Instructor Continuing Education

AIARE Continuing Education (CE) seeks to provide AIARE Instructors and Course Leaders a menu of options to choose from in order to tailor professional development to meet the interests or needs of each individual Instructor.

Continuing Education works on a three-year cycle beginning the first full season after an individual becomes an AIARE Instructor. At least one course in each three-year cycle needs to be a field course, and Instructors can count one approved non-AIARE course as Continuing Education in each three-year cycle. In addition to the field-based Continued Education courses offered each year, the AIARE Course Leader Training, PRO 1 Course or Bridge Exam, and PRO 2 all count as AIARE Continuing Education field courses. 

Instructors pay dues and submit Continuing Education credits in October of each year. Instructors who do not pay dues, or submit a record of non-AIARE Continuing Education by October 31 become inactive (not able to teach). For example, if you took an IRC in the 2017-18 season, you have fulfilled your Continuing Education requirement in order to begin teaching after October 31 of the 2018-19 season. You will need to take a Continuing Education course in the 2018-19 season in order to remain current for the 2019-20 season. 

Instructors who are inactive and wish to become active again should contact us at contact@avtraining.org to review your situation and devise a plan for you to begin teaching again. 

All AIARE Instructors must take either a PRO 1 course or a PRO 1 Bridge Exam, or have equivalent certification by Nov 1, 2020. These courses count as field Continuing Education courses.

Some examples of what Continuing Education might look like over three years:

Year 1:  Regional SAW
Year 2: AIARE CE classroom course
Year 3: AIARE CE field course

or

Year 1: AIARE PRO 1
Year 2: AIARE CE classroom course
Year 3: ISSW

or

Year 1 AIARE CE classroom course
Year 2: AMGA Ski guide course
Year 3: AIARE CE webinar course

or

Year 1: AIARE CE field course
Year 2: AIARE CE classroom course
Year 3: AIARE CE webinar course

or

Year 1: AIARE PRO 2
Year 2: AIARE CLT
Year 3: AMGA Ski Guides Course

AIARE Instructor Continuing Education is a forum to develop your own professional skills by learning the latest from experts in the field and through collaboration and sharing ideas with other AIARE Instructors.

AIARE Continuing Education courses for the 2018-19 season have all been completed. Course options for the 2019-20 season will be posted in Fall 2019. Scroll below to see example course descriptions. 

Webinar: Digital Mapping Resources — Creating Trip Option Catalogs for Course Participants

Investigate Trip Options is a key component of how both professional and recreational backcountry travelers PREPARE each season. This webinar introduces digital mapping resources that AIARE Instructors/Course Leaders can use to build and manage trip option catalogs in their course venues. We’ll also present techniques and methods for AIARE Instructors/Course Leaders to teach AIARE 1 and AIARE 2 Participants about how to incorporate trip option catalogs, guidebooks and terrain photos into their trip planning process.

This virtual workshop is ideal for AIARE Instructors/Course Leaders who have a very basic understanding of CalTopo, Google Earth, and smartphone navigation applications, and are looking to create digital resources and a simple lesson on these resources in order to share digital catalog building skills with course Participants.

This webinar will include a post-webinar assignment of creating a map resource to share with your course participants.

Field Course: Rescue Workshop 

The exact topics covered on this day-long field based workshop will be determined based on the needs and experiences of participating Instructors, but may include:

• See a demonstration of what components of rescue are taught on an AIARE 1, Avalanche Rescue and reviewed on an AIARE 2. See a demo of current best practices and standards of what the instructor demo should look like.
• Review the scope and sequence for participants taking the Avalanche Rescue Course multiple times. Workshop managing mixed-skill groups.
• See demonstrations of, and practice teaching techniques for the component skills of avalanche rescue. Receive feedback from Instructor Trainers on teaching. Share ideas about demonstration techniques for specific rescue skills.
• Refine your own teaching skills with opportunities to workshop with other instructors to improve the activities that you use on your courses.
• Improve your ability to give useful feedback to course participants using the rescue practice checklist. Learn adult teaching and skill assessment techniques to help you manage a mixed-skills group and give meaningful feedback to participants looking to improve their skills.

Field Courses

• CAA Level 1 or 2
• AMGA Ski Guide or Advanced Ski Guide Course
• PRO 1 or Bridge Exam provided by an A3 Course Provider
• PRO 2 provided by an A3 Course Provider

Classroom/Webinar/Other

• Regional SAW
• ISSW (attendance or poster presentation)
• Curso de Pronosticador de Meteorología Invernal (Winter Meteorology Forecaster Course)

Non-AIARE courses are reviewed by the AIARE Education Committee and added to this list on a regular basis. Please send course suggestions along with a link to a website, course description or syllabus to feedback@avtraining.org.

Have a question? See the FAQ page!