NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY TEXT INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNIQUES FOR COMPANY OFFICERS NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTERNATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY The Preparation Step "Preparation" will give you a chance to study and discuss the things that need to be done at the preparation stage. Take a good look at ‘the people in your company. Decide what they need to learn, where they need review. Learn how to get company members interested, in- volved and excited about training. Decide what to teach, set lesson objectives and select lesson plans to meet those objectives. Set up (or even find) a good teaching environment. Get the equipment you need to teach the lesson effectively. In Unit IT, "Presentation," you'll take a look at teaching methods - Conference, Discussion, Demonstration, Illustration and Lecture. You'll discuss which teaching aids to use, and when. Company officers are also concerned about the "how" of presentation. You'll find a long section on tips and techniques for teaching and for using teach- ing aids. During the course your instructor vill demonstrate these for you. There's also a section on dealing with different types of students, again with emphasis on the "how to". Unit IIT, "Application," centers on the application step. This is the essential step in fire service instruction in which you give fire- fighters the chance to practice the skills you're teaching. Practice, with coaching, to help them achieve the level of skill you need in . your department. You will create, in this unit, a skills checklist for helping your firefighters master the key points and safety ele- ments of a skill. The last unit, Unit IV, is "Testing". Here you'll overview the vari- ous types of tests, then study the test most useful for company level training, the performance test. You'll look at how such a test is designed and conducted, then you will design one of your om. Throughout the course, emphasis will be on the kind of training done by you and company officers like you. The goal of every fire depart- ment is to save lives and property. It's the goal of this course too. Effective training in the fire service, at the company level, is the key to effectiveness at the department level, at the national level. And that depends on you. INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNIQUES FOR COMPANY OFFICERS NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTERNATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY ELEMENTS OF THE PREPARATION STi Preparation is the step where you organize your training. In this unit we'll look at the different elements of preparation, the things you'll have to consider in preparing a drill. People: Firefighters in your company. All firefighters are adults; What are the best ways of teaching adults, and how do you get them interested and ready for training? Topics and Goals: How do you decide what to teach? How do you set training goals (objectives)? When and how do you share them with firefighters? And how can you tell vhen firefighters have reached training goals? Places: Where do you teach? Outside. Inside. How do you set up the ‘training environment. Things: What equipment will you need? Is it available? Is-it in good ‘condition? Preparation is the step in which you get your people, topics and goals, places and things ready for training. When you've prepared then to your satisfaction, you should be ready to teach your drill and company firefighters will be ready to learn and ultimtely meet the goals you've set. PEOPLE: HOW ADULTS LEARN "ALL firefighters are adults." When preparing a training session, we can lose sight of the fact that ve're working with adults. Some of the things that worked in second grade will vork now too, of course, but there are important differences in the way adults and children learn. Don't treat your firefighters like kids! Let's consider some of the special things about adult Learning. Mnat is Learning! Learning is defined as an observable change in behavior that occurs as a result of acquiring new information or skills and putting it to use through practice. What this means is that you can tell when someone has learned. You should be able to observe or see some change in behavior. Eventu- ally you should be able to see the change in firefighters’ behavior on the fireground~-they're more skilled, able to use power tools for ventilation, perhaps, or rappel safely using the correct procedure. INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNIQUES FOR COMPANY OFFICERS CE 1-26 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER