Why no Con Ed?

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I think they should for a lot of reasons. I've seen divers here in Puget Sound. Even as hard as we work to instill good buoyancy and stability in our students, four open water dives is not enough to solidify those skills. Many other divers were never really introduced to them. Diving is more fun if you are better at it and it is less work.

There is a lot of information out there to make diving easier and safer. Gas management is one of those topics. The additional education of a Nitrox class is also useful, if for no other reason than to go back over concepts related to decompression, depth, and ascent strategies.

Many environments reward non-silting propulsion techniques.

Rescue raises the diver's awareness of AVOIDING accidents, as well as making a diver more aware of options for handling them. And if you dive long enough, you WILL encounter a diver in distress (I've been involved in three in nine years).

Learning more about the animals where you dive can fabulously enrich your experience of being underwater. The friends I have who have dived for years and still say, "I dunno what kind of fish that was," fascinate me. It's so much more fun if you know who you're visiting, and why they are behaving the way they are!

And yes, you can learn all that stuff without a class, but classes organize material, make sure it's complete, and can be fun social experiences, too.

Not all my con-ed was great value for money, but as I learned more about how to choose classes and instructors, it got to be more so. I haven't taken anything but great classes in years (and they haven't all been GUE, either!).
 
To add to TS&M's post above (I agree with everything she's said), I also think that there are many aspects of diving that a person can certainly learn on their own through trial and error, and practice. I also think that many of those skills are achieved and improved much more quickly through spending some time learning about them, how to do them properly, and then doing exercises and getting instant, personal feedback from an instructor who shares the goal of making a better, happier, safer diver.
 
OW gave me the cert to dive anywhere I have wanted to dive. EAN cert gave me more bottom time when I was NDL limited. Solo cert lets me dive solo with selected dive op. I tried to take rescue but shop insisted I had to do AOW first (and take an unwanted CPR course and O2 course with it at significant extra cost). I had no problem developing the skills I wanted without paying for another piece of plastic.

May be time to market what divers want rather than trying to make divers buy what agencies want to market.
 
A lot of reasons for no con ed. have been given. A major one is probably some divers are just happy with the OW training and do the dives they want to do within those limits (though I also push Rescue when I get the chance). With myself, there could have been an even simpler reason. I believe the AOW course was only mentioned briefly when I took OW. I didn't even know THAT existed, much less other courses. I just figured that you got certified to be a diver then you dived. The only way I could get on a N. Florida charter in winter my first year was to sign up for AOW. At the time I had the money ("cost" factor), so I did. One of my Adventure dives was on Nitrox, so I decided to do that course when I returned home. Then some card collecting occurred. So, I wonder what % of OW students even KNOW about con ed. let alone consider it?
 
My aviation background generally makes me a proponent of advanced education and training. However, some training programs such as PADI's AOW would not increase my ability to do the type of diving that I have been doing, and will continue to do until health or other factors stop me. I have OW and Enriched Air certs, and would only consider taking specific courses if I wanted to dive in an environment in which I have no background, training or experience. If I was interested in getting back into cave diving, or wanted to dive dry, ice dive, penetrate wrecks, do rescue/recovery dives, or do side mount dives, I would certainly take courses for them or find an expert to teach me. From what I have seen on dive boats, I do not find that an AOW cert necessarily makes a better diver. That particular piece of paper only means that the diver has done 5 dives beyond OW, but still may not be able to hold a 3 minute safety stop, or be able to demonstrate good judgment, common sense, or have a safe diving attitude and mentality. Finally, since I can navigate and routinely use a compass, dive deep, boat dive, drift dive, use enriched air, practice fish ID, do novice underwater digital photography, and do night dives, I view AOW as a waste of money for me. I would rather invest the money in more dive trips so I can improve dive skills, which I am well aware of is a never ending process.
 
I did AOW shortly after my OW. I am the kind of person who wants to do things as well as I reasonably can. I wanted to build on the basic knowledge that I had in OW, and I plan on keeping on my development. I agree with a lot of what Richard said. I want Deep because I want somebody there with experience to help recognize if I'm having a problem initially. Nitrox for the bottom time. Rescue primarily so I can learn more about how divers get in problems, how to help, how to recognize when I'm starting to get into trouble myself, and so that I can help out if needed. I'd also like Solo cert at some time, not because I want to dive alone, but because I want to do everything I can to be able to protect my life if things go sideways.

I'm not that interested in doing a 1/2 day "fish identification" c-card, but I would love to do something like a 3+ day class on reef ecology, flora and fauna, behaviors and interactions, but I'm funny like that.

I have to admit that some of the certifications I see seem to be pretty insignificant (boat), there are ones that can provide significant skill and knowledge. Could an individual learn all of it themselves, or from their buddies, yes. Could it be done more effectively with a skilled instructor who is actively seeking to develop divers, not just make sure that a box is marked off? I think it can.

I'm not seeking a Master Diver patch, if I get one it's a side result of trying to be the best diver I reasonably can be. In the interest of full disclosure, I come from a family with a number of teachers, I teach computer programming at a technology center, so yes, I have a bias regarding the value of effective training :)

Steve
 
For me I took My OW course and wanted to continue but, I had a hard time getting the money together for the class and gear. Money got tight and I let the daily grind get in the way. Also, I did not know anyone or know of any dive clubs I could join to meet people and continue. I am now getting back into it. I have purchased by basic gear and am saving for my AOW. It took me a while but, I finally made it. What would have helped me is to be introduced to a dive club or dive social circle to meet and make friends with others who dive as a part of my OW class.

Mike
 
Rescue raises the diver's awareness of AVOIDING accidents, as well as making a diver more aware of options for handling them. And if you dive long enough, you WILL encounter a diver in distress (I've been involved in three in nine years).

In hindsight I agree, and consider the most valuable gain from Rescue avoiding accidents. Thing is, if that course weren't one of few consistently strongly endorsed on ScubaBoard, I might never have taken it, because the name sounded like 'Lifeguard Diver Volunteer.' Ironically I found the thoughtful approach to analyzing a dive plan in advance and preventing problems later mirrored in my SDI Solo Class, which on the surface seems the opposite of rescuing anybody else (since on a solo dive, there's usually is nobody else!).

Richard.
 
I think con-ed is a good idea, but the diver has to feel they are getting something valuable out of it to continue. I am a knowledge junkie and cherish a good learning experience, and have taken my share of con-ed scuba classes over the years. Lately I do not feel I have gotten a good value for my time and money.

I started in 1971 with an extensive OW course through NASDS. There were classrooms sessions followed by pool sessions. We had 2 of each a week for 3 to 4 weeks. This was followed by a weekend (day?) of skin diving then an OW dive. At the end, at age 14, I felt comfortable diving without an instructor.

Over the next several years I took several further classes (SSI Senior, UC San Diego Senior diver, the UC 100 hour research diver course, and finally a Rescue diver class) they all were extensive and excellent courses with a lot of bang for the buck.

Following that I started dry suit diving (1980's no class) and my diving became sporatic as the demands of adult and married life intervened. Fast forward to 2011 when I rejoined the ranks of active divers. Since then all the classes I have taken (Divemaster, Rescue, Nitrox, Tech40) have been "check off" classes. By this I mean that there was very little instruction, merely an evaluation of my skills and usually a one-and-done philosophy. I did try to take the Drysuit, Altitude, and "Solo" diver classes - but by the time I could get an instructor interested in teaching the class I no longer felt the formal class had anything to offer me. I tried for a year to get the instructor of my "solo" class to finish the last dive with me before giving up (no money had changed hands - not that I didn't keep offering the full price).

My dive skills and knowledge have blossomed since resuming diving, often as a result of my preparation for a class, but little from any of the formal part of the classes. As a result I have come to the conclusion that the local LDS classes have little or nothing to offer me anymore. If I want any real con-ed it will have to be an intense specialty from a dedicated specialty instructor. Something I do not have either the time or money to do.

If you want con-ed students, then offer classes of real value rather than the piecemeal pablum that is served up in most places now. But then again I'm not your typical "student".

*Disclaimer. I know there are some very good instructors out there -- keep up the good work. I am also not pointing any fingers at any agency -- my impression is that scuba instruction has been dumbed down by all the major agencies.
 
I think it is part agency and part dive shop causing this. One thing is cost, it varies widely as I have found. some people feel like they got ripped off and very, and I say very bad customer service, like they are running a dive mill and not caring about the customer. That alone puts a bad taste in peoples mouth and wallet. Agency: You have to take this and this before you can do this and it has this and this that you have to take to get certified. That is crap for the most part, but some I can see a need in but let the customer choose. Some of it is also the dive shop telling the customer that but sometimes not.

Money is a BIG factor in how long and how much a person goes with. I was in sales for a long time. They always say " Show the customer the highest product first then work your way down if they fuss" I did the opposite and brung my dept from 2nd to last to first in the company out of 580 stores for 5 months in a row before I left. I think different than a sales person. I show then all the options and give then the value for each. Something I do not nor have I seen yet in the dive shops around here so far. Kinda sad really. I rather sell more small packages and get a better margin than one large package with so so margin. Pushing the higher cost item/class is not the way to keep most OW divers interested.

The instructor that I took my boys to was friendly for the most part and the value was amazing. He went above what was needed and the price was the best around. He did mention packages of gear for people but did not push hard on it. He was more about getting you to learn and enjoy diving than selling gear. He did say he recommends this course and that and even had package deals that was priced about half of what I found near me. I will taking my sons back to him for all the training needs because of the value, the way he teaches, and all the extra info he gives to help you out. I just wish there was more like him.
 
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