intermediate swimming at De Anza College

P.E. 26C is the intermediate swimming class at De Anza. P.E. 26D is the advanced swim class. P.E. 6G is the aerobic swim class. They are regularly taught together.

The first day of class I do a survey of what people want out of the class and what skills they have. I cover the required curriculum and try to meet people's needs as well. Some students want a 'get ready for lifeguard training class', some want to get ready to learn to scuba dive or try a triathlon. Some want a review of all the strokes, others want mostly to get in shape. Every quarter, in every swim class I teach, I videotape at least each student's freestyle (unless you really don't want to be taped). People tell me they learned more from seeing their stroke than from years of swim drills.

I don't assume that anyone has been on a swim team. I teach almost everything from scratch. You don't have to already know how to dive into a pool or do a turn. You should be quite at ease in deep water and have most freestyle and backstroke basics down.

I expect that even in a C or D class, many of the students will not have been doing a lot of swimming recently and might be out of shape, so there is no 500 yard prerequisite swim test. I also don't expect all the strokes from higher level swimmers, as it has been my experience that most C/D swimmers don't have a butterfly, for example.

Most C and D classes have students with a wide variety of skills. Sometimes people take a different level of swim class just because it is held at the right time for their schedule. Sometimes really good swimmers take intermediate because they are afraid that D might be too much work.

For answers to frequently asked questions about swim classes, click on this link: Swim classes FAQs

PE 26B, the beginning swimming class at De Anza, requires some swimming skill. If you have some skill be sure to notice where the beginning class is held.

EPOOL refers to the east end of the De Anza Olympic sized pool. This is the shallow end with water up to 5 feet deep. Novice swim classes, a few beginning swim classes and water exercise classes are held there.

MPOOL is the middle section and WPOOL is the west end of the pool. Both are in water that is at least 6 to 7 feet deep. If you can't swim back and froth in a pool in deep water you should not enroll in a swim class held in M or W pool.

P.E. 26A, the Novice swimming class at De Anza is the class for adult non-swimmers, either those who are afraid to get in the pool, or are just not ready for beginning swimming.

For info about the class click on these links:

Novice swimming

Novice Swim FAQs

Letters from novice students

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All swim classes at De Anza share the same curriculum, (the course content, designed by De Anza College).

Every instructor must give short answer and multiple choice examinations and assign the same short essay on the history of swimming.

Each must teach the same set of skills and knowledge about swimming, but each instructor can go about reaching the goals listed below in differnt ways.

De Anza requires that swim students are taught strokes, treading water and underwater swimming, (and in higher level classes, turns and diving), and the curriculum says that swim students will:

Examine the global and historical development of swimming from survival to competition.

Experiment with the laws of physics as they apply to basic swimming skills.

Apply basic exercise physiology and nutrition to swimming.

Analyze causes of drowning and apply safe water practices.

De Anza also specifies that there will be assignments, such as:

Reading - text, handouts, outside source (library, web, magazine, etc.)

Writing -

1.One short essay on the history of swimming or swimming in the student's home country

2.Short answer and multiple choice examinations

These areas would require hours of lecture to cover them as required. In an effort to be able to spend more time in the water I have developed some short online reading assignments to cover most of them. Those that cover the De Anza requirements are required for a passing grade; do more and you can earn a higher grade.

Relax, these are short assignments.