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Since my workshop provided some of the impetus for this conversation, let me give you a little background ... because it relates directly to what UnderwaterMedic has stated ... the workshop I offer is individually tailored to the needs of the student.
A few months ago I was contacted by a local diver ... a member of this board ... who had some questions about a class. As we were exchanging emails, it occurred to me that none of the standardized classes would provide what he was asking for. Although an AOW class ... even the one that I teach ... would cover part of it, it wouldn't really provide all of what he was asking for. And because of the standards, it would also include things he didn't ask for. So I decided to create a skills workshop that address his needs specifically. You can read about that first class here ... http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ne...-new-diver-can-spend-anything-right-here.html
After Jeff's workshop, he created that thread and a similar one on one of our local boards. Since then I've been surprised by how many folks have contacted me that want to take something like it. Here is an email from one of my most recent inquiries ... I've received several like it over the past four months ...
I am a new diver looking for some lessons, I did my OW and AOW straight after in november last year and have 25 dives . I have started diving weekly in a group but I'm currently struggling with buoyancy and trim after get in a drysuit, after 2 very floaty dives (3 and 4 in a drysuit) I have taken to bouncing off the bottom and sucking gas like crazy for the last 3 dives (I think this may be a mind thing) how much are your lessons and what is your availability?
Each applicant has somewhat different stories and goals, but they almost always boil down to buoyancy, trim, weighting, and propulsion issues. And each has somewhat different backgrounds, although what they have in common is that they're all relatively new, inexperienced, or ... like Jeff ... people returning to diving after a long hiatus.
In each case, we exchange emails and phone calls, and based on what they tell me I create a curriculum that addresses their specific concerns. In the one I taught two weeks ago the diver was brand new to a drysuit, and so we incorporated drysuit training into the class. In other cases, they're in a wetsuit, or sufficiently confident in their drysuit skills that we don't need to address the basics, and can focus more on fine-tuning skills. But in all cases, we address the issues of concern, which so far have always boiled down to the "basic four" of buoyancy, trim, weighting and propulsion. Almost always there is an expressed concern of using a lot of air ... that gets addressed in the process of working on the other skills.
We'll always start out with an evening or morning of going over their gear ... making sure everything's working, fits properly, and is appropriate to the dives we're doing. I don't mandate any specific equipment ... I'll just as happily train in split fins and jacket BCD as I will in blade fins, long hose and backplate. That's up to the student's preference. What I WILL do is describe to you the advantages, drawbacks, and limitations of your equipment choices ... because it has a bearing on what we'll be able to accomplish. In other words, don't ask me to teach you a back kick in split fins. I can't even do it ... much less teach it. I'll happily show you how to do a modified frog kick in those split fins, and how to do the equivalent of a helicopter kick ... both of which are easily achievable, although slightly different than how you'd do them in blades. I'll happily train you on the approproate use of a long hose, if that's what you want to learn ... but we can just as easily accomplish good safety skills in a typical recreational rig ... the methods are just slightly different. Trim and buoyancy control are achievable in pretty much any BCD ... things like weight distribution will differ from model to model and style to style, but the concepts are the same regardless. The key is to balance your weights such that when you stop all motion, you will remain in the position you want to without having to fight your equipment. In order to do so, the equipment must fit properly and be adjusted properly.
We spend the first dive evaluating where you're at ... me watching the student descend, move underwater, hover without any motion, and ascend ... and making corrections based on what I see. Once I've got the student descending without difficulty, holding a good stop off the bottom without having to kick or hand scull to maintain position, managing a passable flutter kick (which is all they usually know how to do), and being able to ascend slowly, we move on to other skills. Everything is done in shallow water ... typically 20 feet for the first dive ... so that we can make several ascents and descents as needed to discuss what I see, work on making real-time adjustments, and practice. The first dive can take up to 90 minutes, and often consists of several "dives" of 10-12 minutes or less. It's building a foundation. At the end of that dive, with your cylinder at a reserve of 500 psi, we'll do a weight check in 8 feet of water. Usually by now we've already made some weighting changes based on what I've seen during the dive, and the weight check only results in minor ... if any ... adjustments.
The curriculum for the second dive is often based on exercises that strengthen the learning objectives of the first ... again it will vary from student to student, with the goal being to have the student comfortably making descents without touching the bottom, moving comfortably and in trim, hovering consistently and with little to no effort, and making an ascent that includes stops when you want, and an ascent rate that's completely under control.
Third and fourth dives will focus on whatever additional skills the student has expressed a desire to learn. We can work on fine-tuning buoyancy skills, navigation skills, SMB deployment, fin kicks, or whatever the student feels is important to their development. Once the foundation is properly established, the possibilities are many.
I do this course, typically, over the course of two days ... two dives per day ... but now that longer days are here, I am going to also be seeing how well it works on a one-dive-per-evening format. The important thing is not to spread the dives out too much ... to allow muscle memory to develop a sense of what it "feels" like when the skill is done properly.
That's as much of a description of how I conduct the workshop as I can provide. I have seen some impressive results so far.
I do not offer cards or stickers for this workshop. Perhaps that might be an incentive for some ... but the thing that most matters to the people I've offered this class to so far is that they leave the class feeling much more confident and comfortable in the water. Since these divers are already certified, they already own the card that matters. In some cases, applicants have asked if they should consider taking an AOW or specialty class ... and I usually tell them that while these classes add value, they should do some diving first and help establish more firmly the skills they've just learned. When they feel ready for an AOW or specialty class, I'll be happy to provide one ... but the purpose of this workshop is to provide them a better foundation to work on gaining some more experience at their current level before progressing on to other classes. In effect, this workshop is to help them gain the confidence to go out and dive on their own for a while between classes ... so they can come to the next class better prepared to learn whatever new skills that class provides.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
