Water Safety InstructorWater Safety Instructor (WSI) is the Red Cross designation for a certified swimming teacher.
The De Anza description of this four unit class is:
A course for Red Cross certification of swimming and diving instructors. Emphasis on the biomechanics of strokes, teaching progressions, and feedback techniques. Includes the American Red Cross Fundamentals of Instructor Training Certification.
De Anza College will offer the four unit class, P.E. 28G, winter quarter 2012, Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., not the usual spring quarter. The De Anza pool will be closed for repairs, so the class will be held at the Foothill pool some days and at a classroom at De Anza other days.
Please go to P.E.28G for details about the De Anza College winter quarter 2012 class.
Details of the Red Cross swim stroke performance standards for WSI candidates are at: WSI prerequisites.
Texts
You can get a head start on the reading by downloading or printing (for free) one of the texts, the American Red Cross Swimming and Water Safety Manual at: http://editiondigital.net/publication/?i=55928
(This had no index, so I wrote one: Swimming and Water Safety 2009 index).
This webpage is used when I teach off campus..
Based on feedback from instructors and industry experts, the American Red Cross Swimming and Water Safety program was updated to make it more effective and easier to teach. Updates include:
The latest techniques and biomechanics from USA Diving and USA Swimming.
New distribution of swim skills throughout the levels to help reduce bottlenecks and optimize skill acquisition.
Three new Preschool Aquatics levels to better meet the developmental needs of younger children.
Water safety and drowning prevention skills built into all swim levels as a major focus of learning.
More information to help instructors incorporate participants of varying ages and abilities into standard swim classes, including those with disabilities and other health conditions.
Prerequisites
The De Anza catalog lists a prerequisite of P.E. 26C. You do not actually have to have taken the De Anza 26C class. Most of the time we offer the class you don't have to have intermediate level skills on the first day. Since we are a full quarter lenght class, we have the opportunity to work on candidates swimming strokes.
The Red Cross lists these prerequisites:
(Many instructors will review or even teach some of these before the pre-test. At De Anza we have more time for the class and do expect all our students will know butterfly, for example, and we expect that students may not have Red Cross style stroke mechanics.)
Be at least 16 years of age on or before the final scheduled session of this course.
Have successfully completed Fundamentals of Instructor Training. (This is included in the De Anza class.)
Demonstrate the ability to perform the following swimming skills:
1. Swim the following strokes consistent with Stroke Performance Charts, Level four
Front crawl (also known as freestyle)- 25 yards
Back crawl - 25 yards
Breastsroke - 25 yards
Elementary backstroke - 25 yards
Sidestroke - 25 yards
Butterfly - 15 yards
2. Maintain position on back 1 minute in deep water (floating or sculling).
3. Tread water for one minute
A chart of level four stroke performance criteria can be found by copying and pasting this url into your browser:
arc-chicago.axxiomportal.com/custom/10/1090/misc/Level_4_Stroke_Chart.pdf
What is there to the class besides learning to teach swimming strokes?
Besides teaching basic swimming skills, starts, turns and diving, there are special sections on support techniques for infants and children, parent and child aquatics, pre-school aquatics, basic water rescue, learning and development, class planning, class organization. Customizing the program includes customizing for disabilities, for adults, by integrating fitness components and with games and water activities.
Students make written lesson plans and teach the lessons to other students in the class.
Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths theater.
Gail Godwin
Texts
You can get a head start on the reading by downloading or printing (for free) one of the texts, the American Red Cross Swimming and Water Safety Manual at: http://editiondigital.net/publication/?i=55928
(This had no index, so I wrote one: Swimming and Water Safety 2009 index).
Do I have to be a lifeguard to be a WSI?
No, but many places that hire WSIs require that they be lifeguards as well and you can take lifegurad training spring quarter at De Anza. Anyone with the swimming skills required for Water Safety Instructor should be able to pass the lifeguard prerequisite swim test.
De Anza lifeguard training offers more certifications and a lower cost than any other local program, including:
 Lifeguard Training and/or Shallow Water Attendant and/or Basic Water Rescue; First Aid; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation for the Professional Rescuer; Automated External Defibrillation; Waterfront Lifeguard; Administering Emergency Oxygen; Epinephrine Auto Injector Administration and Bloodborne Pathogens: Preventing Disease Transmission. (Relax, we've got eleven weeks.)
P.E. 28A is the De Anza lifeguard training class. For information about it click on these links:
Lifeguard Training
Lifeguard Training FAQs has a description of the prerequisite swim tests The last person to finish the prerequisite test Fall quarter 2004 was a 115 pound woman. She ended up with the highest "A" in the class and earned all seven certifications. People who are taking the class at De Anza to get a lifeguard certification will have time to practice the prerequisite test as we will mostly concentrate on first aid and CPR at the start of the quarter. The swim test will not be officially given until at least two weeks into the quarter.
More students qualify for financial aid than use it or even know they qualify. There are enrollment fee waivers you can apply for online. For all the details go to: http://www.deanza.fhda.edu/financialaid/index.html
You can read the curriculum, (course outline or course content, usually designed by a division then reviewed and approved by the college) for any De Anza class at: http://ecms.deanza.edu/deptoutlinespublic.html
Also of interest:
History of swimming section
History of lifesaving
How to pass a Red Cross written test
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