Posted by Other Ben on October 18, 2000 at 13:32:47:
In Reply to: I don't have a problem with an 80 minute cert... posted by Eins on October 18, 2000 at 12:08:07:
Agree on that point. I've worked with kids in discover scuba classes
and such that I would have trusted to dive long before a few of my
50 year-old OW students who had done "...3 resort courses, plus been
certified in 1976..." This is why I don't think 20 hours to ENTER a DM
program is a travesty. Skills are skills. If they're there, you qualify.
If experience is what is lacking, then address how long (or how many dives)
it takes to GRADUATE. But in any case, it comes down to a case-by-case
assessment of the student. In that regard, the *instuctor* is the gate-keeper
for quality. Now, if there were a rule that REQUIRED instructors to graduate
a student after only 20 hours, THAT would be a travesty. But noone is forcing
you to graduate students who aren't fit to dive safely.