padi OW videos

[ballastbelly]

Hello,
i signed up for a padi OW class next week. i have been skindiving contently for years to 25m & was always curious about scuba. I have read most of the padi book in preparation,& found it quite good (albeit the barbie like emphasis every few pages that bcds /masks / fins etc are available in every color to dive in style - if i was going to factor in color when choosing gear it would be to make me highly visible for buddy/DM to see me).

I got the impression reading past posts that padi OW classroom sessions include a lot of padi video watching,
and the video is a based on the book but more goofy. some 2008 posts describe it as insanely boring & entertaining for 12yr olds.

my question is how long are these padi videos? have they been updated(improved) since then?

i think the most fascinating set of videos for students would be a choice from the many nonstaged dive/training accidents uploaded on youtube, showing what happens when people panic.

thx

 

[NAM001]

I just sat through a padi OW class. I dont remembber the legnth of the videos but the first day all videos were done. we started the day around 10-11am and was done with all the class by say 5pm, tests and all. I assumed that there was minimal instructor intervention to insure exactly what was presented, which came from dvd.

 

[abyss_scuba]

Hi bb there are new videos as of this year. Each chapter should be about 45 minutes long. PADI allows stores to continue to use the older videos until they are all done with older stock so if you are looking to purchase now ask the release date of the video to be sure you are getting the latest.

 

[Hawkwood]

The new videos are approximately 30 minutes longer in total than the old ones. Total time, including the Introduction, is about 3.5 hours.

Approximate times:

Introduction - 12 min
Mod 1 - 52 min
Mod 2 - 38 min
Mod 3 - 52 min
Mod 4 - 34 min
Mod 5 - 21 min

 

[TSandM]

We don't watch the videos in class, except for some specific clips that my husband wants to emphasize. The videos are to be done by the students at home. Class time is spent going over the knowledge reviews and clarifying any concepts which have proven difficult, doing the quizzes, and reviewing what is going to be done in the pool and in open water. We try very hard not to make the class time a meaningless repetition of what the student has already read and watched.

 

[scuberd]

I use the videos for continuing education classes, for OW we just use elearning. Whatever option you use, I recommend at least one six pack per 1.5 hours of play time.

 

[boulderjohn]

We also have students view the videos at home.

 

[Goodtime Adventures]

By standards watching the videos is a mandatory part of the course (unless unavailable in your language), but whether this is done as part of the lessons, or given to students to watch at home varies between dive centres. Personally, since instructors have to sign/check the box on the training record to confirm that their students have seen them, I prefer to have them do it at the dive centre so I know they've definitely seen them all - and been awake at the time!

As Hawkwood said, as of this year there are new videos now to coincide with the introduction of new skils/standards. It is still possible you'll find yourself on the old system though. Mainly because there is no official expiration date for the existing programme (in our region at least) so many centres - and IDC centres for that matter - will have a backlog of manual/crew pack stock to get rid of before buying the new materials in. Actually, I'm pretty sure PADi will still be purposefully providing the old materials for a while to get rid of their own stock before they start providing the new packs to IDC candidates.

Anyway, if you end up watching the 'old' version, expect vids 1-4 to be about 40mins each and vid 5 around 20 mins. Also expect some horrendously 80's/90's hair styles and accompanying fashion. Personally I'm always amused by the abrupt change in voice over between sections (starting in Chapter 2 I think) when the American woman's voice suddenly changes to a man who cant seem to decide whether he's American or Irish! So there's plenty comedy value to keep you entertained

 

[abyss_scuba]

One of my favorite parts of the old video is the guy on the beach walking with an empty dog leash.