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The agency does not necessarily make a good instructor. There are excellent instructors & not- so- good instructors in every agency. The skills & knowledge can be learned but these are a few things that do help to make a good instructor-
Mentorship- Get with a known good/ excellent instructor. Have them take you under their wings, if they will. Watch them, watch what they do & learn why they do it & why it works.
Experience- Have the biggest & best "tool box" of experience you can have for your students. Don’t just go for the bare minimums to get through. Would you want your family/ loved ones taught by someone who just had those bare minimums met? Be the instructor you would want your loved ones to learn under. Have experience in deep diving (rec limits), night diving, navigation, cold water, murky/ low vis water, rough seas, currents,... anything you can come up with that can make diving challenging. Know how to dive those, so you can pass on those experiences. I always look at my Open Water classes as though I am bring along the next generation of (safe & competent) divers & I take that responsibility very seriously.
Empathy- Many of your students will come with concerns & sometimes even fears about their course & their abilities. Don’t just dismiss their concerns & questions. Listen to them & tell them, step by step, what you are going to do for them to alleviate their concerns. Encourage them as they learn & master the skills.
Humbleness- Be humble, don’t boast or thump the chest. Even though you may be better than your students, at that time, quietly show your quality, don’t shout it out. VERY IMPORTANT- Always remember where you came from. You did not start at the top of the mountain, you are not the biggest gift to diving. Just be humble & honest about your knowledge & skills. People respect & appreciate that more than trying to be loud about it.
Always keep learning, even as you instruct. Further your knowledge into other realms of diving,.. many of these other types of diving will compliment or even improve your skills & experience as an instructor. I have sworn that the day I quit learning about diving, will be the day I will hang up my fins for the last time.
Last thing I can come up with is be real to your students. Leave your personal issues at the door, when you come into a class. Be enthusiastic! Be passionate!, be alive!,.... You will find that it is contagious & will ignite the flame of diving within your students. I have been lucky to have a large % of my students that go on to be very active divers & some are now even becoming professionals themselves.
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Thanks. Thats probably the best answer I’ll ever get on this. Answered things I didnt ask which was on point. Yes your right agency does not make a good instructor. The only reason I’m switching is because my va will pay for the padi course where nase has not set nothing up for that. I feel I got a good base from my teacher and I feel that I picked some things up from him. I have noticed watching a few classes is that most people will think if that person can do it I can do it. My teacher well he gets everyone to think that he only has one leg. Which that alone put myself at ease. Im a competitive person by nature and seeing him with one leg doing it instantly made me think if he can i can and now its hard to get me out of the water no because of that. Well I’m not trying to write a book here but your response was dead on what i was looking for Thank you.
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Tamara put it very well.
The one thing I would add is patience. When I began to dive, I was afraid of putting my head under water (Yes, seriously!) and it took me almost 6 months to get through Open Water training. During this time, I had two instructors and both of them gave the impression of having all the time in the world for me and let me work through my issues at my own pace. Ten years later, I became an instructor myself and I have never seen another diver have as many problems as I did. In hindsight, I think I forced them to learn new teaching techniques and I was an excellent problem child for their dive master candidates.
I encourage my students to let me know when they are uncomfortable in their gear or even a bit nervous. Usually just a small adjustment or a different explanation will make them more comfortable and, in turn, make your job easier underwater.
Finally, never underestimate the power of eye contact or touch. One of my instructors let me hold his hand and it really put me at ease. He said he did it because he could always tell how a student was doing according to whether they tensed up or relaxed. I do it all the time now.
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Take what Tstordiver wrote and combine it with a solid prescriptive learning/teaching program such as PADI’s and from the onset resolve to be conservative with your student ratio and not cut any corners.
Safety first.
Finally consider; that although we love the sport and want to pass it on to as many people as possible... The sport is not for everyone. In some cases the best thing you can do is be honest with a student who would present a danger to themselves and their buddies.
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I agree with Tamara and Angi. Patience goes a long way in making a good instuctor. I have experienced those with and those without. Now, don’t get me wrong, I have yet to encounter any instructor who was just downright rude and unwilling to work with me. It was more the subtle actions they had that let me know whether they were impatient or willing to let me take it at my own pace. For instance, I had a group of four, yes four...instructors that took a group down and left me at the surface to decend when I was ready. I felt really bad and I truly was attempting to get it together. On the other hand, I had an instructor who stayed with me on the surface and let me know it was perfectly okay to cancel the dive if I wasn’t feeling ready. I told her I was determined to get it done and we decended together.
Having a DM that can assist you in the training is invaluable. During instruction they can help you remember the skills or take students who may be struggling a little to the side for some one-on-one instruction.
Just the fact that you’re willing to ask this question demonstrates that you have the right attitude towards being an instructor and that deserves kudos!
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Try to find out something about each student, and actually bond a little on a personal level. Use that info when you teach to make the lesson relevant. "Don’t stand the tank on end, Bob. If your 3 year old is with you that day, it could fall on him and crush his little toes."
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Ok just so i put up an update for anyone wondering. I am now starting dive master. Whoowhoo a lot of info to processalot of books to read but im getting there. Thanks for any support and best wishes with this ill update my profile when i get through the IE. Till then keep diving.
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