Guest post by learn-to-swim.com
When it comes to teaching people how to learn to swim, instructors obviously rely on the practical work that they do in the pool. As multimedia technology continues to develop, though, it is wise for instructors to make use of other tools in their teaching such as online videos and DVDs.
Teaching can be tough
Teaching people how to learn to swim can be a very rewarding job indeed. After all, swimming not only helps to make people safer around water, but also opens up a wonderful, challenging sport. Swimming is a great activity for fitness, helping improve both strength and cardiovascular health. It has also been shown to help with mental conditions such as depression and anxiety.
Learning to swim can also be a passport to other challenging sports such as triathlon, scuba diving, or sailing. But teaching students can also be very demanding, with people learning in different styles and at different rates. Maintaining progress in some students can also be tricky, with motivation levels often dropping off after a while. Being able to call on years of experience as an instructor is handy in such situations, but not every teacher has such depth of knowledge.
This is where multimedia tools such as DVDs are invaluable. Showing online films or DVDs to students can help them to better grasp concepts and techniques. It also allows them to see the full range of certain movements and strokes, which can be difficult when they are actually in the water. It also helps instructors to better demonstrate certain activities. After all, standing by the side of the pool is not the best place to show students how to learn to swim. Watching films can also help to motivate students whose commitment may be draining. Films can act as an inspiration, showing students just what they can achieve in the future. Films also can be watched at home or on a mobile device, meaning that students can revise concepts for how to learn to swim at their leisure.
Multimedia magic
Educational films can also be useful for other people than instructors. Anyone who works around water, whether it is the pool maintenance staff, lifeguards or swimming club administrators should be aware of safety issues. DVDs and online videos can be a very useful way of disseminating information regarding health and safety issues as well as other matters related to swimming. Instructional videos do not merely deal with how to become a better swimmer, but also how to be a safer swimmer. Thus, using DVDs and instructional videos is a vital part of teaching people to learn to swim. Instructors should ensure that they use multimedia tools to better aid their students. As well as helping those who want to learn to swim, an instructor can also reflect on and evaluate their own performance much more effectively with the aid of multimedia tools such as DVDs.
