Changes to the Padi Open Water Course!

At the end of 2013, PADI introduced their new, revised, Open Water course, and we implemented the new curriculum very successfully last February (all PADI teaching facilities have until the summer to adapt).

What does this mean to you?

No worries.  There are no dramatic changes, and the program just seems to be evolving into a more sophisticated and modern-day course.  A few of the more significant changes are briefly outlined below.

Some of the material in the former PADI Open Water manual has just moved from one chapter to another, as PADI organized the material into a more meaningful order of learning.  For example, because PADI members have been asking for more emphasis on air management and monitoring practice, this topic, including planning reserves for safety stops and air supply turn points, is introduced in Section two.  These skills are further reinforced in the both the confined water and open water dives before certification is completed.

A new skill for confined water will required student divers to plan and execute a dive while practicing skills and responding to situations that the instructor presents, such as leg cramps, out of air - share air, free-flow regulator, mask flooded or off, regulator dropped from mouth, BCD inflator failure and buddy separation (the idea of a buddy team of three is introduced in Section Two).

Open Water dive four requires student buddy teams to plan and execute their own dive (under the guidance of their instructor and divemasters).  In this way, student divers transition into certified entry level divers with reasonable self-confidence in their ability to plan and execute a dive themselves!

Another new exciting change to the program is the use of dive computers in class and on our dives.  Dive computers are used to manage nitrogen levels.  Dive tables are discussed as an option, but how to use a dive computer is the focus.  Computers are standard dive equipment for the majority of divers, and the increased accuracy of data makes our dives safer, and possibly extends the joy of gliding over the underwater gardens we call paradise!

Call to sign up for the next
PADI Open Water Course! 
905-898-5338

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