From: russell@kings.demon.co.uk (Russell Brown)
Subject: BSAC Novice Course (long)
Organization: Lady Lodge Systems, Peterborough, England
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1992 13:45:08 GMT


This is the article promised on the BSAC Novice Diver Training.  The
Novice Diver course is the first course undertaken for BSAC diver
training.

**** Personal Opinion Warning *****

Note:  The training outlined in this article is the 'new' 1992 course
which (IMHO) is a slightly retrograde step from previous offerings in
that it has been somewhat 'diluted' in order to compete with the courses
of other less demanding agencies that enable divers to achieve a
'diving qualification' in 15 minutes flat!  :-)

**** Personal Opinions Off *****


The BSAC considers the course to require a minimum of 20 hours (excluding 
the two open water dives).  

(Personal Note:  in practise the course run by *our* BSAC branch can
take considerably longer if the students require this.  One *BIG*
advantage of the BSAC's 'free' Club training is that there are not so
many pressures on students to finish a course in a given timescale and
more attention can be paid to various areas if the Instructors see fit:
For example, we have had people join our branch that couldn't swim!
We've taught them to swim then taught them to dive!).

Novice Diver Course.

Aims:
	Novice Diver I
	    To train a person to be competent in the safe and correct use
	    of aqualung diving equipment in a sheltered water training area
	Novice Diver II
	    and then to introduce the student to open water diving with all
	    the appropriate equipment, in the company of a Dive Leader or
	    more highly qualified diver/Instructor.

Medical Fitness:
	All new BSAC members *must* undertake a medical examination and chest
	X-Ray and present a BSAC Certificate of Fitness to Dive signed by a
	doctor before practical training can begin.

(Each lesson is coded as N (for Novice course) T (for theory) or S for
practical skill).

Theory:

	NT1	-	Introduction to Diver Training.
			Introduction to BSAC and Branch/School.
			Novice Diver training overview and aims.
			Introduction to Diving equipment.
			Diving Signals
			Buddy Diving
	NT2	-	Pressure and Buoyancy
			Units used (SI!)
			Normal environment
			Diving environment
			Gases under pressure
			Body Air spaces
			Effects of space compression
			Effects of space expansion
			Buoyancy
	NT3	-	Diving Equipment
			The Aqualung
				Air Cylinders
				Regulators
				Buoyancy Compensators
			Alternative Air Sources
			Instruments
			Diving Suits
				Wetsuits & Drysuits
			Ancillary Equipment
			Where and What to buy
			Equipment care
	NT4	-	Safe Diving Practises and Diver Rescue part I
			Buddy Diving
			Dive Plans & Leadership
			Preparing to dive
			Kit up, Briefing, Buddy Check, Buoyancy Check
			The Dive
			Entry, Surface swims, Snorkel Diving, Descent,
			Staying together, Enjoying the Dive, Buddy Monitoring,
			Ascent & surfacing, Leaving the water, After the Dive
			Abandoning the Dive
			Diving Accidents
				Accident Avoidance
				Emergency Ascents
				Expired Air Resuscitation
					When to apply EAR
					How to apply EAR
				In Water Rescue
					Rescue Techniques
					In Water EAR
	NT5	-	Introduction to Decompression Tables
			Nitrogen Absorbtion and Release
				Decompression Sickness
			BSAC 88 Decompression Tables
				Definitions
				Important Points
				Table Layout
				Single No-Stop Dives
				Two or more No-Stop Dives
				Flying after Diving
	NT6	-	Novice Diver Theory Test
			30 minutes written multiple choice test

Practical Training

	NS1	-	Diving Skills Part 1
			Equipment preparation, donning, buddy checks, finning 
			action, BC inflation & venting at surface, Buoyancy 
			control, mask clearing, mouthpiece clearing etc.
	NS2	-	Diving Skills Part 2
			Repeat parts of NS1.
			Breathing from alternate air source, BS for bouyancy
			control and descent/ascent control, swimming underwater 
			normal ascents, exit using ladders.
	NS3	-	Diving Skills Part 3
			Stride entry, Dumping BC's, black out mask, breathing
			from a free flowing regulator, buddy breathing, 
			equipment ditch.
	NS4	-	Snorkelling Skills
	NS5 	- 	Diving Skills Part 4
			Forward roll, controlled descent, mid-water buoyancy
			control, remove & replace weight belt, remove and 
			replace aqualung, shared ascent, exit from deep water.
	NS6	-	Water Confidence Test
			In swimware only.
			Swim 200m freestyle, tread water for 1 minute without 
			use of hands, surface dive to 2meters & recover object.
			With mask, snorkel & fins.
			Stride entry, swim 200 meters diving to depths of 3-4
			meters eight times, swim 10 meters underwater.
	NS7	-	Diving Skills Assesment test
			Assemble aqualung, enter water safely, make controlled
			descent & demonstrate neutral buoyancy, remove refit 
			and clear mask, remove recover and refit demand valve, 
			breath from alternate air source whilst moving through 
			water, share a single regulator while moving through 
			water and during ascent to surface both as doner and 
			receiver, exit from deep water.
	NS8	-	Diving Skills Part 5
			Apply EAR to manikin or simulated EAR.
			Provide surface buoyancy to a casualty.
			Maintain extended airway for casualty in water.
			Give simulated EAR to casualty in water.
			Summon assistance.
	NS9	-	Diving Skills Part 6
			repeat of NS8 plus lifts of casualty. Assessment.

***Qualified to Novice Diver part I at this point and can proceed to NS10 
and 11.

	NS10-	Open Water Dive #1
			Max depth 6 meters.
			Instructor/Student ratio: 1:2 if qualified instructor or
			1:1 with Dive Leader.
			Repeat practical skills learnt in previous lessons in
			open water combined with exploratory dive.
	NS11-	Open Water Dive #2
			Max depth 6 meters.
			Instructor/Student ratio: 1:2 if qualified instructor or
			1:1 with Dive Leader.
			Repeat practical skills learnt in previous lessons in
			open water - gain confidence and experience. Do 
			controlled buoyant lift and EAR, for 2 minutes. 
			Student assessed on performance - repeat if inadequate.
***Qualified to Novice Diver

Phew!

After all that lot, the now Qualified Novice Diver can undertake supervised
dives in open water for fun!

Next comes Sports Diver.......  (well in a few days as I havn't typed it
up yet!)

-- 
Regards,
        Russell
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