18 yr old Instructor

[I Dive]

It sounds to me like this 18 year old really has his act together. He already knows what he wants to do with his life and has taken the initiative to do it. That's more than I can say for a lot of people twice his age. I'm sure I am about to spark some sort of debate here, but I disagree with the idea that a person needs tons of dives to be experienced enough to be a good Instructor (On the Rec side, I don't know nearly enough about Tech to have an opinion there). First of all, being a good diver does not mean you will be a good Instructor. Beyond that, it's entirely possible for a person to have logged 1000 dives by doing stupid stuff 1000 times. Do you want that person teaching your loved one how to dive? Let's also not forget that log books can be forged. It's not an official document, it's a person's personal record of their hobby. They could have a secondary hobby in creative writing... I guess what I'm saying is, who really cares how many dives the Instructor has? All of the agencies I"m aware of have minimum dive requirements, so as long as that's met, who cares how many dives beyond that the person lays claim to? Look at what really matters. Does the Instructor know all of the required elements of dive knowledge inside and out so he can explain them in detail to his students, rather than reading them straight from a book? If so, who cares if he has 110 dives or 5,000? Is the Instructor absolutely proficient in the water? Does the Instructor make safety the top priority every time he is in the water, with or without students? Does he have the patience to work at each student's pace? Is the Instructor willing to NOT pass a person who is not performing to standards? I could go on and on here, but I have things to do today! The bottom line from my perspective is that we only need to consider the things that really matter when deciding whether or not an Instructor is good, qualified, or whatever. And, personally, I don't think the number of dives they have is one of the things that matters.

 

[Tigerman]

It sounds to me like this 18 year old really has his act together. He already knows what he wants to do with his life and has taken the initiative to do it. That's more than I can say for a lot of people twice his age. I'm sure I am about to spark some sort of debate here, but I disagree with the idea that a person needs tons of dives to be experienced enough to be a good Instructor (On the Rec side, I don't know nearly enough about Tech to have an opinion there). First of all, being a good diver does not mean you will be a good Instructor. Beyond that, it's entirely possible for a person to have logged 1000 dives by doing stupid stuff 1000 times. Do you want that person teaching your loved one how to dive? Let's also not forget that log books can be forged. It's not an official document, it's a person's personal record of their hobby. They could have a secondary hobby in creative writing... I guess what I'm saying is, who really cares how many dives the Instructor has? All of the agencies I"m aware of have minimum dive requirements, so as long as that's met, who cares how many dives beyond that the person lays claim to? Look at what really matters. Does the Instructor know all of the required elements of dive knowledge inside and out so he can explain them in detail to his students, rather than reading them straight from a book? If so, who cares if he has 110 dives or 5,000? Is the Instructor absolutely proficient in the water? Does the Instructor make safety the top priority every time he is in the water, with or without students? Does he have the patience to work at each student's pace? Is the Instructor willing to NOT pass a person who is not performing to standards? I could go on and on here, but I have things to do today! The bottom line from my perspective is that we only need to consider the things that really matter when deciding whether or not an Instructor is good, qualified, or whatever. And, personally, I don't think the number of dives they have is one of the things that matters.

Way to much text with way to few paragraphs, but to answer in short..

Does the prase "young and reckless" sound familiar? It exist for a reason.
Teenagers is much more likely to make rash or reckless decisions than older people. Which is why Id be weary of a teenage instructor.

 

[mgmonk]

Well, I wouldn't let any of my American friends take the OW course with him if he were teaching in the States.

They can't go together to a pub after passing the exam??

Really, though, I agree this one sounds like a focused kid. I think he'd definitely be worth taking a look at and meeting as a potential instructor. For sure, I get the idea of some older people not wanting to take lessons from somebody so much younger than them, but bar that, if the kid is smart, patient, and skilled, I think he'd be a lot of fun to learn from.

After all, I teach people that have PHDs and MBAs who are thirty years older than me, but age is never the issue. They have a desire to learn a new skill set, and I have the knowledge and wherewithal to get them there. Even a first string athlete or professor can look like a Muppet the first few times they get in the water.

 

[miketsp]

..snip..

People are people, not ages. Judge the person, not the birth date.

Nomad

Very true. My son made it to CMAS instructor by 18 with only 200+ dives while the same instructor trainer was rejecting older divers with apparently far more experience - some with 500 - 1000 dives. Exactly for some of the reasons mentioned in other posts. His 200+ dives were under a very wide range of conditions while some of the other candidates were always diving the same type of dives. Calm even under very stressful conditions - anyone who's been through CMAS 2 & 3 Stars will know what I mean. ( ). Very good analytical ability for situations, diving conditions and student capability and reactions.
The selection process and training were rigorous.

 

[petronius]

I don't think I'd choose any instructor with age as the only known info. I'd want references, an accounting of their knowledge and experience, a conversation about teaching/diving philosophy, and just a general sense of how well I'd mesh with the person personally.

As others have pointed out, the topic of risk assessment would be a consideration point, and more so for a younger instructor, but age alone wouldn't play a role...

 

[I Dive]

Way to much text with way to few paragraphs, but to answer in short..

Does the prase "young and reckless" sound familiar? It exist for a reason.
Teenagers is much more likely to make rash or reckless decisions than older people. Which is why Id be weary of a teenage instructor.

If you choose to criticize how someone writes, it may help if you spell correctly, use complete sentences, and also use proper punctuation...

 

[flw]

One of my original instructors was around 18 or 19 at the time I was training 20 something years ago - his dad was an instructor and he'd been diving for several years in varied cold water conditions. We still occasionally dive together now.
One of my other instructors was in his 60's -he's now 82 and still doing around 100 dives a year
Both were fantastic instructors - and add in training is rarely done with only 1 traineed and 1 instructor on site - in well known sites - I'd not consider his age a barrier
My daughter is 18 and though I've lost track of the number of dives she's done, they've certainly been in a variety of sites and conditions - including the likes of scapa flow

 

[Coldwater_Canuck]

Would you train with him ? (assume you only know the age and no other positive or negative info about him)

No, or at least I'd prefer someone older, it's not so much a question of experience, but I would wonder if an 18 year old has the necessary patience, leadership, teaching ability and maturity to safely teach a course. In particular, one area I'd worry about is safety, I feel someone older would be better at holding people back if they felt unsafe (eg. you're not safe to dive on your own, you can't pass OW, or you need more work on clearing your face mask or whatever).

Is this prejudice? I guess so, the kid may well be a perfect instructor, but I'd feel more comfortable with someone a little older.

 

[zaberman1]

When I was 18, I became an instructor and began running the fsu scuba club training program. I had well over 1,000 dives, cave diver, and technical diver. I am now 20 and am working on my technical instructor cert, I do not think age matters but I could definately be biased. I have certified people 3x my age and have never had a problem...they know I am experienced, I know what I am doing, and am extraordinarily patient. Most of my students come back for more training or go to shops specifically requesting me...I think that if you meet the instructor and they are confident, knowledgable, experienced, and comforting, it should not be a problem. I don't tell people my age until after the course...most of them are shocked (maybe I look older?). I dive all the time and have technical diving buddies ranging from 20-50 years old, I feel that if I am competent enough to do those dives, have people 3x my age trust me with their lives, have incredible patience, and can come back with good reccomendations, I don't see why age matters. I have taught, dm'd, and rescued a number of people without any worry as to my age...give the instructor a shot, he might surprise you on how sharp he is...

In case anyone wants to cleverly point out, I listed 999 logged dives on my profile because thats how many I logged. I stopped logging years ago (I know) although I have told myself I will start again...

 

[promocop]

there would be no chance in my life time that an 18 year old would teach me anything. I don't care if he/she had 1,000 dives.!!!