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What is the IDC?

The Instructor Development Course (IDC) is an integral part of becoming an ECSI Instructor. This 11-hour in-person course prepares candidates to teach life-saving skills. For an overview of the IDC please click here.

Who must complete the IDC?

If you have teaching experience you may not be required to complete the IDC. To find out if you need to complete the IDC to become an ECSI Instructor please click here.

Who can offer the IDC?

To offer the IDC you must be an Instructor Trainer. To apply to become an Instructor Trainer you can log into the Member Center and click on “Become an Instructor Trainer”. Once you apply, we will review your credentials on file as well as the rosters that you have submitted. You must have a minimum of two rosters on file to be considered for Instructor Trainer status.

How do I obtain the resources to teach the IDC?

Once you are approved for Instructor Trainer status you can purchase the IDC online: https://www.ecsinstitute.org/training-programs/cpr/productdetails/9781284212150

You will receive an access code which you can redeem to download the following resources:

• Instructor Candidate Manual
• Instructor Trainer Manual
• PowerPoint presentations
• Certificate of Completion Fillable PDF

Who qualifies to complete the IDC?

Anyone interested in taking the IDC must first have a thorough understanding of the life-saving skills that they will teach as an ECSI Instructor. They should have a current provider card or other proof of skills/experience.

What is the cost per candidate to go through the IDC?

Unlike other ECSI courses there is no cost per candidate. Your only cost is your initial purchase of the IDC. Once you have the resources to teach the course there is no additional cost.

How do I issue course completion cards for the IDC?

The process to issue course completion cards for the IDC is different than other ECSI courses. Unlike our other courses you will not be submitting a roster. Included with the IDC is a Certificate of Completion fillable PDF. You will need to fill out the information on the PDF, print out, and give to the candidates upon completion. If you do not want to print out the certificates, you can email them. However, because the document can be altered after saving, once you have filled out the certificate you should select the option to “print” and then select printer as “print to PDF”. This will give you a PDF with the candidate’s information that cannot be altered. You can then save and email the certificate as an attachment.

What’s the next step once the IDC has been completed?

The candidate is now qualified for instructor status. They should apply online at: https://signup.ecsinstitute.org/Instructor/signup.aspx/new

On the application where it asks for “Current Instructor Credentials” they should check off:

• ECSI Instructor Development Course

They are also required to either fax, email, or upload proof of credentials. They will need to provide:

• IDC Certificate of Completion
• Current provider card or other proof of content knowledge

Do I need to purchase an OITK for each of my instructors?

Not necessarily. The purchase of an OITK authorizes you to do a onetime download to a single computer system or thumb drive to be used at a single computer system. Instructors are allowed to share the computer or thumb drive.

Can I upload the OITK to our intranet so all our instructors can access them?

No. Copyright law prevents you from uploading the OITK to a shared system such as an intranet.

If I download the OITK to a thumb drive, can I make copies of it for other instructors?

No. The OITK cannot be copied, modified, or transferred without the permission of the copyright owner.

Do I have to purchase multiple OITK’s if I have more than 10 instructors?

Not necessarily. If the instructors can share the same laptop or thumb drive to which you downloaded the OITK, then there’s no need to purchase multiple OITK’s. Copyright law prevents you from making copies or doing multiple downloads of the OITK, so if sharing a laptop or thumb drive doesn’t work for your instructors you may purchase as many OITK’s as you need.

Am I required to use all the resources in the OITK?

No. With our unique Teaching Packages, you have the option to choose your teaching strategy:

• Lectures for a traditional classroom-based course
• Scenario-based for a more interactive course
• Mix and match learning tools and methods to engage and improve retention

Does the OITK contain a curriculum specific to students who need to recertify?

The curriculum contained in the OITK is not specific to initial training or recertifying, however you can customize it so you can meet the students where they are. For example, if you are doing an initial training, you can use the lectures and videos to help introduce students to the material for the first time. If you are recertifying, you may choose to skip the lecture and just do a quick overview going through the videos and then get right into doing scenarios and practicing skills.

If I can customize the course however I see fit, does ECSI require me to use any of the resources from the OITK?

You are required to use the skills sheets. While you have flexibility on how to teach the course, you must ensure that all participants can properly perform the skills. Depending on which course you are teaching you may also be required to use the written exam from the OITK.

Can I customize the PowerPoint Presentations?

While copyright law prevents you from creating derivative works based on the resources from the OITK, you can customize the PowerPoint’s for your class. You may add content or edit as long as the integrity of the resources is not compromised. If you’re unsure if an edit meets this requirement, please email us at [email protected] so we can work with you to make sure there isn’t a conflict.

How do I use the OITK?

Please review An Introduction to teaching ECSI’s Standard First Aid, CPR, and AED Course for details on how to use the OITK.

What is a seat?

A seat is an unassigned course completion card. Course completion cards are issued by submitting your roster. Prior to submitting your roster, the available space or slot on the roster is referred to as a seat. Once the roster has been submitted the seats will be dissipated and the PDF course completion cards will be available for email or print/download.

Why do I need seats?

Seats are needed to submit rosters. If you don’t have a seat for each student on your roster you will not be able to submit your roster. You will receive a message that you do not have enough seats.

How do I obtain seats?

Seats are obtained by redeeming Jones and Bartlett Learning invoices. If resources are not purchased from Jones and Bartlett Learning you will not be able to obtain a seat. Education Centers can obtain one seat for each ECSI resource purchased through Jones and Bartlett Learning. The Education Center is not required to be the purchaser of the resources. While seats are obtained by redeeming an invoice the name on the invoice and the name of the Education Center do not need to be the same.

When should I submit a roster?

Rosters should only be submitted after the course has been completed. While you can create a roster ahead of time the roster should not be submitted until you have confirmed that each student on the roster has completed the course and successfully performed all required skills.

Can I create a roster without seats?

No. If you don’t have available seats, you will be unable to create a roster. When creating a roster, you will need to select a category. You will only be able to select from the categories that have available seats. No categories will appear if you don’t have seats and you will be unable to proceed.

Do I need seats to submit a roster?

Yes. If you don’t have a seat for each student on your roster you will not be able to submit your roster. You will receive a message that you do not have enough seats.

How do I issue Course Completion Cards?

Course Completion Cards are available once the roster has been submitted. The cards are PDF documents. After submitting the roster, you will have the option to either print or email the cards. Please note that successfully entering your roster does not automatically send the students a card. You must select the print and/or email option and submit after you have entered your roster.

What can I do if a student loses their Course Completion Card?

Course Completion Cards can be emailed and/or printed at any time. Log into the ECSI Member Center and click on the tab for roster management. Once you find your roster click “manage roster” and you will have the option to email and/or print the card.

Please note-If you attempt to send a card multiple times and the student is not receiving the automated email, the issue may be with their email provider blocking the email. We recommend clicking the Print option and downloading the certificate. You can then send it to the student directly from your email address.