Let me ask you this: if you don't find out how they acquired the knowledge they claim to know, how do you know they actually have that knowledge?

I can think of at least one field where it's possible to invent an ineffective curriculum that feels very effective in the classroom. The students will feel very confident, and they will feel their money was well spent. Until they end up getting a wake up call from reality. You really don't want to be on the receiving end of such a call when your life is on the line.

I read some of your articles actually, and they helped me evaluate schools and form training plans.

"Some people don't have a backyard. I can try things out in a public parking lot, I guess, but starting a fire or making a shelter there might get you weird looks at least, and possibly a trip to the police station. I can just imagine --"

Bingley - not beating up on you here.
If you want to learn - you have to GO OUT there.
when I was single, and later married (no kids) i was out there in the wilderness just about every weekend. we were always gone. always. if I wasn't at work or asleep - I was out there. THAT is how you learn. it's what is vitally important to move up the learning curvem because if you are out there a lot then you will experience all possible conditions ... good, bad and awful. when you are out in the wilderness areas, start trying out the techniques yourself. pick a chapter from a good book and start doing it. it's plain simple. no "wilderness police" to mes with your mind - just don't burn the place down. better to practice on BLM land, and not national parks.

Pete2

there are no guarantees with this kind of thing. best bet is probably to talk to people who took classes from him.

guys whose experience is mostly military are probably not as good a choice as people who have actual real world experience in real world survival situations you may actually encounter.

The answer to this is simple to me, if they are unwilling to talk about their background and training, then you need to steer clear.

"Nature will Eventually Provide the Real Test" no Survival School can really do that

What if there was an independent third-party website where all the schools were listed and past students could post reviews? What if it was started a year ago by a longtime forum member who shall remain nameless whose intitals are "thseng"?

It could be called www.survivalschoolshq.com

Just an idea...

i agree that if they cannot tell you their background, experience and curriculum - something is deeply wrong.

but there's a more basic issue here.
progression.
the way things are done.

the way the vast majority of folks do this stuff is as follows. we get training in wilderness skills - like skiing, backpacking, climbing, kayaking, or mountain biking (to name a few). then we start going on out day trips and weekend trips. then we do tons more trips. then maybe we get extra training. then even longer trips. so by the time that we come to do a "Survival Class", we already have a lot of experience. and we also have some practical experience in what it feels like when things go wrong - meaning we got lucky and survived our screw-ups. this experience is what helps us to judge whether the survival course and instructor really meets our needs.

therefore, Bingley, my suggestion is to delay the survival course and choose courses in outdoors skills. some of these courses talk about certain survival issues anyway. after you build your time outdoors, you will be better prepared for the survival class.

Pete2

Pete, I think you describe the progression from tenderfoot novice to competency quite well. I would offer that by the time one has acquired a bit of experience, the survival class is probably unnecessary. To improve, focus on specific skills - navigation and map reading, fire building (especially in adverse conditions), first aid, and seek out objective accounts and critiques of others survival experiences - not the general garbage found on the boob tube!

To do so in a really productive fashion, volunteer for your local wilderness SAR unit. No handy wilderness nearby? Pity, but you can always move.

Could you not just find a spot a little off the beaten track, park you vehicle and have a wee wander, within a visual of where you parked and camp out with a tent, sleeping bag, stove and then practice getting a fire going. If you can't get a fire going during your bushcraft practice then an overnighter isn't going to be problem if kitted out properly.

For example http://goo.gl/maps/OKwI6 is about an one and half hours drive away from where I live. The only thing to worry about in these parts is the Am Fear Liath Mor coming down off the mountain

"within a visual of where you parked and camp out with a tent, sleeping bag, stove and then practice getting a fire going."

you could and it's an excellent idea. to be more specific. I used to belong to a forum many years ago that focused on Primitive Living and Survival. there was a guy on that forum who really focused on primitive fire making methods. and he did exactly what you just said. he would randomly stop his car along some road in the forest, get out with just a small knife, and challenge himself to build a fire with whatever materials he could forage near the roadside. WOW!!! that's no small challenge, particularly when the weather is not good. but what a brilliant guy. By accumulating all that experience, he was probably the best firemaking expert.

cheers,
Pete2