New NRA requirements to become a shooting sports instructor.

[Summitdog 18]

The council coordinator for shooting sports told our class that the NRA has modified its platform for an individual to be qualified as an instructor for Rifle, Shotgun, muzzleloader, and Pistol. It used to be that an individual needed the Basic Instructor Training (BIT) and the specific instructor course for the particular discipline, which took approximately three days (including the live fire qualification). Now the new platform will require the prospective instructor to take the BIT, the basic training course for the specific discipline and then the instructor course. 

 

I can appreciate the desire to make sure that any potential instructor has the basic skill setPrior to allowing them to become an instructor but I imagine that the instructor course should weed out the unqualified.  Perhaps I’m being cynical but seems like the NRA is essentially trying to “double dip”.  My concern is that with this time and expense increase the number of shooting sports instructors in the BSA will decline and thereby decrease the opportunities to the scouts. 

 

Scotty

[RememberSchiff 3655]

Not long ago, an experience shooter was just quizzed and demonstrated he/she could safety shoot for group as a prereq for entry into an instructor course. The add-on BIT ,was /is usually part of an instructor course.  In BIT, you learn how to "introduce a speaker" so be sure to take notes.

Originally these courses were meant to train instructors who were volunteering to teach newcomers in low cost courses now it is more about the business of firearm training for profit.

Depending on your area, NRA instructor and skills courses can be hard to come by, more expensive than in the past, and I think you also have to renew your instructor  training or run a certain number of classes.  

My $0.02

 

[John-in-KC 311]

My educated guess is this came from the NRA safety and liability people.