Learning to drive means communicating well
You will need to get along well with your parent/supervisor.
This isn't just because it's a nice thing – it's for the sake of
learning to drive safely. Take control by being calm, positive and
assertive.
Conflict and learning don't mix
To become a good driver you need to learn at your optimum, or
close to it. That can't be done if there's conflict happening with
your parent/supervisor.
It's also not particularly safe if a learner and
parent/supervisor don't fully trust each other. But conflict is not
uncommon in this situation, especially if you are being supervised
by a parent or older brother or sister. You're not alone.
Get hold of problems and be assertive
If tension is brewing in the car, take responsibility for
working it out. At the very least, recognise if your
parent/supervisor is trying to deal with it and help out.
This is not the time to have your way or to be right about
something. On the other hand, it's also not the time to be
submissive. Because learning to drive is a personal process, you
can't afford to be trying endlessly to do something that doesn't
work for you.
Be calm and positive, even if you're the only one doing it
Wherever the tension is coming from, the first thing to do is
stay calm. If you do nothing else, that will make a huge
difference.
After that it comes down to talking to your parent/supervisor in
a positive way. Be determined about this, because bigger things are
at stake: your ability to learn and your safety while you
learn.
If you don't feel able to tackle big issues directly while
driving, it's probably wise not to try. Defuse a ticking bomb by
being calm and positive. Then you can deal with it, in civilised
fashion, out of the car.
There's help around for the hard stuff
A lot of arguments and tension come from bigger issues unrelated
to driving, but they pop up in the car because driving can be
stressful. The links below may help you to work things out if the
issues seem too tough: