My plan of attack on the CFI certificate

TMetzinger

TMetzinger

Final Approach
Joined
Mar 6, 2006
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Northern Virginia
Display Name
Tim
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KJYO/KHEF
I've decided to get my CFI this year, and have started planning on the sequence of events to complete it efficiently. I would welcome comments.

  1. Use a home-study course (Jepp books/King DVDs) and get the FOI, CFI, and AGI writtens done. Take results to FSDO and get AGI cert issued, then start teaching ground.
  2. Go up with a local acro CFI and get spin proficiency sign-off. This is the part that scares me about the process - I'm comfortable with stalls, but have a fear of spins, probably due to a complete lack of experience.
  3. Take dual with a local flight school filled with graybeards and a very high pass rate for initial CFIs - well over 90% of their candidates pass on the first attempt with the FSDO.
  4. Repeat steps 1 and 3 for the IGI/CFII, then repeat step 3 for the multi.
When all is done I should end up with Flight instructor, instrument, single and multi, and both IGI and AGI ratings (I know that the AGI currently "includes" IGI privileges, but they may alter that in the future so I might as well get both).
 
Looks like fun! As for spins -- they're a hoot! If you can handle a stall, you can handle spins. It's a little spooky for the first one "blue sky.... blue sky........ blue sky.............. green grass green grass green grass.... blue sky over green grass". But once you do them and realize there is a way to NOT kill yourself doing them, it's almost a non-event. My CFI asked if I wanted to do a few when finishing up my PPL, so I was very green at that point. He did one, then I did one with him helping, then I did a couple with him hands-off. Fun stuff.

I've got a little bird chirping in my ear to get my CFI before summer. Let me know if you find a good deal on Comm/CFI study materials somewhere.
 
CJones said:
...you can handle spins. It's a little spooky for the first one "blue sky.... blue sky........ blue sky.............. green grass green grass green grass.... blue sky over green grass". .
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What if you do them when the ground is snow covered and you have high stratus. Can you do them when its Gray sky.....gray sky.........white snow white snow white snow....Gray sky over white snow? Or will the plane not spin in those conditions?:dunno::D

But getting back to Tim's question. You can probably accelerate the process if you just stay at a Holiday Inn Express a few nights.

Actually sounds like a good approach time. ( sorry for the pun)
 
Tim,

its good to have a plan, and it looks like you have a good one. Be sure to post your progress/questions/concerns here, we will enjoy learning along with you.

Spin training will open your eyes, and by the end you will probably have mixed emotions of enjoyment and respect. Thats a very good thing! What type will you be doing spin training in?
 
If at all possible, try to take (or even audit) a basic teacher ed (or Ed Psych, or whatever) course at your local college. Really learning about teaching is the most important part of your CFI training.
 
It sounds like a near perfect plan.
Spins aren't so bad, it's the way you stop them to watch.
 
Ron Levy said:
If at all possible, try to take (or even audit) a basic teacher ed (or Ed Psych, or whatever) course at your local college. Really learning about teaching is the most important part of your CFI training.
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That's also true for ground instructor, too. I work at a 2-year college and was going to do that. Unfortunately, the only course was geared towards teaching young kids. How useful would that be?

Now there's a course entitled "effective teaching" that looks like it might be worthwhile.
Edit: Oops, it's under Early Childhood Education. Maybe not!
 
AdamZ said:
What if you do them when the ground is snow covered and you have high stratus. Can you do them when its Gray sky.....gray sky.........white snow white snow white snow....Gray sky over white snow? Or will the plane not spin in those conditions?:dunno::D
Click to expand...

In that case... uhhh.. yeah.. you're screwed.. ;)
 
Tim, sounds good to me!

Don't forget 1a.) Develop / obtain lesson plans

I made my own, and for me that was the most time-consuming part of the CFI, but very beneficial to me (vs. copying someone else's).

BTW I felt the same way as you about spins and dreaded that training but felt much better afterwards!
 
skyflyer8 said:
Don't forget 1a.) Develop / obtain lesson plans

I made my own, and for me that was the most time-consuming part of the CFI, but very beneficial to me (vs. copying someone else's).
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So very true! I copied some information on a few but when I got the format down that best worked for me, I went back and wrote everything to my liking. Writing them yourself and pulling that information from the various sources will help a lot to drill it into your own mind.

Write outlines for all the FOI and Technical Subject Area tasks. You probably won't use them in the oral but writing them will help you learn as well as review the material while remembering various terms.

It is a time-consuming process. By the time I was done with my binder, I spent at least two hours per lesson plan.

Also, make the applicable private pilot and/or commercial pilot PTS task a part of the lesson plan. Likewise, you will remember more of that information.

BTW I felt the same way as you about spins and dreaded that training but felt much better afterwords!
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One of the discussions in the FOI is student anxiety. That brings us to "fear of the unknown" as it applies to stalls. Stalls became benign to me but then it came time for spins. The first flight was a shock but I was in the back seat of a Super D. The second flight was more of a shock when the ground suddenly looked a lot bigger with a front seat view! The third flight in the front was... benign. More, more! :)

Ron Levy said:
If at all possible, try to take (or even audit) a basic teacher ed (or Ed Psych, or whatever) course at your local college. Really learning about teaching is the most important part of your CFI training.
Click to expand...
Also very true! I wish I had that benefit.

Something I'd add is be sure to review all those things you think you know and should know even as a private pilot... but, never use.
 
gprellwitz said:
Unfortunately, the only course was geared towards teaching young kids. How useful would that be?
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After nearly 40 years in aviation, I've come to the conclusion that there is little difference between elementary education and and teaching pilots.
 
Give some thought to what Ron suggested above. I must admit that I did a rather marginal job on my CFI checkride. I fully expected that when I walked into the school after tying down the plane, I'd be presented with a pink slip by the FAA inspector. I was pretty down about it. However, when I walked in, she gave me a talking to and handed me my temporary. During the "talking to" she said, "As you know you weren't too perfect up there; however, you show an ability to teach in a big way, and I'm sick to heck seeing CFI applicants and even CFIs who haven't a clue about teaching, so I am issuing you your certificate. Good job."

I hadn't taken any teaching courses, though I'd done some freelance music instruction for a side job; perhaps that helped.
 
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Baron 55 said:
Give some thought to what Ron suggested above. I must admit that I did a rather marginal job on my CFI checkride. I fully expected that when I walked into the school after tying down the plane, I'd be presented with a pink slip by the FAA inspector. I was pretty down about it. However, when I walked in, she gave me a talking to and handed me my temporary. During the "talking to" she said, "As you know you weren't too perfect up there; however, you show an ability to teach in a big way, and I'm sick to heck seeing CFI applicants and even CFIs who haven't a clue about teaching, so I am issuing you your certificate. Good job."

I hadn't taken any teaching courses, though I'd done some freelance music instruction for a side job; perhaps that helped.
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That's one problem I think exists with these CFI 'factories' scattered across the country. They are pumping people through to get their CFI regardless of how well they can actually 'teach'. The fact is - some people just don't have the 'teaching' mentality or personality. Luckily, most of these so-called CFI's end up in the airlines fast enough that they can't ruin too many learning pilots, but when a stray one makes it out into the 'wilderness', they can do damage to GA in general.
 
and the nice thing is, Chris, that you have that mentality and personality. So you should probably start preparing lesson plans! :yes:
 
TMetzinger said:
I've decided to get my CFI this year, and have started planning on the sequence of events to complete it efficiently. I would welcome comments.

  1. Go up with a local acro CFI and get spin proficiency sign-off. This is the part that scares me about the process - I'm comfortable with stalls, but have a fear of spins, probably due to a complete lack of experience.
Click to expand...


  1. Tim,

    I was also spin-shy - Then I went up with Chip.

    The first one scared the CRAP out of me :hairraise: mostly because I didn't know exactly what was going to happen and I REALLY didn't know there was going to be ~120 degree roll on the entry.

    Once I swallowed my stomach, the rest of them were FUN!!! :goofy:

    I guess spins are like sex. It's probably gonna suck the first time, but then you'll want to do it over and over again. ;)
 
even after the spins i had done for my CFI and glider stuff, the first spins with chip were eye opening. The extra spins a little faster (higher rotation rate) than anything I had ever flown. The thing that I found comforting was even though the ground was a spinning blur, i was still able to determine the direction of rotation and recover. That is what spin training is about there, if you ask me.
 
skyflyer8 said:
Tim, sounds good to me!

Don't forget 1a.) Develop / obtain lesson plans

I made my own, and for me that was the most time-consuming part of the CFI, but very beneficial to me (vs. copying someone else's).
Click to expand...

I think that was one of the reasons my PPL took 22 months and three CFIs to obtain (I didn't drive the first two away - one took a comm'l flying job, and the other dropped out of flying to be a construction manager - maybe I did drive him away:redface:). The first two had no real lesson plans, so my progression was more "what do you want to cover today?" types of CFIs. By the time I got my last one, I was 75% of the way there, but we went through his lesson plan on an excelerated but thorough basis, and finished strong.

I regret that I wasn't a better consumer of CFI services and didn't demand a more thorough syllabus.
 
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Ron Levy said:
After nearly 40 years in aviation, I've come to the conclusion that there is little difference between elementary education and and teaching pilots.
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My wife, who started her career as a special ed teacher and now supervises the docent corps at the Udvar-Hazy center says:

Retired-fighter pilots, 8 year-old emotionally disturbed boys, about the same.
 
flyingron said:
My wife, who started her career as a special ed teacher and now supervises the docent corps at the Udvar-Hazy center says:

Retired-fighter pilots, 8 year-old emotionally disturbed boys, about the same.
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I wonder if that's why Fran thinks I should volunteer for that work...
 
flyingron said:
My wife, who started her career as a special ed teacher and now supervises the docent corps at the Udvar-Hazy center says:

Retired-fighter pilots, 8 year-old emotionally disturbed boys, about the same.
Click to expand...

HA! I dated a few fighter pilots back in the day, though they were active or RESV duty (not retired) - and I would have to agree! ;)
 
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