PADI IDC Gili Islands with Holly Macleod Introduces New Environmental Considerations
Industry: Education
Teaching in Neutral buoyancy has been an important consideration for some time now, but it’s really the “When, Where and How” that’s applied that counts.
Gili Trawangan, Indonesia (PRUnderground) July 23rd, 2019
As a highly experienced Platinum PADI Course Director with over 20 years diving experience from a variety of different global diving destinations and a variety of environment types, Holly Macleod is also now a private dive Industry consultant and has recently been addressing not only the use of neutral buoyancy within training, but the dynamics of how to apply it.
So, although Confined Water Skills need to be conducted in a Swimming Pool or Swimming pool like conditions in Confined Open Water and will never take place over fragile marine life, a philosophy of a Neutrally Buoyant body position should still be adopted. However, it’s also necessary to consider the fundamental principals of making this efficient, fun and educationally beneficial. For example during confined dive number one, there are no buoyancy specific skills to be evaluated and therefore incorporating a requirement for students to assume a neutral position could prove to be unproductive in terms of time efficiency and student development during this particular dive and it may be a more appropriate idea to introduce it during confined dive two; once the neutral buoyancy skill has already been mastered by the diver. However, if an Instructor feels it is potentially viable to introduce a neutral position in confined dive 1 and students are able to accommodate it, then it also may be a beneficial idea.
So, the philosophy for teaching Confined Dive number 2 would be to introduce the one specified Neutral Buoyancy Skill early in the dive and from this point onwards introduce a general overall neutral body position philosophy for the remainder of the session. Also, if time permits the instructor could introduce a mini dive at the end of confined dive number 2. One important thing to note is that there is only one required neutral buoyancy skill to be conducted on dive two so expectations cannot be too high in regards to a neutral body position and the corresponding mentality towards it, however combined with a small mini dive at the end of the session should pave the way for an overall improved student mentality towards personal development during confined dives 3,4 and 5 creating a overall improved body position during the confined dive 5 mini dive portion and ultimately preparing students to a higher pre Open Water standard.
Of course, this philosophy will then not only be encouraged during the open water portion of the course, but will become an ultimate goal of both Instructors and students to develop and perfect buoyancy skill and create great general diving skills and an ingrained environmental awareness. This philosophy has now been incorporated into all aspects of the PADI Curriculum throughout the range of PADI Programs and Courses and is fully integrated into professional Instructor training with Holly Macleod and has now been completely absorbed in the PADI Scuba Diving Instructor Development Course (IDC) with the ultimate goal of creating better divers by creating better educators.
The PADI IDC Gili Islands with Holly takes place every month at the only ever 5 Star PADI IDC Career Development Center (CDC) and offers professional diver the opportunity to make the perfect start in a professional career “teaching the world to dive” and teaching them “to do it well”. All this being said the course has become one of the most popular professional Instructor training options available and can be also seen on the PADI IDC Gili TripAdvisor page.
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About PADI IDC Gili Islands
The PADI IDC in the Gili Islands offers the opportunity for professional Divemaster’s to train with Award winning Industry Renowned Multiple Platinum rated PADI Course Director Holly Macleod. Holly offers a wealth of Industry experience working within the industry for approximately 18 years and has issued well over 3000 PADI Instructor level certifications. Having been awarded the PADI Elite 300 and Platinum Course Director awards for the previous 7 years consecutively, Holly has used a vast experience to design a program that is delivered to a standard well over and above that generally seen within the industry providing new scuba diving instructors with the skills, knowledge and confidence to be highly successful in a career teaching people to dive.
