Often you don't know you've had a poor quality instructor until you are trained by a better one. I'm not talking about any personal issues here as I've met some really great (fun) instructors who were not very good at teaching. I have been both a adult education teacher and motorcycle instructor (teaching other instructors to teach) and I was instructed during my PPL by a number of instructor 'types' - hour builders, new FI's, Older QFI's and CFI's.
Clearly the number of flying hours an instructor has really has no place in the quality of teaching argument. Minimum hours instructors who have been taught well, have a real passion for both flying and teaching, who are actually able to teach are the sort of people who are needed.
Pay has a part to play and I agree the 30-50k level might bring every instructor in the country to your interviews but that level of funding for PPL / NPPL is simply not available, within a reasonable price to the student in a competitive market. However I know for a fact more money is available to pay instructors a better hourly rate but whilst there is plentifull supply of fresh young hour builder's out there who will work for £5 an hour or less - then who cares?
Some schools are clearly taking advantage of this situation with little thought for the paying customer. From a commercial point of view it is much better to pay the instructor as little as possible as it is when a student takes 80 hours to attain their PPL/NPPL rather than 45. By the time the student finds out it is usually far too late, the money has already been spent.
The solution to the problem IMHO is in 3 parts:
- have the CAA produce league tables for the average number of hours to pass the PPL/NPPL for each school
- include on the table the number of attempts prior to a pass
- require schools to publish/display these tables in house
- Widen the scope of available people who want to instruct by removing the CPL and class 1 medical requirements, giving schools a greater number of potential instructors to choose from
- Create a formal PPL/NPPL training trade body which requires its members to pay all instructors an hourly rate for both hours of a two hour slot at the national minimum wage, beacuse working is working in the air or on the ground - flying rate would be negotiable and private / optional.
- Make membership of the trade body worthwhile by ensuring any membership funds paid are used to promote the body to potential students in all parts of the UK
- Have an Instructor Membership of the organisation - with some form of basic tests for entry - class room, flying and written with a grade/star system and certification.
- Obtain the backing from relevant national bodies, interested parties and other aviation related organisations
Many other trades have gone this route to improve the standards in their business sectors. There is no practical reason why aviation training at the PPL/NPPL level could not do the same.