Where to Start With Instructor Development?

[RJP]

He's asking for help and all you can do is make fun?...

Just figured a dash of reality might be helpful.

 

[rrweather]

I agree, a bad instructor will probably turn out bad students. However, to assess the quality of an instructor based only on the number of dives they have or the time it took them to become an instructor is silly. There are lousy instructors with hundreds of dives and there are great instructors with less than 100.

I am not advocating the process of upgrading to instructor followed by teaching a course immediately. I personally would not want to teach a class with my current knowledge level. I am confident that if I had the time to devote to it, I could get through the Instructor program. That being said, I would want any potential students of mine to get better instruction than I could provide. I am mature and responsible enough to recognize that. So, I would personally opt for more experience before trying to teach.

As for the agencies allowing it, as I said before, if they didn't allow it, there would be no discussion right now. The agencies are ultimately responsible for the quality of instruction through the restrictions they place on divers wishing to become instructors and through the examination/evaluation process they impose on potential students. I for one, wouldn't be against the number of required dives increased for instructors. Until that happens, we shouldn't be mad if people go through the program under the current rules and restrictions. As was mentioned before, more dives doesn't necessarily mean a better instructor. When the drinking age in the U.S. was 18, could you complain about 18-year old kids drinking? No, it was within the law. This guy wants to become an instructor within the parameters that PADI established. Don't hate him for doing so. Tell your PADI rep your opinion. Better yet, hope that PADI's process will ensure that he meets the standards before he is allowed to teach.

The difference is that if you want to learn to skydive, and you do a bad job of it, nobody gets hurt but you (and anybody you hang on to or hit).

If you want to be a SCUBA instructor and do a bad job of it, you can easily crank out loads of poorly trained students.

Just because a cert agency allows something doesn't make it right.

Terry

 

[Steve50]

I agree, a bad instructor will probably turn out bad students. However, to assess the quality of an instructor based only on the number of dives they have or the time it took them to become an instructor is silly. There are lousy instructors with hundreds of dives and there are great instructors with less than 100.

How many do you know with less than 100 ?

 

[RJP]

How many do you know with less than 100 ?

It's not even possible to become an instructor with fewer than 100 dives, at least not a PADI instructor.

To qualify for training as a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor, you must have 60 logged dives that include experience in night, deep and navigation diving to participate in the Instructor Development Course. You need 100 logged dives to take the Instructor Exams.

 

[udtfire]

matt as an inst trainer let me say thanks for taking the jump most only talk about the class will give you knowledge when you are out of class seek the experience you need just like ow you just get the skills to keep u safe as you find your style and comfort i charge any inst worth there salt to say they we great inst out of the box. the advice i can give is find a senior inst as a mentor after class if you have more question feel free to contact me pvt and we will talk. again welcome hope to see you in the water

 

[rrweather]

It's not even possible to become an instructor with fewer than 100 dives, at least not a PADI instructor.

To qualify for training as a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor, you must have 60 logged dives that include experience in night, deep and navigation diving to participate in the Instructor Development Course. You need 100 logged dives to take the Instructor Exams.

Ok. I stand corrected. I would venture to say that there are good instructors out there with less than a couple hundred dives. I am also not arguing that this guy will be ready to go teach right after he completes the program. In fact, I think the contrary. My points are that the number of dives does not necessarily mean a good instructor and if people have beef with people completing things in the minimum required dives/time/experience, they should take it up with the agencies that allow it. Don't blame the people that pursue something that is offered by agencies because you think the agency shouldn't offer or allow it.

 

[Slonda828]

Just figured a dash of reality might be helpful.

Dude, there's always someone more experienced than you. Why piss in this guy's wheaties? Usually, your comments are helpful and insightful. Come on man, you're better than this. You have 300 dives, and I have 52. What makes either one of us a good enough judge of a guy we do not even know?

 

[Aquatic Eagle]

Just figured a dash of reality might be helpful.

I think that with most of the posts here he has had that dash of reality. Insulting his effort doesn't seem helpful to me. If he's talking about doing this program he probably has already locked himself in with student loans or other financing to pay for it. He's going. So why not offer some helpful advice instead of making it seem like a huge mistake. It's not and I can say that from having almost the exact same experience this guy is about to go through.

 

[Web Monkey]

Dude, there's always someone more experienced than you. Why piss in this guy's wheaties?

At the end of this month I will be doing a program to go from Open Water (which I am now) all the way to Master Scuba Diver Trainer.

Even given PADI's limited requirements, I can't believe that it's even possible to legitimately advertise a program like this.

The entire "zero to hero" concept reminds me of a popular refrigerator sign that says "Teenagers: Leave home now and go make your fortune while you still know everything". This "class" preys on people who are new enough that they don't know what they don't know.

People are trying to warn the OP because he doesn't know how ridiculous the concept of an "OW -> MSDT" class is, or how non-employable he'll be when he gets out.

Terry

 

[Aquatic Eagle]

Even given PADI's limited requirements, I can't believe that it's even possible to legitimately advertise a program like this.

The entire "zero to hero" concept reminds me of a popular refrigerator sign that says "Teenagers: Leave home now and go make your fortune while you still know everything". This "class" preys on people who are new enough that they don't know what they don't know.

People are trying to warn the OP because doesn't know how ridiculous the concept of an "OW -> MSDT" class is, or how non-employable he'll be when he gets out.

Terry

I understand the reason for the warnings. I posted some of them myself. My point is that warnings are good but insulting what he's going to do is not helpful or welcome. What this guy is asking for is advice to help him through the program and our wishes of good luck.

It's absolutely not true that he will be unemployable when he finishes the program. I finished a program similar to this several years ago and had a job right away on a boat in the Caribbean making okay money. After that I had a job with a cruise line traveling all over the world guiding dives and snorkeling trips and making almost $3000 a month with no bills to pay. That's not including my reimbursement for registration fees and liability insurance and free flights to meet each ship I joined and free flights home after the contract. One of the guys that completed the program right before me got a job as an instructor at NASA because of his military background. The OP may not get a job teaching right away but the completion of the program will give him the necessary minimum qualifications to do a lot of things. In my first two jobs I did very little dive instruction but a LOT of snorkeling instruction and I gained a lot of experience teaching and public speaking. I am a much better instructor now because of that experience. There's nothing wrong with getting the certifications now and experience later as long as the OP knows his own limits as an instructor when he graduates.

I'll agree that some of these programs are designed to prey on unknowing people brand new to the industry. Mine was one of them. The education was excellent but the promises of great fortune and prestige were completely false. That's why the OP needs to do some research on the school or shop hosting this program and needs to be asking them tons of questions. Also it is important to remember that while the program may seem to prey on newbies, that's not necessarily the case with the instructors. My program was started and owned by a guy who is pure business. We rarely saw him (yet his name ended up on a couple of my cards) and he is a genius at making money. However the course director that actually spent the most time with us through the entire program was the former Training Director of NAUI and former Chairman of the Board of NAUI. He gave us an amazing education and I wish I could learn more from him today. Unfortunately he is retired from the industry. We were his last class.