1.E : Instructor Responsibilities and Professionalism

To achieve these goals the instructor should carefully and correctly analyze each student’s personality, thinking, and ability. No two students are the same so cookie cutter instruction can not be equally effective for all students. Mistakes in this evaluation can cause a failure to achieve the desired outcome.

Students experiencing slow progress due to discouragement or lack of confidence can have the tasks broken down into smaller pieces so they are easier to achieve. This can build confidence and provide encouragement. As they progress, the "chunks" can be made larger until their progress is more normal.

Conversely, fast learners may feel that correcting errors is unimportant because they make few mistakes. This overconfidence can result is eventual poor performance and therefore these students must have their standards of performance constantly raised. That said, deficiencies should not be invented, and must be legitimate.

Instructors fail to provide competent instruction when they permit their students to get by with substandard performance, or without thoroughly learning necessary knowledge. Accepting lower standards just to please the student does not benefit the student (or instructor) and an earnest student does not resent reasonable standards that are fairly applied.

In enforcing standards it is best to emphasize the positive. This is true in the way that instructors conduct themselves, the attitudes they display, and the way in which the instruction is developed contribute to either a positive or negative impression on the part of the students. Success ultimately depends upon the student forming a positive image and attitude about aviation. Emphasize the positive because positive instruction results in positive learning.

Learning to fly requires acquiring a new, and foreign, set of skills. The process of acquiring those skills can have moments of frustration, and it is the instructor’s task to attempt to minimize those frustrations. Approach each student as a unique individual, and understand what they need to avoid becoming frustrated during the learning process.

It is critical that the student be motivated to learn, as more is gained from someone wanting to learn rather than being forced to learn. This is aided by insuring the student sees the benefit of a given lesson so the effort they are making seems worthwhile.

It is also important to keep the student informed of their progress. Without that they can become insecure, or uncomfortable, not knowing what is expected of them or what will happen next. This can be accomplished by giving them a syllabus at the start of training, updating their progress against that syllabus, and giving them advance notice of expectations.

Be sure to give credit/praise when it is due, and always insure criticisms are of a constructive nature. Do not over-praise, as that devalues it. Similarly as criticisms are delivered not only should the errors be clearly identified but how to correct those errors must be given as well. This gives students a clear path to improve their performance.

The instructor has a responsibility for being consistent, and prepared, as well. It must be remembered that the student is spending money (for many, a lot of money) and they deserve a well-prepared instructor. It is also critical that for the instructional time paid for by the student that they get the full attention of the instructor, else they are being cheated.

Along with the issues already covered, the instructor has a number of other key responsibilities. The instructor must watch for physiological obstacles to the student’s progress. This can include a basic fear of small planes, reactions to unexpected/unfamiliar noises, or G-force/motion sickness. Each of these issues, if they occur, must be addressed.

The instructor also has the responsibility to accurately assess the student’s ability. Most critically, they must insure that prior to solo flight the student is adequately prepared. Before endorsing the student for solo flight they must display consistent ability to perform all the required maneuvers. The student must also be capable of handling ordinary problems that can occur during flight.

Finally, the instructor must provide requisite ground instruction on issues identified as "special emphasis areas". They should be current on all the latest procedures regarding training, certification, and safety. Ideally they (or the organization for whom they are providing instruction) should maintain a current library of information.

Examples of proper endorsements can be found in AC-61-65 and those examples should be followed when endorsing students. Failure to ensure that a student pilot meets the requirements for a given endorsement is a serious failure, and the instructor is held accountable. This also is a breach of faith with the student.

Along with the normal student related endorsements, there are many other endorsements which an instructor might issue. These are documented in AC-61-98 and include flight reviews (formerly known as BFRs), instrument proficiency checks (IPCs), and aircraft specific endorsements.

Flight reviews are not a checkride, and are not pass/fail, but are a mandated instructional service designed to assess knowledge and skills. They must be based on specific objectives and standards, and should include a through check of the appropriate skills based on the certificate/ratings held by the pilot. Before beginning the instructor and pilot should agree upon the objectives and standards, and as the flight/training continues the pilot should be kept aware of progress towards the agreed upon goals.

An instrument proficiency check validates that the pilot is prepared to venture into IMC. It should use the instrument PTS as the primary reference for the maneuvers and tolerances expected.

Aircraft checkouts and transitions vary depending upon the endorsement sought. They can be for high performance, tail wheel, or high altitude operation. It must be stressed that by performing these evaluations and issuing these endorsements you are taking a large responsibility for the pilot and any future passengers. All checkouts should be conducted to the performance standards in the PTS, and you should never perform a checkout in an aircraft with which you are not familiar. Record, in detail, what was accomplished and if the performance was inadequate the pilot should schedule time for further training.