STA Level 2 Award in Teaching Swimming. This is the first step you’ll need to take to become a fully qualified swimming teacher with STA.The Award will develop your vocational skills and technical knowledge, so you can independently teach your very own class of 12 participants from non-swimmers/beginners up to improvers (children and adults). STA Level 2 Certificate in Teaching Swimming. This qualification will expand your expertise to teach competitive strokes, survival and rescue skills, diving, competitive starts and turns; allowing you to teach non-swimmers through to advanced participants.