Online Dive Classes
No, onlive dive classes do NOT involve waterproof computers! Naturally, the most important part of learning to dive is getting into the water with a qualified instructor, to develop and practice critical underwater skills, and that's something you definitely can't do on a computer.
But what you can do is cut out the time spent in a classroom going through academic material you are perfectly capable of learning on your own, at your own pace and when it is most convenient, an advantage shared by all online education courses. Usually this requires several hours of formal classroom training. Now, through online instruction, you can complete this phase yourself, studying when you want, in the convenience of your home or office.
Although there are several scuba diving accreditation bodies (SDI, PADI, DSAT, TDI, and DAN are the main ones) of these only SDI (Scuba Diving International) as far as I know offers online classes for the theoretical side of their courses.
SDI makes it possible for you to complete all of the academic requirements for your entry-level diver certification on line. When have finished the theory, you complete your in-water skill-development sessions and final open-water training dives at an SDI Dive Center close to your home, or at a popular vacation destination.
Getting your entry-level diver certification with SDI is a three-step process:
- Acquire the theoretical knowledge, i.e. the important academic information every certified diver must know. This is the bit you can do online.
- Complete your in-water skill-development training. This takes place in a swimming pool or similar body of confined water. You learn the basic skills that every diver needs to know, like mask-clearing, controlling buoyancy etc. and get used to being underwater.
- The last step is to complete four or more open-water training dives under the supervision of your SDI Instructor. This is where the "rubber hits the road", or rather, the "wetsuit hits the water"! You get to apply what you have learned during your academic and pool skill-development sessions, while learning practical lessons that can only be gained through real-world experience in open water.
You can do these in-water parts of your training in the same place or split them up. For example, you could complete both the skill-development sessions and open-water training dives at your local SDI Dive Centre.
As an alternative, you could do the skill-development sessions at your local SDI Dive Centre, and your open-water training dives at a vacation destination, or simply do both phases while you were on vacation.
Online Education News
- Will Online Learning Work for You? (Ionia Sentinel-Standard)
(ARA) - Want to advance your career or change jobs altogether? If the answer is yes, then what's holding you back? More often than not it's the lack of an advanced degree.
- Top Universities Partner to Offer Online Teaching Credentials (Hornell Evening Tribune)
(ARA) - Ashford University and Rio Salado College have partnered to offer aspiring teachers a new opportunity in online education. Ashford now offers a bachelor's degree program designed to provide students with an accelerated way to earn their undergraduate degree and teaching certification.
- Online MBA Degree Program Ideal for Career Advancement, Says Online-Education.net (PRWeb via Yahoo! News)
According to recent reports, having a bachelor's degree doesn't carry the same weight it once did, and Online-Education.net provides career-enhancing solutions through various online MBA degree programs.
- Online Education Increasingly Popular Among Students (Hornell Evening Tribune)
(ARA) - Many people think about going to college. Whether they've never gone, have attended some college, or already obtained a degree, each person's situation and career goals are unique.
- Senate OKs measure to regulate online education programs (Rocky Mountain News)
A new division of the state Education Department would regulate online schools under a bill approved Thursday in the Colorado Senate.
- Is Online Learning For You? (Benton Evening News)
More and more college students are taking classes online, according to a new survey by the College Board and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. About 3.2 million people took at least one college course online during the fall of 2005 term, compared to 2.3 million in the fall of 2004.
- Web school bill gets Senate nod (The Pueblo Chieftain)
DENVER - After much rewriting, a measure designed to hold online education programs more accountable won preliminary approval in the Colorado Senate on Thursday. The measure was introduced by Sen. Sue Windels, D-Arvada, as a result of a critical audit last year of online education programs in the state, particularly the Hope Online Learning Academy Co-op, which was contracted as a charter ...
