Inception
The Bass District Lifesaving Development Camp, commonly referred to as “Dev’ Camp”, is a concept developed by a small group of passionate lifesavers from lifesaving clubs within the Bass District situated along the South East coast of Victoria. These lifesavers recognised that members of their own clubs lacked the awards and skills beyond their basic Bronze Medallion training to deal with common emergencies that presented to patrols at beaches and towns within the district.
These lifesavers developed a camp designed to increase the amount of patrolling awards held and increase the leadership skills of its members whilst dealing with emergencies at their own beaches. By pooling together resources and trainers, and training based on Experiential Learning Theory (ELT) the Bass District Lifesaving Development Camp was born.
These lifesavers developed a camp designed to increase the amount of patrolling awards held and increase the leadership skills of its members whilst dealing with emergencies at their own beaches. By pooling together resources and trainers, and training based on Experiential Learning Theory (ELT) the Bass District Lifesaving Development Camp was born.
Inaugural Camp
The inaugural Bass District Lifesaving Development Camp was held in the third week of January 2007. Waratah Beach SLSC was agreed to host the camp, with resources, equipment and personnel supplied from other clubs to assist with training. The Camp was run over seven days with ten candidates completing a total of five awards each. Based on ELT, candidates were thrown simple and complex scenarios at various points throughout the camp, both day and night, to enhance and drive their learning. The feedback from the candidates at the conclusion of the camp was unanimous about how this method of learning ‘made the camp’ and drove their desire to learn.