Aviation Instructor's Handbook FAA-H-8083-9A

felixk

felixk

Well-Known Member
Hi,

I'm preparing for the FOI by reading the Aviation Instructor's Handbook. I find the material really difficult to follow. I'm not sure if my reading comprehension is really poor, or this book is just poorly written.

My question is how in-depth should I study this book? I can pass the written no problem, but I'm worried about the Oral exam questions on the FOI. Also is there a better resource for this information?

Thanks
Felix
 
Pick up the CFI oral exam guide by ASA. It has some pretty good examples of FOI stuff.
 
felixk said:
My question is how in-depth should I study this book? I can pass the written no problem, but I'm worried about the Oral exam questions on the FOI. Also is there a better resource for this information?
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Unfortunately, it is a big crapshoot. Just depends on the examiner.
 
I'll guarantee you that the Aviation Instructor's Handbook is not poorly written. I know of a Fortune 500 company that used it as a text for their training department even though they had nothing to do with aviation. It's that good of a book.

I once saw a great study technique in the old handbook. The applicant had gone through the book and highlighted the answer to each of the knowledge test questions. I suggest giving that a shot. By the time you get through, you will know the material backwards and forwards. You can do that relatively efficiently by taking the bank of questions and doing a phrase search in an online copy of the handbook.

That is not an easy task, but it will definitely enhance your score on the test and improve your subject matter knowledge.
 
I think it's a terrible piece of writing, personally. Somewhat interesting of a topic, but 69% of it is just way too much theory for someone who is teaching someone to fly. It's appropriate material for someone in academia who is, perhaps, getting a Bachelors in education. For someone who is going to be teaching a practical skill, I just don't see the content or presentation is appropriate for a CFI.

IMHO the body of what the FAA expects to teach future CFIs academically misses the mark by a wide margin. There are so many other aspects to teaching flying that are simply glossed over in the zest to try and teach a psychology 102 course in learning.
 
Get the ASA oral exam guide. Don't waste your time reading that piece of crap. I was a psych major and I thought I'd read some pretty horrible text books....
 
[quote="felixk, post: 1850916, member: 9637"
My question is how in-depth should I study this book?

Thanks
Felix[/quote]
You should know this material well. First, it is the foundation for teaching/learning and you will use a lot of it, whether or not you think so now. Second, some examiners will focus a lot on the material because it is important.

You're going to be a teacher now, so even if the material is difficult to understand you need to find a way to understand it so that you can teach it.
 
moxiepilot said:
you need to find a way to understand it so that you can teach it.
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The problem is, you're not actually teaching the material in that book as a CFI. It's certainly useful information for a teacher to know in terms of learning theory, but it really doesn't contain anything in terms of actual techniques to teach flying. Even at that, I still disagree that the information in there is even fundamental for being an instructor in a technical skill like flying. I know scads of military instructor pilots who never even sniff at most of the information in that material, and yet are still able to teach flying (and many other tactical subjects in an airplane that are significantly more difficult both conceptually and mechanically) very well. Military instructor training is an in-depth and complicated process, and there is a lot to learn that is required to be a good instructor pilot, but this material really isn't it.

I know these are two separate topics -- having to know the information for the oral and the big-picture question of if the information is worthwhile or not -- but just because the FAA requires it, that does not mean the information is inherently fundamental for a CFI to perform his job well after the checkride.
 
Hacker15e said:
The problem is, you're not actually teaching the material in that book as a CFI. .
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So the CFI teaching this CFI applicant is not teaching this material?

Also, you and I are just going to disagree that the material is irrelevant in the teaching world since the same information is taught for college students in education degree classes....
 
Having been an instructor in both the military and civilian side for many, many years I would say that the FOI are not a bunch of hooey. When I first started teaching in the military I was like most military instructors- I took my copy, memorized a few key acronyms for my IP check ride, then filed it in a box. It was only after years of instructing that I realized the stuff in the manual was not a bunch of garbage. My epiphany came while teaching a pilot NVG dust landings in a combat zone. The guy was already nervous enough about the task at hand and my typical military IP style was only making things worse. The poor guy was more concerned about the cranky IP in the other seat than the task at hand.
I realized I was really often concentrating on minutia- I mean who really cares what the limitations are for the GE-701C? We have stupid chick lights- green good, yellow not so good, red bad. Can you really tell what the exact number is any way without the digital read out? I took out my copy of the FOI, dusted it off and realized I was not nearly as effective as an instructor as I could have been.
So I would say the FOI is a good foundation. I'm sure in the beginning you will be like most of us- you will memorize it for the written and the check ride, then file it away. Hopefully some of it will stick. For example, I see many instructors who will concentrate on RU... not RUAC. In other words they will teach Rote, Understanding... then stop. Application and Correlation is left to the student to figure out on their own.
Good luck.
 
moxiepilot said:
you and I are just going to disagree that the material is irrelevant in the teaching world since the same information is taught for college students in education degree classes....
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I completely agree that the material is very relevant for college students getting an education degree.
 
Blackhawk said:
the FOI are not a bunch of hooey.
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I'm definitely not arguing that.

Of course the information is useful. The problem is, there are so many other academic aspects to teaching people to fly airplanes that are not covered by the FAA's material. I think this material is way too over-emphasized and other tools of teaching (in-flight analysis of performance, determining root causes of errors, determining appropriate instructional fixes, techniques for actually instructing those instructional fixes, debrief techniques, etc) are given emphasis that is not commensurate with their actual utility in teaching general aviation flying.
 
Hacker15e said:
I'm definitely not arguing that.

Of course the information is useful. The problem is, there are so many other academic aspects to teaching people to fly airplanes that are not covered by the FAA's material. I think this material is way too over-emphasized and other tools of teaching (in-flight analysis of performance, determining root causes of errors, determining appropriate instructional fixes, techniques for actually instructing those instructional fixes, debrief techniques, etc) are given emphasis that is not commensurate with their actual utility in teaching general aviation flying.
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I think the problem is more of instructors and the FAA only teaching and evaluating the rote level on FOI- maybe understanding. Very little application or correlation. Look at the FOI test questions- all rote. Questions on orals such as "What are the levels of learning?"
 
TwoTwoLeft said:
What? A government publication that's dryer than a $5 hooker and reads rougher than 40 grit? Get out....
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I'll still stick with what the subject matter experts say when they praise the publication, but I'll take you at your word as a subject matter expert on cheap prostitutes.
 
Sandy said:
I'll still stick with what the subject matter experts say when they praise the publication, but I'll take you at your word as a subject matter expert on cheap prostitutes.
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Yeah, what do I know about teaching? I guess this kind of stuff really should be left to the "experts"... :sarcasm:

Just keep in mind that these so called "experts" who praise the government publications have probably spent more time sheltered in academia than in an actual cockpit.

Im not saying the FOI is a load of bull pucky. There are just better sourcres to get the information.
 
I am usually quick going through technical books. I did well in college psychology classes. But I had to go through the AFH twice and take my time basically writing an outline of it to get it in my head. I do think it could be written and possibly organized a bit better, but it is what it is.

After all of that exercise, for each of the FOI tasks in the CFI PTS, I basically typed up an outline of the material from the FOI; I went through it three times! I felt reasonably prepared, and thankfully the examiner on my CFI initial was a reasonable guy and did not want to go into 'tell me about XY theory' or some oddball random topic.

One thing I will note is that the AFH is, if you think about it, common sense stuff. You've learned enough by now in life to know this. However, the FAA has branded certain terms and labels to define this common sense. Learning those associations, and being prepared to give examples of them to show you know it, is the challenge.
 
Immelman said:
I am usually quick going through technical books. I did well in college psychology classes. But I had to go through the AFH twice and take my time basically writing an outline of it to get it in my head. I do think it could be written and possibly organized a bit better, but it is what it is.

After all of that exercise, for each of the FOI tasks in the CFI PTS, I basically typed up an outline of the material from the FOI; I went through it three times! I felt reasonably prepared, and thankfully the examiner on my CFI initial was a reasonable guy and did not want to go into 'tell me about XY theory' or some oddball random topic.

One thing I will note is that the AFH is, if you think about it, common sense stuff. You've learned enough by now in life to know this. However, the FAA has branded certain terms and labels to define this common sense. Learning those associations, and being prepared to give examples of them to show you know it, is the challenge.
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The DPE I went with asked, "Alright lets talk about REEPIR (the acronym for the laws of learning)", then asked me what it meant to be a professional CFI, and finally asked for the levels of learning and that covered the FOI portion of my checkride.
 
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