The student's path to learn Scuba is mixed with various amounts of discovery, lecture and then skill development. The reasons that I see to restrict this from the general population are;
1) Openness. Instructors employ situational awareness... it's the most important part of our job. There are some things that I would freely discuss with other instructors that I would not discuss with students or non-instructors around. Knowing that I have a mixed audience, I would restrict my speech accordingly.
2) Techniques. It does a student little good to know how we manipulate them. Also, if they can get the "answers" to our discovery methods here, then we have short circuited the process.
3) Sensitive documents. While I might like to share a test question, or even a whole test (with answers) to a group of instructors, I would be hesitant to do so with others present.
4) Students. What would be your response if you were having a problem in a pool session? You decide to look up the answers on the internet and find Scubaboard. Then you find your instructor discussing those issues in this forum? Somehow, I feel the student would feel insulted and the instructor's credibility would be undermined.
5) Posers. We have seen more than our fair share of people come to the internet and pretend they know more than they do by mimicking what they read. This forum is not intended to train people to be instructors, and yet someone reading these posts might miss-use the information to pose as an instructor. I have even seen this happen in an AOW class.
6) Incentive. Very rarely in this industry is the DM or AI rewarded. This would at least be a small incentive to be able to finally enter the restricted zone at last. Hey, it ain't the holy of holies, but at least it's a small perk.
As for verification... most agencies will verify an instructor as active or inactive if you provide them with a name and instructor number. We had quite recently an individual who went from having less than 20 dives to being an accomplished instructor who has dived the Andrea Doria on several occasions. While it is impossible to ferret each and every poser on this board (experience is hard to verify and there is only so much time), I feel VERY STRONGLY that if you claim to be an instructor, you had best be on the level. People will listen to you, right or wrong, and if you are a poser you could well endanger lives.
Remember, no decisions have been made on this forum... it's existence or it's security. Speak now or forever hold your keyboard.
