Teaching Philosophy

Other educational sailing courses focus only on a total "hands on" experience. While this is important, after days of, "Do this!" & "Don't do that!" commands, the student becomes over whelmed, and confused. Alternatively, or to clear up a student's confusion, the student is given reams of written literature. This literature often times is either too advanced for the student to understand (lots of strange nautical terms), or meters out knowledge in such small increments that the student loses the overall picture. Both types of literature causes even more confusion as the student tries to apply his readings in a "hands on" environment.

Our approach is to combine these methods into a seamless learning environment. The student is given course material, which combines basic & advanced concepts, within small incremental course modules. These modules are geared to a "hands on" approach, and gives the student something to refer to when trying to understand, & remember, all the "Do this!" & "Don't do that!" commands. Further, each module is designed around concepts, which mirror day to day operations on a sailboat. This allows the student to concentrate only on the specific areas they need.

As an example of this approach, consider a student unfamiliar with all the different types of navigation techniques, e.g. paper charts, vs. electronic charts; or when and how to use a GPS. While on a passage, the student will be given the course module, "Electronic & Manual Navigation". It explains what a waypoint is, and how to set it on both electronic and paper charts. This is followed by explanations about setting routes, contingency plans, and using various tools (such as a GPS, or a compass) to locate the boats position. Meanwhile, the boat is under way, and the student is receiving the same information as a "hands on" experience.

We have found this approach to allow a guest to rapidly increase a their knowledge, while providing an entertaining educational experience.