: A review and analysis of the literature about training system models and methods during the last 20 years was conducted. Thirty-six training system estimation models were identified. The models were evaluated with respect to the adequacy of their documentation and their ability to predict cost effectiveness, training efficiency, training effectiveness, and appropriate media selection. The purpose was to review the history and state of the art of such models and to identify their strengths and deficiencies. The goal was to see to what extent these models could be useful for enhancing future Army training system resource estimation early in the development of a materiel system.

http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA283021&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf

Applying Training System Estimation Models to Army Training. Volume 1. Analysis of the Literature

: This research note reviews the formal predictive and prescriptive models of training effectiveness analysis and related Army guidance. Most of the models are concerned with the analytic formation of entire training programs early in the weapons systems acquisition process. Some models also include manpower, personnel, and human factors considerations. A number of models focus on the formulation of training devices and simulators. Computer Based Instruction (CBI) has not often included in early formulation of training programs for new weapons systems. Possible reasons for this finding are discussed. Most of the training program models also include a cost model, but the cost models are not necessarily adequate. The models concerned with training devices and simulators do not have associated cost models. The lessons learned included the following: 1) there are many useful models available for the formulation of training programs early in the weapons system acquisition process; 2) the validity of these models needs to be tested, recommendations are given for comparative validity studies; 3) models for training devices and simulators appear to need further development, related cost models, and validation; 4) further attention needs to be given to formal CTEA models for advanced phases of the weapons system acquisition process, and for non-system training.

A Review of Models of Cost and Training Effectiveness Analysis (CTEA). Volume 1. Training Effectiveness Analysis

In this research, the instructor training process is modeled and a methodology for determining instructor training plans is developed. A framework for instructor training analysis is described that covers the identification of instructor skill requirements, methods of training instructors, and the development of instructor training plans. The framework was developed from a study of training-system characteristics conducted using a group of experts in flight simulation. The system developed in this research has been integrated with a framework for instructor operator station design developed earlier (Ramesh and Sylla, 1990). The instructor training model's implications for the design of this station are presented, and directions for future research are provided. >

A model for instructor training analysis in simulation-based flight training

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the prescribed and actual evaluations of training system effectiveness. It presents alternatives to transfer of training as criteria for training system effectiveness. The chapter also presents an emerging model for training system evaluations, the device effectiveness forecast technique. The armed forces of the United States rely on training devices and simulators as indispensable components of training. The design of training devices in theory is based on detailed and precise information about the training requirements to be met, physical and functional characteristics needed to satisfy requirements, intended use of the device, and its effectiveness and cost. However, unavoidable logistic demands during training device acquisition make empirical tests of effectiveness difficult to conduct. As a necessary consequence, appraisals of a particular design, or competing design alternatives, are primarily analytic. Formal analytic procedures, however, are inadequate or nonexistent. The bases on which device design decisions are made have not been articulated, nor is it clear what kinds of data or levels of data specificity are needed to support such decisions. There is a need, therefore, for analytic procedures, applicable during both early and later stages of device acquisition that permit prediction of the potential effectiveness of device designs.

Methodological Approaches For Simulator Evaluations

The flight training process is conceptualized using a systems approach and a framework for developing cost-effective training programs is presented. Using this approach, an expert decision support system for the optimal design of instructor/operator stations (IOSs) in flight simulators was developed. The system enables a designer to evaluate various IOS design configurations and choose a cost-effective configuration for implementation. The system encapsulates the knowledge on the design problem, its parameter, and the associated data assessed from a group of experts in flight simulation. The system was implemented on an IBM PC/AT and field tested with a group of design engineers. Their overall response to this system has been very favorable. Covered are the design approach, a taxonomy of the design parameters, the optimization model, and the system characteristics. Avenues of future investigation identified from this study are noted. >

A framework for the optimal design of instructor/operator stations in flight simulators

The Training Development Decision Support System (TDDSS) is a computer-aided training development and evaluation procedure designed to support the conduct of the instructional systems design process. Training program development using TDDSS is conducted in two phases: (1) Training Design and (2) Training Evaluation. Phase 1 is carried out in three steps: Job Function Analysis, Task Analysis, and Learning Requirements Analysis. The product of Phase 1 is a series of viable Training Program Alternatives (TPAs). In Phase 2, a cost-benefit trade-off analysis is performed on the TPAs. The benefits assessment portion of the trade-off analysis is based upon the use of a flexible multiattribute utility measurement procedure. Resource requirements and associated cost estimates for each TPA also are produced during Phase 2. Following the completion of both analyses—benefits assessment and cost estimation—training program merit and cost indices are integrated leading to the identification of a preferred TPA.

John K. Hawley

Papers

The Training Development Decision Support System: An Aid to the Design of Cost-Effective Training Programs: