MikeFerrara:
I don't think there should be a law. I thionk agencies and dive centers should act responsibly voluntarily. While a parent can legally take their small child diving without any ones help or permission, should we encourage it? We can argue that they're safer with instruction than they would be without but you could say that about anything.
In this country, anyway, people get to decide these things for themselves. We also have strong marketers who don't always tell the truth and are happy to help one make up their mind too...buyer beware. Personally, I've seen a small child on a dive where his two VERY INEXPERIENCED parents ran into trouble and I doubt that little boy will ever forget what he saw. I know that I won't. Now...I don't care what those people do and they can't hurt me but I'll bet they were expecting nothing but fun and games. Also I'll bet those parents were not the type of people to go out and do such a thing on their own without first having a book, shop and instructor to help them get thinking that they were "qualified".
So for my part...absolutely let people do what they want but my question is are they being misled into wanting to do something that they wouldn't normally have wanted to do? Either way I don't have any say in it but I won't have anything to do with it either.
Mike brings up some good points here. There is a fine line between providing a safe way to do what a parent and child want to do (and are
going to do), and taking advantage of ignorance by encouraging what a parent or child shouldn't do.
As an instructor, to me the question becomes "Am I professional?" If I am then I have no qualms about telling a parent "your child isn't ready for this yet" or, just as often, "you aren't ready to be an underwater safety diver for your child yet." On the other hand, it is a very rare case indeed when I'd say "NO!" I would rather say "Here is what needs to happen before we can allow you and your child to dive together" and outline a program of training tailored to meet the goal of safe diving. That program may only delay them a little or may stretch until the child isn't a child anymore. (I should mention that there are cases where the parents aren't divers and don't expect to be divers - and hire an instructor/DM to dive with their child until he/she's 15)
Children & Scuba will always be a "hot button" because there are so many ways to abuse the system, parents are often deluded in their evaluation of their children's abilities, children assume the parent can always save them, and the children are the ones ultimately put in danger if we screw up. Training a child who isn't ready is bad. Training a child whose
parents aren't ready is bad. Failing to train one who's going to dive is bad too.
Done right, diving can be a key part of a child's growth and facilitate strong family bonding in ways the average can never hope to achieve. Diving is one of only two or three things a teenager will do
with his/her parents.
I also think age is pretty artificial as an iron-clad limiting factor. I've known 10 year olds far more capable than the average 16 year old, and 18 year olds far less capable than the average 10 year old. And so I believe training children must be on a case-by-case basis.
Bottom line: If it's done right and responsibly, I am all for children's Scuba training. If it's done wrong, I'm against it.
Keep the government out of it either way.
Rick
