Table of Contents ABYC EDU-4 On-Water Recreational Boating Skills–Instruction explained


ABYC EDU-4 On-Water Recreational Boating Skills–Instruction is designed to assist in the development of on-water, skills-based instruction in powerboating, human-propelled, and sailing skills. Its purpose is to assist education providers with developing and implementing programs that produce recreational boat operators who:


• Can perform the requisite entry-level skills associated with safer boating. • Have the knowledge needed to perform those skills. • Possess a positive attitude and good judgment toward safer boating.


EDU-4 helps education providers understand if an on-water boating education program is designed and prepared to deliver high-quality instruction. It does this by identifying best practices education providers should consider when designing their approach.


EDU-4 identifies the core characteristics and criteria needed to consider when designing or updating an approach to on-water, skills-based instruction. It focuses on the overall manner of preparing, supporting, delivering, and following up on the way in which skills, knowledge, etc., are passed on. This includes the infrastructure and overall support, as well as the act of delivering instruction before, during, and after the course or program.


While EDU-4 identifies general characteristics of an approach to instruction (the “what”), it does not prescribe the specific curriculum or instructional design that should be followed (the “how”), since that is a decision best made by the education provider. Although interrelated, each element in EDU-4 stands on its own as an independent characteristic of on-water instruction. This allows each element to be individually considered and designed into an on-water, skills-based instructional program. Some instructional approaches may contain additional elements not contained in EDU-4. Other programs may contain a subset of the EDU-4 elements. Additionally, instructional approaches may include knowledge, attitude, and/or judgment components in addition to those designed to deliver on-water skills.


EDU-4 contains a list of 14 Elements following the leading stem phrase “The instructional approach will:”. Each element contains two parts. The first part is a bolded statement that identifies the characteristic of the instructional approach. The second part is a list of three bullets that identify the criteria used to qualify the characteristic under consideration. For example:


The instructional approach will include curricula and course designs that encourage optimal learning by:


• using current ABYC recreational boating standards (EDU-1, EDU-2, EDU-3); • using experiential education as the primary method of delivery; and • combining and/or sequencing skills effectively.


The number identifiers (“Element 1” in the above example) assigned to the standard elements are for ease of reference only, and do not imply any priority, order, or sequence for use in designing or delivering an approach to on-water, skills- based instruction.


In the example above, the characteristic of the instructional approach is that it has specific content and uses a method that encourages optimal learning. The three criteria state that:


• the content of the course centers on the skills identified within the current versions of recreational boating American National Standards EDU-1, EDU-2 and/or EDU-3;


• the main method of instruction for the course is experiential in nature (active learning), and


• the content and its delivery are designed to move learners through a productive sequence of skills development incorporating effective combining and sequencing.


Each element identifies a characteristic, and its related criteria, education providers should consider when designing or improving an approach to on-water, skills-based instruction. However, they do not prescribe the specific structure or details for how instruction should be delivered. They leave open to the education provider decisions about what skills from the domain-specific skills ANSs to include in a course, the best sequence to deliver them, and what experiential approaches, activities, and tools to use during instruction.


7 This Technical Support Document was produced in part through USCG grant funds to develop National On-Water Skills Standards. ©2022 United States Sailing Association. Facilitated by Think First Serve.


Element 1


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