Insights into adult learning in Canadian police recruit training

• In Event: POL Panel 16. The promise and impact of changes to police education

Abstract

In Canada, police recruit training was historically delivered in an instructor-centered, paramilitary model that focused on developing technical skills and legal knowledge. Public expectations of police have evolved, and new police recruits must collaborate with communities, solve ethical dilemmas, de-escalate situations, and confront complex social issues. To effectively employ these interventions, police officers must possess strong communication, problem-solving, critical thinking, and teamwork skills. Various adult education, or andragogical, methods may be well suited to develop these desired competencies and higher-order thinking in police recruits. Since there is little empirical research on adult learning in Canadian police recruit training, this qualitative study was explorative and involved semi-structured interviews from six (N = 6) Canadian police recruit administrators. Three key themes emerged from these interviews, including (1) interrelated training content, (2) andragogical methods, scenario-based training, and (4) resourcing challenges. Based on these interviews, adult learning is discussed as a strategy to enhance knowledge acquisition and critical thinking among police recruits.

Author

• Ryan Buhrig, Simon Fraser University