Photos from a PADI Instructor Course Downunder in Sydney, Australia...

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Carl_Fallon

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Location
Sydney, Australia
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G'day everyone, :wink: from Sydney, Australia... :D

I am one of the PADI Course Directors and the Careers Development Manager here at Abyss Scuba Diving. I recently finished teaching a PADI IDC and MSDT prep course and thought i would share some photos from the program.

I get asked by Divemaster's all the time, what is the program like? So i thought these photos of smiling PADI Instructors "to-be", might put a few of your minds at ease. :)

The group was absolutely fantastic, and everyone worked very well together. It really was a great experience for all the new training instructors, and to watch them transform into quality instructors over the period of the course was a privilege.

All of the candidates continued on to complete their PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer preparation course, which has given them experience and training in teach 5 different PADI Specialty Diver Courses.

Since finishing their course 2 weeks ago, i have already seen some of them teach the first few Open Water Course... Great Work guys.

I just wanted to say a BIG well done:luxhello: to all the candidates and I look forward to hearing about all your new adventures in the diving industry. I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE FUN AND ENJOY THE RIDE>>>

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All the new PADI Instructors during their Open Water Presentation Workshop at Bare Island in Sydney.

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Guy Hardwick, one of our PADI Instructor Internship Candidates from England. Well done mate...

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Here is Guy and Tim during one of the confined water Rescue Diver work shops. In Australia we dont normally carry pocket masks on our heads. I promise. :rofl3:

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Some of the guys during a confined water teaching presentation. Good form guys.

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Here is one of the guys running a tired diver tow skill.

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I love Instructor candidates that can follow orders. Inflators up guys. hehehe:D

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This is Michael. He is our real life crocodile dundee. That is a crocodile skin hat on his head. He killed it himself. :rofl3::shocked2::m16:

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Lean to the right ok, students.

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Dont forget to blow bubbles ok guys...

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Sitting on the shore at Oak Park. This photo was just before they did their briefings for their first Open Water Teaching presentations. (They all did very well)


If you are interested in becoming a PADI Instructor here in Sydney, Australia and want to join in all the fun then check out our website or give us a call.

Cheers and i look forward to meeting you all downunder.
 
I'm glad your candidates had a good time, and it certainly looks like you had wonderful conditions for the class.

But it sure makes me sad to see instructor candidates demonstrating skills whilst sitting on their backsides :(
 
:D lol... Thanks for the kind words TSandM...

The other candidates are sitting because it was about 35 - 40 Degree C most days here in Sydney during the course. :wink: Interestingly i have not had more motivated candidates than these guys, but when it is that hot out, it is hard to stay standing for long listening to briefs all morning.

Cheers TSandM...:)
 
I will let TS&M correct me if I am wrong. I believe she is referring to the photo of them kneeling on the bottom during the CW presentation.

To some it is like nails on a chaulk board.
 
Scott -- methinks you are correct.

OP -- pray tell, what is the justification for demonstrating/learning skills such as reg recovery, mask clearing, air sharing on one's knees? (drum roll -- and now for another dicussion!!!!)
 
Yes, I was referring to the folks on their knees in the pool. I wouldn't expect anyone to stand for a long period on land in hot weather!
 
Ok so this may be a totally stupid question, but I am an OWSI instructor and I was taught to instruct students just as the photo above shows - kneeling in a semi circle around me. But this seems to be cause for discussion? How else would you do it, I am always open to learning and developing my skills, and if how I was taught is incorrect I would love to hear what people thoughts are on the correct methods. TIA
 
I think the intent should be to safely introduce students to new skills. The goal should be for them to evolve to the point where they can perform skills while in a prone position, just like they will be diving.

To accomplish both points, there is a school of thought that students can be introduced to skills while prone but slightly negative. This would make it more difficult for them to "bolt" and easier for them to transition to performing the skills while swimming.
 
I've had some great dives in Sydney (The Heads, Manly) and thoroughly enjoyed them. And congrats on having such a large group. It's rare here in Oregon that our shop can recruit more than two qualified candidates per year for the professional ratings.

But I agree that the teaching-on-the-knees style might be in transition, at least in some circles. Just tonight I was assisting in the first OWD pool session on scuba with another instructor, a co-author on a recent PADI magazine article on this very subject. He has his students do skills from the start in a fin pivot position, they rose to the challenge, and it showed in their bouyancy control during open play time.

I think there may be a fine line between challenging students and stressing them, a line between modeling buoyancy control and showing off. But as I work with this concept, I see that OWD students can do more than I was taught to expect.

Today I would not let any of my pro trainees progress to Dive Master, let alone Instructor, unless they could perform skills while neutral.

-Bryan
 
lucey wrote
Ok so this may be a totally stupid question, but I am an OWSI instructor and I was taught to instruct students just as the photo above shows - kneeling in a semi circle around me.
Lucey -- have you asked and answered the question of "Why were you taught to put them on their knees?" That is a question that appears to be very difficult to answer and THAT is the issue.

IF the goal of OW training is to teach a diver to be able to be neutrally buoyant and moving in a generally horizontal plane while neutral, why then teach them to be negative and vertical while learning their skills?

Once you analyze and answer that question, I think you'll see why there is a movement away from "on your knees" and towards "prone from the beginning."

BTW, the best answer I've yet heard as to why we were taught to "put them on their knees" comes from the experience in the early-mid sixties of teaching OW scuba at the Scripps Institute in California -- where the divers were in wetsuits and were taught on a sandy bottom -- long before BCDs and other such things.
 

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