Your Top 3 Advanced Questions.

[SCUBA482]

I definitely do. It's completely overlooked within the PADI and SSI recreational programs. I didn't learn the importance of proper gas management until I started technical dive training. Until then, I just monitored my SPG and 'best guessed' when I needed to start my ascent in order to surface with the required/statutory gas reserve. I got better at 'best guessing' as I gained experience.... but with hindsight, that left me with a knowledge void when I was least experienced. It's so easily rectified.... that it should be!

Couldn't agree more with this! I have just recently learned this and now don't know why I wouldn't properly gas plan without this knowledge.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

There are so many things that really are basic info that are missing from ow and many AOW courses today. Its why I wrote my book and began developing my own courses. Still meeting standards but also going way beyond them. I have seen AOW students and divers come on here and ask what regulator to buy and what features it should have. How about you are diving a warm tropical location for most of your dives. Do you need a sealed coldwater reg for those times you do dive locally? Why? What type?
Describe the proper steps to determine your weighting requirements.
Describe proper buddy protocol for vis of 100ft and why? For 30ft? For 10ft? For a sudden siltout? Anyone with an AOW card SHOULD be able to answer these.

 

[TSandM]

I think, from my own experiences and from reading many, many posts from newer divers here over five years, that one of the biggest problems with the short classes today is that people simply don't end up with enough information to make good decisions, so they abdicate that responsibility to other people, like dive guides. The questions I wrote were aimed at creating scenarios that new divers might face (for example, the 130 foot dive on an Al 80 was my 14th) and forcing them to integrate the information they had received from their class, in the way that real diving does.

I don't know what information you are stressing in your class (but I do hope gas management is part of it), but you can write similar questions involving whatever it is that you have focused on with your students.

 

[SeaHorse81]

I have PADI OW and AOW certs, and am not equipped to answer many of the serious questions suggested here. But, I already knew that I was undertrained (in my opinion) for the certs that I hold and have plans in place to get an AOW and Rescue cert from a different agency this year. I'm looking forward to having cards that actually mean something, and am glad for those of you who are instructing with such attention to detail and true comprehension.

 

[Divedoggie]

With a college program that has as much time as you do it is a perfect opportunity for you to produce divers that are ready to dm right out of your course. As the agency's grew and got further apart and more step oriented it became a comprehensive program, but many divers stop at ow or aow and it leaves them ill prepared for a lot of things other than guided tours on vacation. I did naui in 1981 with an ex navy bastard, I hated him as a person, loved him as a instructor. That course was 8 weeks long with at least 10 pool sessions, then the actual dives. People failed and had to repeat.
I guess what I am trying to say is with the luxery of so much time, the test is really not important when you have the opportunity to crank out such quality divers.
Eric

Until now, there hasn't been a test or final exam. Only knowledge reviews, class participation and attendence, and each student must make a presentation to the class. Yes its a great opportunity..except...we are unable to easily get much OW experience, especially during winter months.
After the students finish the class, many of them immediately sign up for Rescue. Last semester, one girl signed up for a semester abroad on the Great Barrier reef, another went through a DM program in the Keys. Most however, are going on dive trips during school holidays and gaining experience on their own.

This AOW course is my favorite teaching experience. It involves a lot of homework and preparation on my part, and switching seats with them to hear their presentations has been inspiring.

 

[Divedoggie]

DiveD asked
I always give out my "Air Supply Cheat Sheet" to my OW students. Cheat Sheet

May I borrow this? That's a great cheat sheet!

 

[Divedoggie]

I think, from my own experiences and from reading many, many posts from newer divers here over five years, that one of the biggest problems with the short classes today is that people simply don't end up with enough information to make good decisions, so they abdicate that responsibility to other people, like dive guides. The questions I wrote were aimed at creating scenarios that new divers might face (for example, the 130 foot dive on an Al 80 was my 14th) and forcing them to integrate the information they had received from their class, in the way that real diving does.

I don't know what information you are stressing in your class (but I do hope gas management is part of it), but you can write similar questions involving whatever it is that you have focused on with your students.

Most of our classroom interaction is taking a concept and applying it to a real situation. Since it is difficult for us to do much more OW training beyond the 5 AOW dives, bringing concepts to life is key. There should definitely be a number of test questions presented this way as well.

I'm still planning a trip to the PNW over the first 2 weeks of June. If you and Peter are in town, I'd love to bring the course information along and go over it together. (As well as diving, as we pm'd a while back!)

Yes, I stress gas planning and management. I definitely lacked that information as a new diver, and as a DM and Instructor. I had to do a lot of reading and practicing to learn on my own. Essential equipment/configuration, finning techniques, buoyancy and trim skills, deploying an smb, even using a checklist when packing for a dive trip are stressed in class.
We go over specific questions about specialties, but the reading material and knowledge reviews in the AOW book are pretty self explanatory. I have some nice GUE videos on DPVs, but this one seems to get the class's attention as an intro:
YouTube - Cave dive Florida- Indian Springs, downstream passages

I looked back at my own training, mistakes, corrections, etc. as well as the courses that I taught over the first couple of years as an Instructor. Many of my local dive buddies are UTD, GUE, and Tech divers. They have had an influence on my outlook.

Finally, having read and participated in many threads on SB since 2004, I've shaped new opinions about training. You, Peter, Thal, Walter, the Cave crew, Lamont, and many others have helped me begin to see how things should be. I'm trying to broaden my knowledge base, sharpen my skills, and open my mind.

 

[Divedoggie]

I have PADI OW and AOW certs, and am not equipped to answer many of the serious questions suggested here. But, I already knew that I was undertrained (in my opinion) for the certs that I hold and have plans in place to get an AOW and Rescue cert from a different agency this year. I'm looking forward to having cards that actually mean something, and am glad for those of you who are instructing with such attention to detail and true comprehension.

I believe that the PADI Rescue class is excellent. I'm not sure if you will get much more from an AOW course with a different agency unless the Instructor is taking it apon himself to expand the course.
If the different agency is with Jim Lapenta, then it will be more thorough. If your other agency is GUE or UTD, you will be starting over with fundamentals, not an AOW course.

 

[Divedoggie]

Reading the compass, very hard for many people and should be practiced way more than it is.

Thanks for this answer Dukemdiver. This is fresh in your mind and an honest answer, and I agree with it. I think many students can fake their way through a nav dive, and end up not really knowing how to read a compass, let alone use it properly for underwater nav while maintaining neutral buoyancy.

 

[Peter Guy]

DiveD asked

May I borrow this? That's a great cheat sheet!

Yes, as you might have guessed, that's why I put in the link. For your purposes, would you like the underlying Word document so that you could easily change it to fit your class? If so, just PM/Email me and I'll send it along.

We'll both be here in June and will happily go diving with you!