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ts064@mc*.co* (Jeffrey Weidner) writes: >One way around this (at least in some colleges) is to "test out of a >certain class" Take a test see how much you really know and if you pass >by an acceptable measure go on to the next level. Why not pressure the >agencies to do the same I think that this is one of the more constructive suggestions. For a minimal fee (just to cover materials and time to grade/review the exam), you can attempt to meet the prerequisites for the next course. If you fail to make a superior grade on the exam, you agree to take the course that you failed to "place out". If your score is acceptable (better than just "passing"), you agree to take the following course and are permitted to do so. This certainly would work just fine for the "academic" portions of courses and might also work for the performance courses. It is consistent with the PADI philosophy of "performance based" and "self study" that they apply to OW certification. I agree that other agencies should consider it for all levels of certification. I do have a few concerns about performance courses. For some of these courses, the proper evaluation of the student needs to be made over a period of time and IMHO cannot be adequately done in a single "exam" setting. As an example, assume that you have an experienced OW diver who wants his "Full Cave" certification. How much of the diving could be reasonably omitted. If you do not omit any of the dives, have you really omitted anything? In my case, our instructor was able to quickly review most of the academics and we spent additional time actually diving. His attitude was "you have paid for x days of my time. I'll teach you as much as I can within that period." In the case of another student that we refered to him, he has spent even more time than "average" to meet the minimums of the certification level. In general, I guess that you "get what you pay for". The instructor that wants to do a quality job will do so. Others might not be as willing to consider flexibility. However, the agencies should create the options. IMHO, they will profit from the goodwill of the satisfied students. ---- Richard Wackerbarth rkw@da*.ne*
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