Any PADI instructors here who are also DIR compliant?

[randytay]

I would like to hear how you reconcile teaching an OW class while introducing DIR philosophy and/or gear configurations, if any.

I know a few NAUI instructors who do that (due to "more freedom"), but does any PADI instructors do that?

 

[TSandM]

My husband does in his private classes. We start students in backplates and 40" hoses with bungied backups, and blade fins. (Not 7' hoses at the beginning, at least not yet.) In both the private classes and the ones done through the PADI shop, we start students in a fin pivot or horizontal position from the beginning, and have them practice their basic skills in midwater in the pool, including mask skills and air-sharing. We introduce good body posture and try to teach a solid, correct flutter kick (usually don't get to teach frog kicking in the time constraints of OW, but a lot of students try to mimic us, as it turns out). We insist on students operating in buddy teams from the get-go and teach them one-handed signals.

It's not a GUE OW class, but there is nothing in Peter's class that is inconsistent with quick progress to a class like Essentials or Fundamentals.

 

[randytay]

We introduce good body posture and try to teach a solid, correct flutter kick ....

By correct flutter kick, are you referring to the mod flutter kicks?

Also what was the reason they are not in 7' hose in the beginning? Is this configuration only in the private classes? What about the general classes?

 

[boulderjohn]

I know several people who are PADI instructors and who are also DIR for their own diving. I am one. In fact, you would be surprised how far up the ladders of both GUE and UTD this happens. I know a UTD DIR instructor who regularly dons a full set of very traditional gear when he teaches his PADI OW classes.

 

[randytay]

I know several people who are PADI instructors and who are also DIR for their own diving. I am one. In fact, you would be surprised how far up the ladders of both GUE and UTD this happens. I know a UTD DIR instructor who regularly dons a full set of very traditional gear when he teaches his PADI OW classes.

I do understand you may be DIr for your own diving but do you teach DIR, or at least close to DIR during your OW classes? If so, how do you reconcile them? As in, the DIR requirements for any skills is definitely higher than is stated in the PADI S&P, but how do you actually implement these standards without getting into trouble with your CD/shop etc assuming you are not a shop owner?

 

[boulderjohn]

I do understand you may be DIr for your own diving but do you teach DIR, or at least close to DIR during your OW classes? If so, how do you reconcile them? As in, the DIR requirements for any skills is definitely higher than is stated in the PADI S&P, but how do you actually implement these standards without getting into trouble with your CD/shop etc assuming you are not a shop owner?

If you are teaching a PADI class, you teach to PADI standards.

 

[Ste Wart]

It would be fairly hard to try and mimic DIR teaching on a PADI OW class. Normally because the standard equipment would be a Jacket BCD and Reg set-up i.e no long hose. I've never worked at a dive shop where BP's and Wings were available to recreational divers.

 

[randytay]

If you are teaching a PADI class, you teach to PADI standards.

Can you "demand" more without getting into trouble?

 

[randytay]

It would be fairly hard to try and mimic DIR teaching on a PADI OW class. Normally because the standard equipment would be a Jacket BCD and Reg set-up i.e no long hose. I've never worked at a dive shop where BP's and Wings were available to recreational divers.

Assuming equipment is not an issue, can you implement them without getting into trouble?

 

[TSandM]

I haven't gone through the standards for the GUE OW class. I think it would be difficult, within the time available for most standard PADI OW classes, to hold students to 20 degrees of trim and a 3' buoyancy window in midwater for doing skills. I don't know if even GUE instructors can do that for their students, but I know the GUE OW class involves far more time and more dives.

What we try to do is give the students a mental image of what a neutral and horizontal and stable diver looks like -- we show them videos, and we model those things. We encourage them to mimic us, and we give them feedback where they are falling short. We are not turning out people who will get a tech pass from Fundies the following week, but we are turning out people who have an idea of what polished diving is like. Nothing we have taught them will get in their WAY of reaching a higher skill level or a deeper understanding of what they are doing.

We don't use the 7' hose in OW because Peter made a decision that it was too complicated for people on scuba for the first time, and he didn't want to manage the safety issues. I'm sure it can be done -- UTD and GUE do it -- but we aren't doing it at present.