Disappointed / Frustrated with my first OW class

[billt4sf]

I would first of all relax, then go back to the shop, voice your concerns, get personal attention to what you need, and if it happens again or they don't satisfy you, drop the course and try to get some money back.

I once had a terrible drysuit class, I wrote the owner and he found a way to get me satisfied. A good operation should do that.

It's too important to allow it to be not right. Especially at the start of your (hopefully lengthy) diving career.

FWIW I react MUCH MUCH better to personalized instruction. It's expensive but SO worth it!

- Bill

 

[Neilwood]

I think tbh that you were unlucky.

This is not standard for OW courses imho. It may be that they had too few instructors available on that day to fill in (sounds like the instructor dropped at the last minute) but 10-1 (excluding the DM) seems to me to be a bit much.

Your first sessions in the pool are hugely stressful and I was lucky in that I paid extra for 1-1. For my AOW, it was a 2-1 ratio.

I would definitely speak to the instructor firstly to let him try to sort it and failing that, the shop or organisation that is in charge. Give them a chance to rectify it and if they don't, walk away with your money and go elsewhere.

Definitely stick with diving though - the course might seem hard but it is so worth it!

 

[sheeper]

every shop and every instructor is different. Quite honestly, some just suck. i strive to focus on the real needs of my students and work closely with each student. I recently did a class of similar size and had myself, an assistant instructor and a DM. That is an important point and too many instructors just try to slam out new divers.

 

[kensuf]

Your experience, while a bit on the extreme side, is not that uncommon in group classes. While you may have been well prepared for the course, it's unlikely that the other 9 people were as well prepared. Although I didn't see it in your description, I bet that at least one person in your group was struggling and that threw the timing off.

The bottom line is that it's nearly impossible to receive (or if you're the instructor, give) individualized attention when you have a large group of students. It's one of the reasons I prefer to teach no more than 4 students for OW.

 

[tursiops]

OP, you've had many posts on SB. Your needs and attitudes suggest a private class with a good instructor. Sure, it will cost more. But that will meet your (high) expectations.

 

[The Laconic]

10-1 is too much.

You shouldn't expect the classroom session to cover everything at the same level of detail as the manual, though. That's just impossible unless everyone has actually read the manual, which is both unlikely (especially in a group of 10) and difficult or impossible for the instructor to confirm without first going over everything at a higher level, reviewing the answers to the quizzes, etc.

 

[doctormike]

I understand where you're coming from and I agree. I'm not casting blame, so no, it's not his fault. I said it's a lesson learned.

Yeah, I think that we basically agree on the underlying premise. And the OP doesn't sound like some shy, retiring person who won't stand up for himself. But a lot of OW students are, and I still think that in training, you are NOT responsible for your own safety the way that we typically considers divers to be. Many people would never even consider scuba training if they thought that they could get killed doing it but it was their responsibility to know ahead of time how to avoid that.

You said "it's up to YOU and YOU ONLY to make the call. Don't ever expect anyone to make things right for you, babysit you or be there for you when you need them. I don't care if it's during training with a pro. You are in charge of your diving. You should have tightened the mask." But how would he (or a typical unexperienced trainee) KNOW that he should have tightened the mask, if he asked his instructor and was told that it was OK?

 

[DiverDownD3]

I'm not trying to make this an agency thing, I'm PADI certified myself, but I thought it was PADI policy that the instructor was not to have more than 6 (or 8) students. I could be wrong, I know for my OW and AOW I was asked this in the post class survey

 

[mmerriman]

10:1 is allowed in the pool. but IMO it's too many.

 

[CuzzA]

Yeah, I think that we basically agree on the underlying premise. And the OP doesn't sound like some shy, retiring person who won't stand up for himself. But a lot of OW students are, and I still think that in training, you are NOT responsible for your own safety the way that we typically considers divers to be. Many people would never even consider scuba training if they thought that they could get killed doing it but it was their responsibility to know ahead of time how to avoid that.

You said "it's up to YOU and YOU ONLY to make the call. Don't ever expect anyone to make things right for you, babysit you or be there for you when you need them. I don't care if it's during training with a pro. You are in charge of your diving. You should have tightened the mask." But how would he (or a typical unexperienced trainee) KNOW that he should have tightened the mask, if he asked his instructor and was told that it was OK?

It's a tough deal. "Technically" he would know because he read the manual and watched the DVD where this is covered. In "reality" students rely heavily on the pros to assure them everything is okay or to fix issues. In this case, he knew the mask was not tight enough, knew he was getting blown off, but continued along anyway. Listen to your gut is all I'm saying. This is all hindsight analysis.

How many student deaths were a result of "just going with it"? I don't know. The OP seems like he's really determined to learn, which is great and the way to do it and obviously handled the leaky mask just fine. (A non issue). But I imagine someone has had a similar issue, dived when they didn't feel well, etc. and panicked when things went wrong, held their breath as they shot for the surface and popped a lung.

I guess I'm just reaffirming what we've all been taught. If something is wrong, don't dive.