PSIA-AASI Launches E-Learning Course For New Instructors

A new E-Learning Course for New Instructors is now available online from the Professional Ski Instructors of America and the  PSIA AASI esizeAmerican Association of Snowboard Instructors (PSIA-AASI). The organization developed the e-learning course to help snowsports schools onboard their new instructors as well as complement the schools’ existing on-snow training. The free course covers three key aspects of working as an instructor: what to expect, basic teaching principals, and safety considerations. PSIA-AASI members and non-members can access the course once registered on the organization's website.

“The course gives people interested in working as a ski, snowboard, adaptive, or nordic instructor a sense of what the job is like,” said Aleisha Padilla Seubert, the course’s co-author and PSIA-AASI educational development specialist. “People who take the course will also learn about PSIA-AASI’s student-centered approach, which highlights and describes teaching considerations, such as the learning partnership and the experiential learning cycle.”

She added that the course was created using input from several ski and snowboard school directors, current information in the PSIA-AASI technical manuals, and with safety content from the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA).

Each module includes written, audio, and video content, and ends with a short quiz to test for understanding. The entire course takes approximately one hour to complete. Upon completion, the participant has the option to send a certificate to his or her snowsports school hiring manager.

“The Course for New Instructors is a huge milestone for our organization, diving into a new way we will be delivering educational programing not only to our members, but also to the industry,” said Nicholas Herrin, PSIA-AASI CEO.

This is the first e-learning course PSIA-AASI will offer. There will eventually be a course to help instructors prepare for Level I alpine and snowboard certification, a course on PSIA's 5 Fundamentals of Alpine Skiing, additional training for all disciplines, and much more. “Welcoming new instructors to our profession, and giving them more tools to succeed also strengthens our efforts to increase recruitment and retention for the entire snowsports industry,” said Herrin.

“The E-Learning Course for New Instructors is a resource to save time and get new hires up to speed before getting on the snow,” said Seubert. “It creates a foundation of learning so when your new hires show up for the first day of on-snow training they already know about professionalism, teaching and learning, and on hill safety."