PADI course for idiots?

[ScubaSteve1962]

Wrap your mask in a towel and away you go. If you have anything delicate, put it in a tough case or take it carry on.
To me, these things seem like something people should figure out themselves. If you can't figure out that something could be damaged in flight and take measures to prevent it, well you will learn a very valuable lesson when you reach your destination and need to buy something new or just miss out.

that's the first I've ever heard of that, but I place my mask in it's case, and luckily my luggage doesn't allow for damage if packed properly.

 

[lozadora]

I completed my Open Water course this weekend and the videos are just as patronising as the book! Yes, you get a kick out of imagining the idiots this is set to, but I think it's extremely important that PADI don't take anything for granted.

It scared me that when the instructor asked what people would do in an emergency, that some did not have a basic grasp of CPR or that the first instinct should be to check for breathing. I guess that's why it pays to really know your buddy where possible!

I overheard some instructors in their 50s talking about the certification process today compared to when they did. Supposedly they had to learn more about the physics of diving and it was a lot more technical than "how do I pack my bag" - as long as the course teaches divers to be safe, sensible and look after their buddy they can present it to me with Barney the dinosaur if they wish!

 

[DevonDiver]

If the OW manual isn't enough 'challenge' for you, then why not request the manual in an alternative language? Say... Russian?

I've taught more than a few non-English speakers, who had just enough English to get through the manual - I'm sure they appreciated the simplicity and straight-forwardness of the content. Same is true for the children who do that course...

As for 'packing bags'...have you been to an airport recently? LOL

 

[Paulmal]

You can get certified at 10 yrs old so that has to be the lvl the books are written to. If you want a course designed to a higher age group/ be held to a higher standard look into GUE's open water course. It is OW and Nitrox wrapped into one course.

 

[DevonDiver]

You can get certified at 10 yrs old so that has to be the lvl the books are written to. If you want a course designed to a higher age group/ be held to a higher standard look into .....

...anything beyond the most basic entry-level, with an instructor who has the experience and knowledge to teach you at the level you are comfortable with.

 

[boulderjohn]

I have had both 10 year old students and college professors sitting in the same class.

Tell me how you would write a course that would meet the needs of both of them.

 

[Venskj]

Just my two cents here. If the material is written in such a way that a 12 year doesn't blow their lungs out because they don't understand the effect that pressure has on volume, then so be it. Let's even dumb it down further if it saves a life. Also, please be aware that many large corporations write their internal manuals at about a 6th grade education level. They don't do this because their people are idiots. They do it because you use a simpler language that has less of a chance of being misinterpreted.

I think we all may have forgotten a little bit about how it was when we first dove. No, I wasn't afraid of the water. I'd been in the water all my life. But I've got to admit, the first few times I went boat diving and such, I wasn't the most graceful person to be around. It takes awhile to develop your own style and cadence for doing things. If the book can offer some suggestions to ease the transition, great.

 

[Robert Gillcash]

Try this.
Think of how stupid the average person is.
Got that?
Now think of this: 50% of the people you know are stupider than that!
Yeah, the books gotta be easy to read. Even as they are most people don't read everything in them anyways....always missing stuff.
"I didn't know that....!"

 

[The Chairman]

Wrap your mask in a towel and away you go.

I put my mask in a fin pocket for both packing and on a boat. No problems so far!

I remember this being a part of the NAUI course from the last century, so it's not just PADI. People rarely think to pack in reverse order and have no clue how crowded a dive boat can get. Part of my duty as an instructor is to prepare them for when they are diving without me on some cattle boat somewhere out yonder.

 

[t4e]

I have had both 10 year old students and college professors sitting in the same class.

Tell me how you would write a course that would meet the needs of both of them.

you write different books and you don't mix apples and oranges in the same class, same as you don't have university students in grade 2 and vice versa