Full face masks for teaching...?

[will_featherstone]

hi, i hope im in the right place.

I'm doing loads of try-dives this summer and would love to beable to talk with my students underwater and give them tips as it happens.

can anyone reccommend a full face mask and also a receiver system that would be suitable? idealy one that you use every dive?

Wil

 

[tc]

OTS Guardian with the buddy phone transceiver-

Ocean Technology Systems - New Page

You can get receive only units for the students-

Ocean Technology Systems - RX-100 Buddy Phone

 

[dbulmer]

Will,

Why not demonstrate good horizontal trim and multitasking by writing on a slate or by using wetnotes? Would save a lot of money and would show your students what to aspire to.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

If you plan on being able to demonstrate skills like air sharing, the only mask that will allow that is the Kirby Morgan M-48 Supermask, or the Hollis version with the data mask built in.

Personally, I think its a bad idea to use an FFM in an OW or AOW class. And it sends the message that you can't effectively communicate under water when you should be emphasizing how you can effectively comunicate under water. And frankly for many students the abscence of conversation is one of the appeals of diving and more than a few of your students are not really going to want to listen to you pratteling on underwater.

 

[DevonDiver]

What??! But then they would here you cursing them?!?

 

[Hickdive]

Giving them a surface briefing on the skill and delivering underwater a suitably well broken-down demonstration/mimic lesson of each element of the skill is much more effective and cheaper than attempting to 'talk' them through it underwater.

 

[AndrewST]

I am a fan of the old "Monkey See, Monkey Do".

 

[sea2summit]

I like to have my students being able to look and see (what should be) a mirror image. If I'm going to demonstrate a skill they should be looking at exactly what they need to do not be listening to a lecture about it...that's one of the things I love about diving, no one can say stuff.

CCR that's different, my instructor yelled at me the whole class.

 

[Thalassamania]

I tried that, once upon a time ago, I found that it was rather a waste of time. The best student progress was made without conversation, either at the surface or through the wonders of modern technology. For me, good briefings that create clear expectations, well designed exercises that promote good skill development, and exemplary skills on the part of staff at all times is what gets the job done most efficiently.

 

[Lucy's Diver]

I am part of a public safety dive team where we normally dive in AGA on either SSA or hard line coms. We actually re-rig our gear to bite reg scuba when teaching new people how to use the AGA (i.e instructors in bite reg, students in AGA for ditch and don and bouyancy drills). Its just a lot easier to communicate on the surface, and there's nothing going on that's so complex that can't be conveyed with a slate or hand signals (as long as you do a proper pre dive brief)
We also almost never use through water (wireless) coms. We got tired of picking up local radio stations.