Instructor Examination

In Summer 2023, I decided to move on in my dive training and become a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor which requires to go through the Instructor Development Course. I decided to go through the program at Diveshack where our Course Director Lee first discussed what our expectations were. After that, he went on to throw curveball after curveball for two weeks at us.

Our IDC started with an Orientation session on what is to come and to expect before a first assessment of our knowledge with mock exams was done. We moved on to learn about the expectations for teaching presentations in all sorts of situations—confined water, open water, dry, wet, knowledge development in the classroom, from DSD, continuing education, rescue situations—and how to live up to them (READ THE SLATE). After being told how to prepare for the teaching presentations it is time to learn by doing presentations. Another important part of the program is to get an understanding and finding a way around the PADI Standards and in the resources. There are workshops on other topics such as risk management and professional aspects while further examinations are sprinkled in here or there. There is also a mandatory training for the EFR Instructor Course that goes along in a similar fashion. Every day was finished at home with additional homework preparing for the upcoming sessions.

The grand finale consists of a two day Instructor Examination on which only one thing needs to be said, which is adamant for any teaching. Don’t worry about the examination and have trust in your Course Director (or any teacher). Their job is to prepare you for it and they will only send you to the examination when he is confident that you can pass.

After the process is finished, it is time to enjoy the achievement with the other candidates as well as with the team.

All in all, I can only encourage anyone to go through the process if you want to learn about teaching as well as yourself and how much you can progress in a short time. You will feel overwhelmed at some point and cannot imagine how everything is supposed to come together in the end. You will feel like quitting at some point because you cannot meet the expectations whilst being tired and sore. Progress is not achieving everything on your first try but rather using every opportunity to work on yourself and always keep on going no matter where you stand right now. Therefore, do it with a Course Director whom you trust because you need to have faith in your teacher to prepare you for what is to come. After all, you will have something to make use of and look back proudly.