I an no longer teaching CPR instructor classes at De Anza College, but I do teach lifeguard instructor classes occasionally off campus.
I am leaving this page for reference.
When I teach CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers and Lifeguard Training, I often ask students who did well in the classes if they would like to become instructors.
Most people who take CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers at De Anza are going into work that requires the certification. It can really add to a resume to be able to train or retrain the people you work with. There are volunteer opportunities with De Anza classes and at the local Red Cross office to get experience that would also look great on a resume.
This page will be updated before the next time I teach a class.
As an American Red Cross CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers instructor, with additional training and/or orientation to materials you can teach
the following American Red Cross courses:
Administering Emergency Oxygen
Bloodborne Pathogens Training: Preventing Disease Transmission.
Lay responder (basic-level) First Aid, Adult, Child and/or Infant CPR(AED).
Enrichment in-service trainings for Asthma, Anaphylaxis and Epinephrine Auto-Injectors. If we have the time in our class we will go over that material and try out the skills.
Those who have completed CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers in HLTH Division or in the P.E. Division Lifeguard Training class can plan to attend the following quarter(s) CPR/AED Pro class as tutors until they feel they have the skills mastered.
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At the local Red Cross chapter in 2014 the instructor course costs $500.
CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers Instructor Course Prerequisites:
To be eligible for the CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers Instructor course, the candidate must:
1) Be at least 17 years of age on or before the
last scheduled session of the course (at the Red Cross they ask that you bring a copy of your driver’s
license, state ID card, passport or birth certificate with you to the Precourse Session);
2) Successfully complete an online orientation to the Red Cross. This orientation has five sections which are 3, 10, 12, 30 and 25 minutes long, most with a knowledge check at the end. It covers Red Cross history, foundations, key services, and commitments.
3) Successfully complete an orientation to the instructor course, with slides to read on the instructor manual and appendices, student manual, course length, size, safety, participant health requirements, instructor responsibilities, course organization and more. (Yes, you will notice that some of the slides seem to take longer to load. Be patient. This orientation takes less than ten minutes.)
4) Successfully complete a precourse exam which should take about 30 minutes.
5) Be able to show these skills:
Primary Assessment (adult and child or infant);
Modified H.A.I.N.E.S. Recovery Position;
Giving ventilations (Adult);
Giving ventilations using a Bag-Valve-Mask Resuscitator (Two Rescuers);
Conscious Choking (Adult or Child and Infant);
Unconscious Choking (Adult, Child and Infant);
CPR (Adult or Child and Infant);
Two-Rescuer CPR (Adult or Child and Infant);
Using an AED (Adult, Child or infant);
CPR instructor initial homework
To be an effective CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and Health Care Providers instructor, you must become completely familiar
with the American Red Cross CPR/AED for Professional Rescuer and Health Care Providers Participant’s Manual and other course materials and videos. I suggest you start getting ready by reading/rereading the non-lifeguard CPR Pro student text. http://editiondigital.net/publication/?i=66319
Prepare for these:
1) Here are instructions for a project during one of the early class sessions:
“Have instructor candidates form groups of three. One person will play the role of
facilitator; the others will play the role of participants.
Have the facilitators think of three facts about an uncommon subject they believe the
other members of the group may not know. Encourage them to think of something
related to a hobby, a bit of trivia or a personal interest, such as celebrity news.
Have the facilitators try to teach the participants the facts through discussion and
open-ended questions. Facilitators cannot state the facts outright, but they can
repeat what participants say and answer any of their questions.
Have participants switch roles after a few minutes so everyone gets a chance to
play the role of facilitator. Afterward, conduct a brief discussion on the experience
by asking instructor candidates to describe the experience from both the facilitator
perspective and the participant perspective.”
2) Pre-practice teaching:
Prepare a 2 minute lesson on each of the following subjects. Each person will draw one of these subjects from a hat and deliver the mini-lesson to the group.
You need to time yourself to be able to do the lesson in only two minutes, but not complete it too quickly. Always consider safety considerations and equipment needs. You will not be showing any videos with this lesson. Relax, this is not a make or break lesson, just an initial try at thinking through putting a lesson together and delivering it.
Subjects:
How pathogens are spread
How and why to open an airway
The differences in CPR techniques for an infant, child and adult
During the primary assessment for an adult, when/why do you give 2 ventilations first,(instead of compressions) prior to scanning for bleeding and continuing with care?
Duty to act and Standard of care
Why/how to get consent
The difference between conscious and unconscious choking care for an infant
Again, the two minute teaching is not at all crucial, just a warm up. Keep it simple. You do not need to overdo it with powerpoint, flashy pictures/posters, 
laser pointer, interactive holography, light show, fireworks, attempts at mental telepathy or Vulcan mind melds, fog machine, cheerleaders, drum and bugle corps, tiki torches, string quartets, brass band, flocks of doves, dancing bears, or parading costumed elephants.
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You will be given at least two practice-teaching assignments,
which provide you with experiences in presenting information to course candidates, conducting
classes and evaluating skills.
- The purpose of practice-teaching sessions is to give you experience in
Conducting lessons from the instructor’s manual
Giving directions
Delivering a guided discussion and/or lecture points
Managing and conducting CPR and AED skill sessions
Coaching and prompting participants
Evaluating performance and providing corrective feedback to help course participants improve their skills
Completing course activities within suggested time frames
Ensuring participants’ health and safety during training.
Each lesson will be taught to a small group, mostly of other instructor candidates.
Each lesson you teach needs to be well organized and well managed and should include direction and instruction, ample practice time, instructor
reinforcement, corrective feedback and encouragement.
You will prepare a teaching session by reviewing the appropriate sections of the lessons in the instructor’s manual and course presentation, video segments, if applicable, and participant handbook.
Instructor candidates are responsible for arranging participants and/or manikins depending on the activity.
You will prepare a lesson, arrange the class and teach it until I say time is up. We
will then have you give a self-critique of your organizational ability, knowledge of the subject
matter, presentation and communications skills. This is followed by a peer and instructor trainer
evaluation. (About five minutes total).
Practice-Teaching Assignment I
is a six minute practice-teaching assignment on a guided discussion and/or lecture points topic:
The Emergency Medical Services System and Legal Considerations
Primary Assessment
Breathing Emergencies
Airway Obstruction
Signs and Symptoms of a Heart Attack
Cardiac Chain of Survival and Cardiac Arrest
CPR
When the Heart Stops, Automated External Defibrillation and Using an AED
Practice-Teaching Assignment II
is a 13 minute practice-teaching skill session assignment. You will conduct a CPR or an AED skill
session. The assignment starts at the beginning of the skill session.
You will need to effectively and efficiently set up and conduct the skill session, use the appropriate video segment or course presentation, lead participants through the skill and evaluate participants’ skills according to the skill assessment tool.
Topics include:
Primary Assessment (adult and child or infant;
Giving ventilations (Adult);
Conscious Choking (Adult or Child and Infant);
CPR (Adult or Child and Infant);
Two-Rescuer CPR (Adult or Child and Infant);
Using a Bag-Valve-Mask Resuscitator (Two Rescuers);
Using an AED (Adult, Child or infant);
Your lesson plan
You will teach the lesson as it is set up in your instructor manual, and add this:
One of your responsibilities is to make class time as effective and
rewarding as possible for the participants. This takes careful planning and preparation. You must prepare material beyond what is in your instructor’s
manual. Typed is best, but clear printing is okay if I can read it.
Put your name and the class subject at the top, then add at least:
List of instructional equipment (manikins, BVMs, gloves, various sizes of airways (which I tend to refer to as lung bags), supplies needed to clean manikins between each person’s use….) you will need to have out.
What do you expect them to learn and why?
(Remember the primacy/recency effect. The first
and last words/sentence/points of your lecture can be the main things people remember. Tell
them what you want them to learn, teach it to them and tell them what they learned.)
Consider class organization, that is, how your students will be able to hear you, see you, and practice.
Once they get on the floor for a skill session it is much easier to lose control. What discussion before getting on the floor would be worthwhile? What class organization method will you use?
Explanation and demonstration of new skills.
Discuss how/when the new skill is used.
Practice of the new skills.
List cue words/phrases you will repeat and possibly even have your students repeat out loud to
help your students learn and remember.
Make a list of mistakes you expect. Prepare to maintain a non-judgmental perspective. Devise
ways to prevent the mistakes and devise potential corrective feedback.
Prepare for usual questions and have the answers to them. Can you answer some of them before they are
asked?
Plan to use your photographic eye, described below by the Red Cross:
“The ability to observe and assess a skill and to intervene to improve performance
is often the difference between a successful and unsuccessful
instructor.
The ability to see and hold a mental picture of what is being done at any
given moment is critical. This is known as having a photographic eye.
A well-trained eye stops the action of a skill in the mind, such as a basic
skill, … and holds the image long enough to compare it to
performance criteria.
This skill can only be acquired by practice and experience.
The keys to an accurate assessment are having a thorough knowledge of
the skill, a clear understanding of the learning progression of the skill
and a photographic eye.”
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The following guidelines provide a framework for giving and receiving
feedback on practice-teaching assignments.
How to effectively give and receive appropriate feedback can be learned, with practice. The feedback you
receive from other instructor candidates can help you develop new and improved teaching skills and
become a better instructor. Practicing giving feedback makes you more aware of your own and others’
teaching styles.
You will be giving and receiving feedback and will have an opportunity to assess your own teaching
skills. When receiving feedback, listen carefully. If you do not understand the point being made, ask the
person to explain more specifically.
When giving feedback on your own or another instructor candidate’s teaching session:
- First, provide positive feedback.
Next, discuss an aspect that could be improved, with a specific example of how to make it better. (This
is called corrective feedback.)
Use the topics listed on the following form as a guide for giving feedback to your peers.
Remember that useful feedback:
- Is evaluative rather than negative or judgmental.
Reinforces positive aspects of the teaching session.
Focuses on improving teaching skills.
Is specific and concise.
Takes into account the needs of both receiver and giver.
Is well-timed.
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The critique form includes
yes/no, did you/were you
- Spoke loudly and clearly.
(A common mistake in delivery is to fail to listen and manage silence. Silence is okay. You don’t
need to fill pauses with “Um…you know…So, um.”)
Made eye contact when speaking.
Followed the lesson plan.
Referred participants to the participant handbook.
Posed questions in a guided discussion topic or delivered in formation in lecture points to engage learning.
Gave clear instructions so that participants knew what
was expected of them.
Gave clear instructions on safety precautions before
having participants participate in the skill session or
scenario.
Effectively and efficiently conducted the skill session
or scenario.
(If you lose control, and everyone does some of the time, you must get it back. Unless all your
class is listening to you they can’t learn.)
Used the skill assessment tool when checking for skill proficiency.
Provided coaching or prompting as directed in the
instructions in the instructor’s manual.
Noticed and corrected participants’ errors.
Was able to answer questions asked by participants.
(It is never acceptable to wing it, guess at or make up answers to questions. If you find yourself
not remembering something, there is nothing wrong with saying, let’s look in the book and read
exactly what the Red Cross says. Not all questions have answers straight from the book. There is
a difference between making up something and answering a question based on your own
experience and knowledge. If you need to add from your own experience say that you are doing
so. Refer to making an educated guess when you need to. Finally, the instructor manager at the
Red Cross is very willing to take on questions you don’t readily have the answers to.)
Provided positive reinforcement and corrective feedback for correcting errors.
Was able to answer participants’ questions.
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This advice on evaluating your lesson is from the Red Cross Water Safety Instructor class materials:
“To evaluate your plan, ask yourself these questions immediately after the
lesson:
- Did I follow my plan? If not, why not?
Did the participants have enough time to practice?
Did I use my teaching area effectively?
Did the participants improve? How did I know? What did I observe?
Were my key words or phrases appropriate and effective?
Did I use co-instructors or aides effectively?
The answers to these questions will help you improve the next lesson. Analyze” (your preparation and) “all parts of the lesson and decide what changes would have made it more successful.”
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HOMEWORK beyond reading your instructor manual and preparing lessons:
1) You should be at least a little familiar with the science behind the new CPR. Read: Why did they change CPR? and briefly write up three new things you learned.
2) Go to http://www.redcrossrefresher.com/ and take a CPR Pro refresher. Try answering some of them wrong so you can see the feedback.
3) Read Hands Only CPR and briefly write up two new things you learned. Be sure to look at all the links.
5) read HIPAA: the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996/2003 and write up the three things you think you should know from that webpage to be able to answer student’s questions.
6) The homepage of the Silicon Valley Red Cross (your local chapter) is at:
http://www.redcross.org/ca/san-jose
go to the homepage and click on at least three links and briefly write up something new you learned. This homework assignment only requires three sentences.
7) The info hot line for the Red Cross is 1-800-RED-CROS (1 800 733-2767)
You will turn in your course records to: support@redcrosstraining.org
Write that phone number and email address on the inside front cover of your instructor manual.
8) Go to http://www.redcross.org
Figure out how to sign up for a CPR Pro class and write out the steps it took.
9) Go to the British Red Cross website and watch these videos:
http://www.redcross.org.uk/What-we-do/First-aid/Everyday-First-Aid/Stroke
http://www.redcross.org.uk/What-we-do/First-aid/Everyday-First-Aid/Choking
and write up (briefly) what is different from the care we give in the U.S.
10) Once you have your instructors manual you should review the correct answers to the questions and be able to explain in a class discussion why they are the correct answers. I will give you a list of the most common wrong answers. We will also discuss them, and you should have reasons why you think people chose them.
11 and 12 can be done late in the process..
11) Read the American with Disabilities Accommodation Resource Guide for Conducting and Administering Health and Safety Services courses.
If this link does not work, I will get you a copy during class.
http://www.watersafetyguy.org/documents/ADA_Acc_Resource_GuideUpdated_8242007.pdf
It is a 103 page document, but most of it is links to resources. YOU DON’T HAVE TO READ
ALL 103 PAGES!
It starts with a review of basic principles of accommodating people with disabilities and Red
Cross procedures for classes. Eventually you will want to read the whole document, but for
now at least read:
section 1 on page 2 about the ADA
section 4 on page 3-4 teach to the standard and test to the objective
Chapter 2 pages 6 to 13 problem-solving approach to develop appropriate accommodations
Chapter 3 FAQs on pages 17-24 especially notice that a student in a CPR class who has a laryngectomy can
use a bag valve mask to ventilate a victim and could therefore be able to certify
To certify, a student must be able to get to the floor and check an unconscious victim,
place a face down victim into a face up position if needed and roll the victim into the recovery
position. This can not be done just using a manikin on a table. Once this has been done they can
practice CPR skills with a manikin on a table.
On page 23 open and closed captioning are explained.
Commonly asked questions about service animals are on page 36-7.
Hearing loss tips are on pages 39 – 40. Details about facility accessibility start on page 43. MS
starts on page 48, with sample accommodations on page 52.
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Also review: How to pass a Red Cross written test
Bloodborne Pathogens quick facts
Oxygen administration quick facts
CPR Pro skills review questions
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The final exam is 25 multiple choice questions and you get only one try at it. You must pass with 80%.
(Besides the lecture in class, you should have read the entire instructor’s manual.)
STUDY GUIDE:
Course of Record, Course Record, Course Record Addendum
rules for pass, fail, incomplete, audit
course(s) you will be authorized to teach
course(s) you can teach after a self-orientation to participant & instructors materials
completion of and goals of end of class scenarios and instructor-led practice
class goals, length, prerequisites, tests, class size, certificate validity
materials (manual / lesson plans / video / posters) you must use, can use
skills participants should practice only on a manikin, or can be practiced on a class member
forms you must complete
forms you must complete AND turn in
ways to maximize learning
how to renew your instructor certification
instructor responsibilities
goals of the practice teaching you completed
The Red Cross Instructor’s Corner is at:
http://www.instructorscorner.org/
If you bookmark the Instructor’s Corner it will help you will remember to check at it once in awhile for announcements, etc.
Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available after you complete this course. Go to: http://www.redcrossstore.org/dp.aspx?pgid=547