In reply to Mark Eddy
> It's also very likely you'll receive good quality instruction from a trainee (as an active climber of 25+ years experience I feel qualified to comment).
With the rate a touch below 40%, I think it's certainly possible to get good quality instruction, but I would say it's less than likely
> Last year, whilst at a single pitch venue in Costa Blanca, I chatted to an active MIC (Mountaineering Instructor Certificate) holder who was struggling on a 4+ sport route!! And I mean properly struggling. No they weren't injured etc. It was a joke.
Not for me to comment about people's grades.
> Then watching as a BMG belittled a super experienced climber in front of their peers did little did little to cement my confidence in the system. That climber then came very close to giving up as a direct result of the interaction. Thankfully, with careful coaxing he still climbs to this day (now in his 70's and will follow E1 on a good day) but has almost no confidence and won't lead, all stemming from this single incident.
Sounds horrible, but again not going to comment more than that
> The current pass rate is appallingly low and this is all too slowly being addressed by Mountain Training. At only 40% (and is it really as high as this Jez?) this must lead us to ask why.
It's a touch under 40 for first time passes
> Why are 60% of candidates not up to 'standard'?
A vanity of reasons, it's a big syllabus. Some don't cruise VS 4c, some don't teach in a progressive manner, some get too many twists and tangles on belay changeovers, some don't navigate well enough, some don't stay safe, some make poor judgements scrambling, etc.
The MIA training courses are extremely good quality (in my opinion). MT have looked in to why the pass rate is lower in previous years, I think the findings were published on their website but may be mistaken.
A generalisation is that people are coming to the award more quickly than in the past and not consolidating well enough, perhaps not taking enough ownership of their consolidation. To help with this AMI are launching a mentoring scheme to AMI trainee members, which I hope will be really successful and positive.
As above
> What are they doing wrong?
As double above!
> Are the assessors missing something?
I very much doubt it! They're moderated by MT and AMI watched a course and thought it to be extremely good.
I'm a big believer in getting qualified. I'm also a big believer in staying current and never stopping learning. I know there are people operating out of the remit of their awards and I just don't get it, if they think they're up to the standard then why do do the assessment, even if they cruise it, it's still a massively valuable learning experience. My take is any potential customer should seek someone with the right qualification, and then have a chat to see if they're the right fit.
A slightly rushed reply, sorry, busy day ahead! Feel free to get in touch directly and I'd be happy to chat more about stuff
Post edited at 08:53