Fortunately their ARE people who teach people to dive and not just to follow the leader. There is some crazy stuff out there. The girl should have had a good sense of her weighting before going in openwater. Equipment familiarity and basic water skills like buoyancy and trim should be sorted out in a pool or otherwise closed environment.
Mr 100 Dive Wonder Instructor
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What is the point of telling this story. Did it really help that the new instructor did not ever receive help to become "competent". Should we always be sceptical about the competence of our instructors?
Dive education, like most education is tough for students since they don't always know when they have a good instructor. While the story is a good detailed yarn, I do not see what we are to make of it and how to correct this problem.
Dive education, like most education is tough for students since they don't always know when they have a good instructor. While the story is a good detailed yarn, I do not see what we are to make of it and how to correct this problem.
Overweighting students by an instructor is plain and simple laziness on the part of that instructor and also shows his LACK of skills and ability to teach. To say it makes it easier is bullcrap. If anything it makes it harder. I have seen numerous instructors overweight and it is amazing how hard they have to work to keep students together, keep the silt down, help them out of the water or onto the platform. But they still insist on doing it. And I feel that 100 dives should be the minimum to START instructor training. 100 is a good number to complete DM.
fire_diver
Contributor
Charlie59:
I take the point to be that the industry needs a wakeup call. Rushing people from student to instructor with no REAL dive experience on thier own is just plain wrong. It is the reason we have people bicycling, and roto-tilling the bottoms. They had crappy instructors, who probably couldn't dive themselves, teaching incorrect techniques.
FD
SparticleBrane
Contributor
Ever seen the "Raining Students" video? 
OP
Bingofire_diver:
DaytonaDave
Contributor
SparticleBrane:Ever seen the "Raining Students" video?
No... is it funny? Where can I see it?
SparticleBrane
Contributor
I did my training the hard way, resort course with one instructor, OW bookwork and pool sessions with a local instructor, last 2 checkouts with another. I got quite a sampling in the range, an Uber veteran (4 digit padi number), a 10y plus guy, and a fresh off the press instructor. They were all courteous, professional and knowledgeable. The new instructor was very excited and just happy to be doing what he was. The 10 year guy was still excited, had the knowledge and skills needed and did a wonderful job in my opinion. The old salt still liked what he was doing, but kinda acted like he was doing us a favor by instructing us. It's all subjective.
I found a wonderful instructor with every quality one could want. I've stuck with him ever since and we've become friends.
It's a case by case basis, the number of dives doesn't determine skill level. The instructor mentioned by O.P. sounds like a buffoon. Too busy proving how much better a diver he is than someone else. It's a window into today's socitey of immediate reward for minimal cost/effort.
BTW literature is art, regardless where it is written. I enjoyed the post.
I found a wonderful instructor with every quality one could want. I've stuck with him ever since and we've become friends.
It's a case by case basis, the number of dives doesn't determine skill level. The instructor mentioned by O.P. sounds like a buffoon. Too busy proving how much better a diver he is than someone else. It's a window into today's socitey of immediate reward for minimal cost/effort.
BTW literature is art, regardless where it is written. I enjoyed the post.
Well then, how do you make a change? The industry needs interested people to grow the business and maintain income. It is difficult for some dive shops to say no to the income of IDC. Telling this story here only confirms what most know already, that there are some really awful divers and instructors out there. How does it wake the "industry?
As for bad divers, who knows what is bad instruction or bad diving. The standards do not work to keep people with little ability from dive equipment. I have seen wonderful instructors produce really awful divers and usually it is due to diver attitude and not instruction.
Bad instructors are not all rushed, some have an attitude of possessing greater knowledge than they really do, diving longer may not change that. Not all crappy divers or crappy instructors are products of the "industry".
As for bad divers, who knows what is bad instruction or bad diving. The standards do not work to keep people with little ability from dive equipment. I have seen wonderful instructors produce really awful divers and usually it is due to diver attitude and not instruction.
Bad instructors are not all rushed, some have an attitude of possessing greater knowledge than they really do, diving longer may not change that. Not all crappy divers or crappy instructors are products of the "industry".
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