What is "real experience"

[chickdiver]

Good stuff, Dr.Bill.

I would personally say that experience comes in 2 forms:

1. Diving- and therefor experiencing the myriad things that can happen underwater- failures, weirdo buddies, the whole 9 yards.

2. Interning in a leadership role- the ususual "assist with x number of classes" isn't really sufficient. You need to work with lots of classes and multiple instructors for a while in order to learn how different people react to different situations, and what signs to look for that things are headed "downhill". Working with multiple instructors is great for learning multiple solutions to problems.

 

[Humble older aquaman]

"Real" experience is stuff gathered in real world. Classes, measured controlled experiences, good. Most of us though would want to learn from a real world pro. Granted, doesn't come over night, hence the intern gig.

What ever the subject, when the student asks "I have this issue" it just goes better when the person teaching says "when that's happened to me in the past, here's how I handled it" versus, "the book says". I agree it's still subjective, but all of us being human, ( I HOPE!) we're kinda stuck with objectivity.

For me, the real world is a balance of learning, then go off experiencing...

Now having said all this, one of my favorite teacher remarks is "if you really want to learn about something, go teach it!

Hoa!

 

[FredT]

Real experience is measured in the amount of scar tissue formed over "mother ocean bites" or "near miss" events. Dead calm days with 0 current, pretty fish, and clear warm seas teach a new diver very little, but what it does teach is easily absorbed even by the densest student due to the shallow gradient. Rough cold dark murky seas teaches many things very rapidly on a much steeper gradient. Not all student survive the class.

Be aware that I don't teach diving. I found out early on that I lack the temperment to do it well with some of the "students" I've seen in any case.

I will pass on the lessons of my mother ocean scars to those willing to learn by the Socratic method, preferably over a source of available calories.

FT

 

[SparticleBrane]

Charles,

Most instructors teaching for a shop do not have the luxury of nearly unlimited assistants (which I know the NC State program does). Typically it is 1 instructor to 6 students, 8 students with a DM. This is a subject Brian and I have had many interesting conversations about, since we became instructors at about the same time, but have vastly different experiences in theaching environments. Trust me when I say that in crummy vis with 6 students to look after, it can be challenging. That is the point when experience and judgement have to rule, and perhaps the instructor ends up doing 2x the number of dives for the day, and working with students in smaller groups to facilitate safety.

I can't imagine dealing with 6 students at once, especially ones who don't have a semester long scuba class. :11: "Herding cats" is probably barely adequate to describe it...

 

[DBailey]

I can't imagine dealing with 6 students at once, especially ones who don't have a semester long scuba class. :11: "Herding cats" is probably barely adequate to describe it...

Herding cats is trivial compared to 6 student divers on dive #1.

 

[fisherdvm]

There is something that you can't read in a book, or get from school, that happens when you screwed up big time, nearly killed yourself, or someone else, and you said, I will never do that again!!

Now that is experience.

 

[J.R.]

There is something that you can't read in a book, or get from school, that happens when you screwed up big time, nearly killed yourself, or someone else, and you said, I will never do that again!!

Now that is experience.

You said it!... Compared to a near miss... everthing else kinda feels like theory...

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

Real experience: Something you wish you had, about five seconds after you say, "Oh crap..."

 

[RonFrank]

I think when people discus REAL, or lack there or, it is generally aimed at those that have earned an instructor rating without doing much/any diving outside of a classroom or instructor related situation. It is of GREAT benefit to have logged a hundred dives or so OUTSIDE of a program so one has personal knowledge and experience prior to teaching.

There is a big difference between diving a site with an instructor where one descends on a line to a platform, and then performs skills, or in a pool vs. going to a lake you have never dove before with a buddy, and planning and executing the dive.

IMO the more diving an instructor has done in a variety of diving environments the better equipped they are to deal with problems that one can encounter both with the environment topside (pre dive) and once below.

Real world experience also makes for a better instructor as they have experience to add to the theory that is taught in a book. Sure one can TEACH someone to back roll into a pool, and discuss how this relates to doing so off a boat. But until you have done that type of diving you one may not think to suggest that boats in currents drift, and to be careful when rolling off a boat into current to avoid hitting your head on the bottom of the boat when you pop to the surface!

All the instructors I've used have a LOT of REAL diving experience well beyond training and instructing. Their real life stories enhance the learning experience and make it more interesting. Their diving experience make them better equipped as divers to focus away from themselves, and towards students who are not comfortable in their environment, or even those that are.

 

[Richesb]

I think an "experienced " instructor has the ability to react and instruct in a clear calm manner without hesitation when "a problem" arises.
I've been in a few situations where divers with many dives logged have had a problem and panic set in. All they were taught was lost.
I am not saying an instructor has to have been in all situations because this is not really possible. But being able to react, comfort, teach, coach when it happens is what makes "experience".