Jilly does PADI!
Day 7 - Life is getting better or so I thought!!
Day seven begins with lectures from the PADI staff on how to mark our IDC candidates on their classroom presentations. Well I thought I new what I was doing and I did, untill the end of the session. Three of the PADI staff gave a mock presentations on Open water and rescue course, we have to mark them on their presentations and get similiar scores to them. On the first lecture, I did most of it right, but there is a point that the student can get for stating what's called a "keypoint", if they state this and do everything else they are supposed to do, they get a score of 5 for that section. If they dont, they will get a 1, not a good score. A keypoint is a overview of what the lecture is talking about. On the first presentation the guy kind of gave one, but was very weak with it, so I scored a 1. The control score (which is what the staff score, and we are meant to match) was a 5, because the lecture was very good and if the guy got a 1 he would have failed, so you would allow the weak point. In the second lecture this happened again but this time I scored a 5. The control score was a 1, the keypoint wasnt good enough! So in the 3rd lecture, the guy said one but rather quickly and I missed it, so scored a 1. Yep you guess, it the control was a 5. When I queried it, 'cos by now I was fed up I couldnt seem to win, and got a little angry as it seemed we couldn't do right from wrong!!!! Anyway, apart from that everything else was correct. And it seems that after all the arguing going on around the classroom for about an hour, they are changing the marking system anyway. DOH! what was the point? Anyway it seemed I wasnt the only one who came out of the classroom more confused then when we went in!!!
In the afternoon it was time to do our first lecture. You will glad to hear my breathing pattern seems to be ok, but I felt like I had the DT's. My hands were shaking like mad. We had been told that during anyone else's lecture we were not to look at our notes, or do any preparing as it should all be done and ready. But I couldnt seem to remember what my topic was, or anything about what I was going to say! My shaking hands kept trying to creep over to my papers to have a sneaky look, but that would be unfair to the other candidates. It was just there right in front of me, maybe I could get a peak of the corner and that would remind me. Nope, tried that, made too much noise, shaky hands and all. I really wanted to go firs,t 'cos then it would be over and done with and this shaky feeling that was creeping up my arms and to my heart and stomach would be gone. Garry goes before me, and I have to mark him, He did really well, didnt seem nervous at all but he did miss a point or 2 and it was so hard not to just blurt out to him what he had missed. Especially when he sat down and tried giving me the look from across the room, the one that says "How did I do?" I try to give him the "Well done!" eyebrow but have never been too good at eyebrow wiggling.
Then its my turn - ok girl dont swallow your tongue, you know this stuff its open water stuff, why do I even have notes? I could probably do better with out them!!! All I have to say is verbal Diarrhoea. My brain knew what it wanted to say but my mouth was saying something different, and I just couldnt stop it. Eventually, after what seems like a lifetime standing up there, my prestentation comes to an end, and even and I think that was the first time I breathed out!!!
All went well I had marked Garry correctly and I scored a 4.8, Bet you cant guess what I did wrong yep those pesky keypoints got me again. I didnt do it well enough!!!! And I did exactly what they had told me to do only that morning!!!!!
Oh well I did get a new T-shirt today for my pressie, so at least I have some clean clothes to wear.
Tomorrow is a big day we have a pool session, and an IDC lecture to give, which is a long one. hopefully now I have got up in front of people and done my stuff, my nerves wont be too bad.
Believe me, so far this hasn't been a hard course, I think I am just making myself more scared than anything.
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