NEW INSTRUCTOR DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (IDP)
The new IDP manual and support materials have been totally revamped. 
Some of it will be very familiar, and some is entirely new. Aside from looking better, we have made explanation and coaching advice clearer for instructors. The main changes that instructors and trainers need to be aware of are detailed below. The diving industry has used prescriptive teaching (presenting only the information that a student has missed) as a teaching method for many years now. However, the format that most instructor candidates are still taught to use in an Instructor Development Programme (IDP) to deliver these presentations, is based on a time when slide presentations were used in all academic teaching. This time has passed, and since online training has become common place in our industry, we knew it was time to develop something new. During an IDP, candidates are asked to develop and deliver a presentation on a missed quiz or exam questions. For a candidate, and their Instructor Trainer, this is one of the most stressful portions of an IDP, but why? The answer is simple – the candidate not only has to deliver the presentation, but also add in information regarding continuing education, equipment ownership, travel and local diving. We interviewed hundreds of Instructors and Instructor Trainers and understood that this was causing way too much stress, and it had even stopped Divemasters from entering an IDP. 
The biggest surprise was that it made Instructor Trainer candidates nervous as well. The question we got asked most was ‘how can I sell equipment, travel and continuing education easily, when I’m being asked to present on physiology or physics?’ As an agile, dynamic agency, we listened to our members and we’ve made changes. In the new IDP academic section, you will see that we do not ask our candidates to present anything more than the missed information. No continuing education, travel or equipment being forced into a presentation. But we all know that these additions are vital, as they provide customised information that training materials simply cannot. We also had another dilemma – what does an Instructor present if a student scores 100 percent in all quizzes and the exam? With all that in mind, we put our thinking caps on and Developed three workshops that cover this material. These three workshops are focused on Con-Ed, Dive Travel, and Equipment Sales. 
On all courses, RAID Instructors must now deliver these three workshops to all students, no matter what course is being taught. Furthermore, the workshops rely heavily on ‘role playing’ and interactive teaching. You will enjoy delivering them, and students will benefit from them. The other major change we made is the use of training aids. In times gone past, Instructors were asked to use slides, whiteboards and even ‘imaginative aids’. Candidates could only earn a point in this area if they used multiple aids. But how does this fit in with learning and teaching in this day and age? Well, it doesn’t. RAID has never demanded a classroom, so where would an Instructor find these aids in a real-life teaching situation. The answer is – they wouldn’t. Therefore, we have removed these styles of aids from our evaluation process. Instead, to earn this point, candidates must use the RAID training manuals. This seems so obvious since they can be found on the website, mobile site and also the App. We know Instructors and Instructor Trainers will love this new IDP format. The new IDP must be implemented by Instructor Trainers by 1 October 2020. We will be conducting a series of update webinars for Instructors and Instructor Trainers in the coming weeks. Dates will be announced in the Edge Newsletter. As always, if you have any queries, please contact your local regional office.
NEW INSTRUCTOR TRAINER
PROGRAMME (ITP)
In tandem with the IDP, we’ve also made radical changes to the ITP. It’s been completely rewritten and is now entirely focused on ITP tasks rather than being an Instructor Trainer version of the IDP manual. The contents speak directly to Instructor Trainers and advise how to run an ITP – the IDP process, running an instructor crossover, scheduling suggestions, a breakdown of the workshops that now make up a core part of the programme, and an extensive section on the art of teaching. Instructor Trainers will find the new manual simpler to use, easier to follow and tracking what has to be completed during an IDP is obvious.
Along with the new IDP, the ITP must also be implemented from 1 October 2020. And again, we will be conducting a series of update webinars for Instructor Trainers in the coming weeks. Dates will be announced in the Edge Newsletter. As always, if you have any queries, please contact your local regional office.
- MEMBERSHIP EXTENSION WITH RAID Re-Set - August 8, 2020
- FREE-LEARNING & REMOTe-TRAINING - July 6, 2020
- SANTI DRYSUIT COURSE - July 6, 2020
