A Customized Stage Model for Assessing and Accelerating Military Instructor Skills

• In Event: Teaching and Learning for Adult Skill Acquisition: Application of the Dreyfus and Dreyfus Model

Abstract

Objective
Marine Corps instructors are challenged by the call to suspend their normal duties and take on new set of responsibilities teaching in a Formal School. In contrast with most other military specialties, instruction is a temporary responsibility lasting for a single tour of duty, generally three years. New Marine instructors may be quite skilled and experienced in their specialty area, but they are not familiar with the demands of teaching. The challenge to quickly develop skilled Marine instructors is complex; therefore, the Marine Corps sought to describe the desired performance and accelerate skill development for new instructors.
Theoretical Framework
The Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1986) five-stage model defining how individuals develop skill in cognitively complex domains was ideally suited to support the objective of developing tools to facilitate skill improvement. We began this effort for the Marine Corps by creating a customized stage model for instructors that was grounded in the Dreyfus and Dreyfus model.
Methodology
We used cognitive task analysis interview techniques (Crandall et al., 2006) to help expert Marine instructors “unpack” and describe their expertise and the progression of skill development. We analyzed the interview data to identify the key performance areas of the domain and how each area is performed by instructors at different stages of development (Strauss & Corbin, 1990).
Results
The resulting instructor model specified what performance is important—the key performance areas—and how individuals perform in each area as they progress from a novice to an expert. The use of distinct key performance areas recognizes that the role of an instructor is multi-dimensional and individuals bring different backgrounds and skillsets to the role. The model became a roadmap for accelerating skill development and tailoring developmental activities to individual needs along ten instructor key performance areas.
We used the customized model to develop assessment tools that diagnose an individual’s current level of proficiency and provide nuanced, actionable feedback for growth. Three assessment rubrics were generated, each one using a five-point behaviorally-anchored rating scale. The Observation Rubric provides immediate feedback about performance during a single period of instruction. The Supervisor Rating Form provides feedback on overall job performance on an annual or semi-annual basis. The Self-Reflection Tool supports individual self-assessment. Testing and psychometric analysis of the rubrics demonstrated their reliability and validity.
Conclusion/Significance
The Marine Corps incorporated the customized instructor model into Formal School doctrine (U.S. Marine Corps, 2015a, 2015b) and adopted the assessment tools across schoolhouses. The introduction of the assessment rubrics created a new common language for instructor performance requirements. They revealed, contrary to the perspectives of many new instructors who equate teaching with lecturing, that learning requires establishing a positive learning environment, assessing whether learning is occurring, and facilitating problem solving with interactive techniques. The rubrics provided a framework for developing the practical knowledge of instruction, especially for the majority of Marines who are performing in one of the intermediate stages between novice and expert.

Authors

• Jennifer Phillips, Cognitive Performance Group, LLC

• Karol Ross

• Allison Hancock, Cognitive Performance Group, LLC