructor, and Part 3 is where you prove you can teach. The Part 3 exam is your opportunity to showcase your ability to teach others, not just drive.
What the exam involves
A real lesson, with your own pupil. A DVSA examiner watches you give a client-centred driving lesson to one of your pupils. There is no role-play or simulated option — you must bring a pupil, and they cannot be an ADI or someone else preparing for their own Part 3. They can be a partly trained learner, a fully trained learner, or a full licence holder.
Duration. The observed lesson is about 45 minutes — roughly three minutes at the start agreeing the goal and how risk will be shared, about 40 minutes of driving, then a few minutes reflecting. The whole appointment runs to about an hour once the examiner's feedback is included.
Assessment areas. You are marked on 17 competencies grouped into three categories:
- Lesson planning (4 competencies)
- Risk management (5 competencies)
- Teaching and learning strategies (8 competencies)
Each is scored 0 to 3, for a total out of 51. Risk management is the one to watch: score 7 or less out of the 15 available there and you fail automatically, whatever your total. The full breakdown is in the National Standard and marking form, and what the examiner is actually looking for on each competency is in what the examiner is looking for.
How to use this part
The topics that follow move from the DVSA frameworks behind the test (the National Standard, the marking form, the GDE Matrix and the GROW model) through practical teaching craft (lesson structure and planning, routes and directions, client-centred learning and questioning) to the assessment criteria and the practicalities of the test itself. Work through them in order; most topics end with a short quiz so you can check your understanding before moving on.