APPLICATION OF AN EXPERTISE-CENTERED TAXONOMY TO TRAINING DECISIONS

THE PROBLEM IS THAT WHEN ARMY TRAINEES REACH THEIR UNITS THEY HAVE FORGOTTEN MUCH OF THE MATERIALS PRESENTED AT THEIR SCHOOLS. THE NEED IS TO IDENTIFY THE TYPES OF SKILLS AND METHODS THAT ARE MOST LIKELY TO RESULT IN ROBUST INSTRUCTION, TO PROVIDE A FIRM BASIS FOR ON-THE-JOB-TRAINING (OJT) AT THE UNIT LEVEL. THE APPROACH IS TO USE AN EXPERTISE-CENTERED SKILL TAXONOMY TO DISTINGUISH PROCEDURAL FROM TACIT KNOWLEDGE, AND TO LINK THIS TAXONOMY TO TRAINING METHODS THAT ARE EFFECTIVE FOR DIFFERENT SKILL CATEGORIES. A CRITICAL DECISION METHOD WILL BE USED TO ELICIT SUBTLE ASPECTS OF EXPERTISE OFTEN OVERLOOKED BY CONVENTIONAL TASK ANALYSES. THE OUTPUT WILL BE A SKILL TAXONOMY DIRECTLY TIED TO ARMY TRAINING REQUIREMENTS, AND A SET OF GUIDELINES FOR TRAINING TAXONOMY ELEMENTS. PHASE II WILL VALIDATE THE TAXONOMY AND GUIDELINES USING A LIMITED DEMONSTRATION WITH SELECTED ARMY TASKS.