‘Just Looking Around’

‘Just Looking Around’

 

I have a practice inspection (or mock inspection) for my classroom students each week.  This offers them the opportunity to perform an inspection, write a report, and then come back to class and have the whole class and me view and critique their report. This gives each student feedback on his or her inspection and report writing skills - or lack thereof.  As the student progresses through the program he or she is learning more after each inspection and should be improving each week. Every student must go through this process a minimum of ten times to fulfill the requirements of my class.  Those who apply what they learn in class and prior inspections usually finish with a relatively high level of competence as a home inspector.  Those less serious about it either take longer or just don’t cut it.

 

 

Depending on the group, students can range from very serious about learning the right way to do things, all the way to not showing up to participate in the mock inspections. I notice many are simply going through the motions to try to look like they are inspecting.  It is troubling to me as a teacher to see students who are not really invested in improving themselves as inspectors.  This business is not easy and the stakes are high both monetarily and most importantly for safety.  This last Saturday was particularly disappointing. 

 

 

I had nine students participate in Saturday’s mock, six of who have already completed five or more practice inspections.  All nine showed up with their worksheets and proceeded to inspect the property.  Outside the house they were each going through the sections and were, for the most part, doing their inspections by themselves; as it should be.  There were a few casual conversations about one element or another but, in general, they each worked on their own.  Once inside the process appeared to change; it became more of a group inspection, more sharing of information and less inspecting.

 

 

This property was a fifty year old house that was empty, so there was plenty of reason to expect to find defects and warrant a careful inspection.  Also there were no impediments like furniture, belongings or residents to hinder a thorough inspection. 

 

 

Since I can’t possibly watch all nine students the entire time, I decided to watch just one section of the house to see how each approached inspecting an interior room.  I sat down on the floor leaning against the far wall in the living room to watch how each of the students approached their job.  My goal was to determine how many of them actually inspected this big, empty room. The room had two picture windows and four wall outlets, one on each interior wall, as well as a view of the main entry. 

 

 

After all nine had inspected the room I observed only one of the students inspect the ceiling, operate the windows, and test the outlets.  (There is more to an interior room inspection, but these are the minimum three basics that have to be done).  The other students walked through the room and “looked around”.  Not even one student bothered to go to the front door and operate it, or look at its condition.  This lack of attention was discouraging; to say the least.

 

 

There is an inspection logo I have seen used by some home inspectors; in part the ad says that you should, “Use me because the other inspectors ‘are just looking around’.”  The problem with many students and some new inspectors is they are so busy going through the motions to look like they are inspecting that they skip the most important part, the actual inspection.