Just to echo the others, the hunter safety course was put on after my PAL course. I wasn't going to go cause I had no interest at the time, but I decided to take it anyways.
Lucky I did, went deer hunting soon after and I was hooked.
Also to echo the above, it'd be extremely hard for anyone who pays attention to fail either PAL courses.
I assume they're still doing hands on with deactivated firearms, knowing how to safety check firearms you're unfamiliar with would be the most difficult part.
All I did was ask the instructor how to work the firearm first if I was unfamiliar with it. Where's the magazine release? There? Thank you.
They can't possibly expect you to know how every firearm works, but you are expected to handle everyone as if it was loaded. So keep the muzzle in a safe direction,
and your finger off the trigger.