I've ony been around here a few months, but it seems that almost every week there's a "today's training standards have slipped", a "you can't learn anything in 2 days", or a "when I learned to dive, we had to ...." thread. There's enough material in those threads for adn entire book on training issues in the dive industry. Maybe someday DAN or someone will do that book.
Until, then, here's my $0.02. Please be paitient, it's rather long...
I've seen the industry change quite a bit, literally through three "generations".
My dad and uncles were instructors in what I call the "macho diver" phase of the industry- the late 60s. They were all ex-military, and teaching as they had been taught - lots of fitness, "this is THE way it's done", all learn by doing and almost no theory. The 100 yard swim, the 20 minute tread water, and maybe some push-ups were the norm for the first class. Woment need not apply. Decompression was DON'T, and we use the by-God Navy tables to ensure that we don't get in a decomp situation. By the book! Gear was (by current standards) primitive, conditions in the area (the Ohio river) were tough (cold and 2-3 ft viz all the time), and they were doing a lot of brown-water rescue and "recovery". The "final exam" included diving into the river or lake with nothing on but a suit and finding and putting on all your gear under water. Buddy breathing (maybe from a two hose reg) and an out of air ascent were required.
I first certified myself in 1979. Gear was much better, BCs (vs safety vests) were coming out and power inflators were new. There was a generation of instructors who had learned from the "macho divers" and didn't think that all that rigor was still needed. Decompression was "emergency only" for when you violated the agency's tables (conservative versions of the Navy tables). Bouyancy and trim were barely taught, and there wasn't a lot about safe ascent speeds or safety stops. There was more theory, a lot more emphasis on "consumer level" safety, but you still had to swim 50 yards, tread water or stay afloat for 10 mins and do the "put on all the gear underwater" final, but you could do it in a pool. Women were welcome to this new "sport", which was also more social. Your instructor might or might not turn off your air while you were doing drills for the final open water, depending on how comfortable he thought you were in the water. "Safe-seconds" were the norm for NASDS training and buddy breathing was a "no-no", although this was not the norm throughout the industry. Sumersible pressure guages were begining to catch on, and no computers. There was an emergency out of air ascent from 30 ft required. (Tilt your head back and BLOW, trying to go as slow as possible!)
I just finished a completely new OW course a few months ago (Feb 2007). There was a (rather sales-oriented "diving is great you want to do it") DVD and a much thinner book than I had seen before. The theory was there, but rather watered down from my standpoint. (I'm and engineer and my 17 yr old had just finished AP Physics.) I would say the book had the *important* parts of the theory, plus a new emphasis on taking care of the environment, which is not a bad idea. There was a 50 yd swim, about 5 minutes of tread water and no pushups
In the pool, there were the same mask-clearing drills, but bouyancy and trim were a recurring, *important* part of the class. You had to doff and don your gear in he pool, but you kept your air on and reg the whole time. You *did* have to exchange weights with your buddy, which I thought was a more useful skill than some I'd been taught before. There was no emergency out of air ascent.
So, have standards "slipped"? Can you learn everything in 2 days? These are two complete different questions...
Until, then, here's my $0.02. Please be paitient, it's rather long...
I've seen the industry change quite a bit, literally through three "generations".
My dad and uncles were instructors in what I call the "macho diver" phase of the industry- the late 60s. They were all ex-military, and teaching as they had been taught - lots of fitness, "this is THE way it's done", all learn by doing and almost no theory. The 100 yard swim, the 20 minute tread water, and maybe some push-ups were the norm for the first class. Woment need not apply. Decompression was DON'T, and we use the by-God Navy tables to ensure that we don't get in a decomp situation. By the book! Gear was (by current standards) primitive, conditions in the area (the Ohio river) were tough (cold and 2-3 ft viz all the time), and they were doing a lot of brown-water rescue and "recovery". The "final exam" included diving into the river or lake with nothing on but a suit and finding and putting on all your gear under water. Buddy breathing (maybe from a two hose reg) and an out of air ascent were required.
I first certified myself in 1979. Gear was much better, BCs (vs safety vests) were coming out and power inflators were new. There was a generation of instructors who had learned from the "macho divers" and didn't think that all that rigor was still needed. Decompression was "emergency only" for when you violated the agency's tables (conservative versions of the Navy tables). Bouyancy and trim were barely taught, and there wasn't a lot about safe ascent speeds or safety stops. There was more theory, a lot more emphasis on "consumer level" safety, but you still had to swim 50 yards, tread water or stay afloat for 10 mins and do the "put on all the gear underwater" final, but you could do it in a pool. Women were welcome to this new "sport", which was also more social. Your instructor might or might not turn off your air while you were doing drills for the final open water, depending on how comfortable he thought you were in the water. "Safe-seconds" were the norm for NASDS training and buddy breathing was a "no-no", although this was not the norm throughout the industry. Sumersible pressure guages were begining to catch on, and no computers. There was an emergency out of air ascent from 30 ft required. (Tilt your head back and BLOW, trying to go as slow as possible!)
I just finished a completely new OW course a few months ago (Feb 2007). There was a (rather sales-oriented "diving is great you want to do it") DVD and a much thinner book than I had seen before. The theory was there, but rather watered down from my standpoint. (I'm and engineer and my 17 yr old had just finished AP Physics.) I would say the book had the *important* parts of the theory, plus a new emphasis on taking care of the environment, which is not a bad idea. There was a 50 yd swim, about 5 minutes of tread water and no pushups
In the pool, there were the same mask-clearing drills, but bouyancy and trim were a recurring, *important* part of the class. You had to doff and don your gear in he pool, but you kept your air on and reg the whole time. You *did* have to exchange weights with your buddy, which I thought was a more useful skill than some I'd been taught before. There was no emergency out of air ascent.So, have standards "slipped"? Can you learn everything in 2 days? These are two complete different questions...
