PADI eBusiness - Atomic Online - 800 Pound Gorilla in the Room

[Swan1172]

But armed with this knowledge I now ask, even more so, whats the point. Sure for distance learning this sounds great. Kids living in the outback can now e-learn from home instead of boarding school in the city but I see no point for someone to potentially sit 2 miles up the road from a LDS having a PADI staffer teaching him. Why not sit in the classroom for crying out loud?

What about those people that have jobs or family responsibilities that do not coincide with when their LDS schedules courses? Going online gives them an opportunity that they would not currently have. I think it is more about time availability for most people than it is about distance. I know that was the case with me when I went back to school to get my MBA and is why I chose an accredited online program.

 

[scubaaaronh]

Diving instructors in India. "Your class ready to start right now, I am. Visa or Mastercharge?"

India, pakistan, china, i really dont care where the online instructor is from as long as he runs a good online class and can answer the questions i may have in a way i can understand him. For the hands on part as long as i would be paired with an instructor through a local dive center that knows his stuff who cares. As another Swan said sometimes it comes down to available time.

 

[Thalassamania]

India, pakistan, china, i really dont care where the online instructor is from as long as he runs a good online class and can answer the questions i may have in a way i can understand him. For the hands on part as long as i would be paired with an instructor through a local dive center that knows his stuff who cares. As another Swan said sometimes it comes down to available time.

That Instructor will be about as good as your cellphone company's customer service representitive. Would you permit you loved one to take such a course?

 

[Azza]

India, pakistan, china, i really dont care where the online instructor is from as long as he runs a good online class and can answer the questions i may have in a way i can understand him.

In fact it probably won't be an instructor. No Dive Instructor wants to sit in an office all day/night and teach online. People don't become instructors for that reason.
He will be given a perfunctory 5 day class on some of the academics he must teach then set free to "instruct" you. He may not even be a diver...

 

[Azza]

What about those people that have jobs or family responsibilities that do not coincide with when their LDS schedules courses? Going online gives them an opportunity that they would not currently have. I think it is more about time availability for most people than it is about distance.

Then you make time. How is one supposed to ever go diving if they have no time? Most shops and instructors organise courses to be convienient for those that work etc.I have taught plenty of shift workers and family people.
The courses are so short these days anyway...

But I do see your point.

 

[scubaaaronh]

That Instructor will be about as good as your cellphone company's customer service representitive. Would you permit you loved one to take such a course?

How do you figure that??
As far as the bookwork,
they can put more back into what was dumbed down, as a person is going to be able to work at it at their pace at home. They can put in more detail and make testing harder and longer. As far as an instructor teaching the class it is almost the exact same thing. except they type out what they have to say in modules that go along with the chapter. I know people retain more from reading than hearing the information being passed along. I say hearing because i am a student and at about two hours i am tired of listening and start hearing, and i know most students are that way, ask any student. As far as information it is easier to get just the information than a bunch of stories that don't mean squat to my education which you get in classroom settings.

As far as hands on,
An instructor still has to go through training and keep up on everything. They are just going to take out the classroom portion and put it online. As far as hands on your still going to have to do it locally with a shop/instructor and they will give their own briefings on how to handle situations.

This kind of thing is going on at all Universities around the country it works thats why there are more and more online classes. People tend to learn more in them if they are conducted correctly.

 

[scubaaaronh]

In fact it probably won't be an instructor. No Dive Instructor wants to sit in an office all day/night and teach online. People don't become instructors for that reason.
He will be given a perfunctory 5 day class on some of the academics he must teach then set free to "instruct" you. He may not even be a diver...

I really dont believe that they would do that. They are going to have to have trained professionals to handle it. Cisco's classes for networking through CCIE are being handled in this way. Classroom is online including tests. you go into the class get a 20 min lecture and you are off programming router and switches and building advanced networks. So if it works here why wont it work in diving. Maybe i can see the light as i am a computer geek. I am a programmer and now a network tech working on being a network engineer.

 

[Swan1172]

Then you make time. How is one supposed to ever go diving if they have no time? Most shops and instructors organise courses to be convienient for those that work etc.I have taught plenty of shift workers and family people.
The courses are so short these days anyway...

But I do see your point.

That is easier said than done. Here is a personal example of why I am all for online training. I live approximately in the middle between where I work and my LDS -- 30 minutes to work and 30 minutes to the dive shop. The problem is that they are in opposite directions which means that it takes me at least 1 hour to get from my office to the LDS.

Therein lies the problem. I usually don't leave my office until after 5pm and my LDS starts its classes at 6pm which makes it impossible for me to get there on time for classes. If they offered classes on the weekends, no problem, I would be there, but they don't, because they use the weekends for in-water training. So, I'm kind of SOL on most of the classes they teach.

 

[TCDiver1]

All i know is i can think of a few PADI LDS's who are not going to receive this too well. I think i hear a few diastolic pressures peaking out right about now.

 

[Azza]

I know people retain more from reading than hearing the information being passed along. I say hearing because i am a student and at about two hours i am tired of listening and start hearing, and i know most students are that way, ask any student.

Then the instructor needs to plan better. The average human brain starts switching off after 20 mins or so of lecture. A good instructor will keep his students attentitive by adapting his teaching methods to counter this.