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Self-study
is not for everyone!
I wish to comment on the NAUI newsletter we all received late
February, concerning the application of the new system of teaching with
the new materials.
An
interesting and successful experience was made in teaching Master Diver
students in much of a “self study” method with the new student’s
kit.
Although I
am perfectly aware that some students with good mental and intellectual
capacities can perform very well in a self-study course format, I am not
sure that this formula is good for everyone.
PADI has
been promoting the “self study” method of diving education for a few
years now, and we can see the limits of this experience, as most students,
specifically in resort areas where there are many distractions on holiday,
are unable to learn by themselves. It became a routine and a standard of
practice in most places, that the student “read the book, watch the
video, answer the questions, pass the exam and go for confined water and
open water training” without the instructor actually teaching, except
for correcting the mistakes done. Divemaster courses are run with no
explanation except the “read the book” concept…If it makes it easier
for the instructors and centers, it makes it much harder on the industry
to absorb poorly trained divers.
I believe
this method is inadequate on both ends: the students most of the time are
not learning properly and it encourages the instructor to become lazy in
teaching. It also hides the lack of knowledge, and experience of the
instructor in charge, relying on the materials to “teach” better than
the instructor.
We as
educators can’t rely on a machine and a textbook, as well designed as
they are, to get the message of safety and specifically the transmission
of our enthusiasm for diving. Nothing will never replace human contact and
I can feel the time coming where students will register “online”,
download the e-book, get a pin number to register for the final exam and
just show up in a dive shop “half trained” to finish up the job. A
good instructor gives so much information, experiences, stories and warm
human contact through his/her teaching, that there is no way that this
could be replaced by artificial ways of teaching.
NAUI has the
best leadership and instructor training in the industry, because our
instructors care for their students, safety, and their method of
instruction. I believe that if we change drastically our methods, quality
in education will drop as a result of our instructors becoming less and
less concerned with the message they are delivering, relying more and more
on the tools provided to them.
We are
teaching in our ITCs that videos, books, and any other materials are
training aids and should be used to better support our teaching, not the
other way around: our scarce teaching supporting the books and videos!
We must use
our judgment and educational skills to teach well and I am concerned about
the new educational path to be followed by NAUI. It sounds to me like a
tired old song, heard with other agencies, which lost their high quality
of instruction long ago!
I urge
instructors to check out the background of their students before
determining if they will perform well in a “self study” format, and
not to fall so easily into the “take it easy” path. Most students need
direct interaction and personal attention and will benefit greatly from
committed instructors. We are good instructors because our instructors
taught us well! Let’s continue this tradition of quality teaching,
involving interaction between student and teacher, which has been the way
of learning since the time of Socrates.
Why should
we follow these other agencies in their decline in teaching methodology?
We can already see the results of these book-and-video-only trained divers
around us. Let NAUI continue to stand for Safety Through Education,
education being the key difference.
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