ASA Professional Ethics & Standards 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following best describes the ASA's stance on an instructor teaching courses outside their own certification level?
- Permitted if the instructor has extensive sailing experience
- Prohibited — instructors may only teach courses for which they hold the corresponding ASA instructor certification (Correct answer)
- Allowed with written student consent
- Acceptable if supervised by a higher-rated instructor
Correct answer: Prohibited — instructors may only teach courses for which they hold the corresponding ASA instructor certification
ASA instructor certifications are level-specific; teaching above your certification level is a violation of standards.
Question 2: An ASA instructor is teaching when weather conditions deteriorate beyond what is safe for students' skill levels. The professional response is to:
- Continue to give students real-world experience
- Head to shelter immediately regardless of the planned lesson agenda (Correct answer)
- Let the most advanced student decide whether to continue
- Reduce sail and keep going to avoid disrupting the schedule
Correct answer: Head to shelter immediately regardless of the planned lesson agenda
Instructor responsibility for student safety always overrides lesson schedules when conditions become unsafe.
Question 3: How should an ASA instructor respond if a student raises a legitimate safety concern during a lesson?
- Dismiss it to maintain authority as instructor
- Take it seriously, assess the concern, and respond appropriately (Correct answer)
- Tell the student that worrying is not part of sailing
- Note it for later discussion but continue the lesson
Correct answer: Take it seriously, assess the concern, and respond appropriately
Student safety observations must be taken seriously; dismissing them can lead to preventable accidents.
Question 4: An ASA school is advertising certifications in a shorter time than ASA curriculum standards specify. What is the ethical obligation of an affiliated instructor?
- Market the shortened program since the school decides curriculum timing
- Refuse to participate and report the deviation to ASA (Correct answer)
- Participate but teach faster to fit the material in
- Remain silent to protect the school's business interests
Correct answer: Refuse to participate and report the deviation to ASA
Instructors have an obligation to uphold ASA standards even when school management creates pressure to violate them.
Question 5: Regarding student privacy, how should an ASA instructor handle information shared by a student during training?
- Share it freely with other students to build group rapport
- Treat personal information with confidentiality and professional discretion (Correct answer)
- Report all personal details to the school for record-keeping
- Use personal information to adjust marketing materials
Correct answer: Treat personal information with confidentiality and professional discretion
Professional ethics require instructors to maintain confidentiality of personal information students share during training.
Question 6: An instructor observes a fellow ASA instructor consistently certifying students who are not ready. What should the observing instructor do?
- Ignore it as it is none of their business
- Document concerns and report them to the school owner or ASA (Correct answer)
- Confront the other instructor aggressively in front of students
- Certify their own students more strictly to compensate
Correct answer: Document concerns and report them to the school owner or ASA
Maintaining ASA certification standards is a collective professional responsibility that includes reporting peers who violate them.
Question 7: Which action demonstrates appropriate professional boundaries between an ASA instructor and adult students?
- Developing close personal relationships to enhance the learning environment
- Maintaining respectful professional relationships focused on safe, effective instruction (Correct answer)
- Socializing extensively after hours to build student loyalty
- Sharing personal political and religious views to connect with students
Correct answer: Maintaining respectful professional relationships focused on safe, effective instruction
Professional boundaries ensure instruction remains focused on competency and safety rather than personal relationships.
ASA Professional Ethics & Standards 3
Which of the following best describes the ASA's stance on an instructor teaching courses outside their own certification level?