Distance Learning Survey Results.Introduction In April 2000 the Defense Institute of Security Assistance Management (DISAM DISAM Defense Institute of Security Assistance Management DISAM Direct Indexed Sequential Access Method ) undertook the task to determine the training needs of the security assistance community. To accomplish this task a security assistance training survey was developed to quantitatively assess the training needs in terms of course delivery methodology. DISAM currently uses a traditional classroom instructional method of teaching at the DISAM facility on Wright-Patterson, AFB AFB abbr. acid-fast bacillus AFB Acid-fast bacillus, also 1. Aflatoxin B 2. Aorto-femoral bypass , Ohio and various on-site locations throughout the world. DISAM as well as many other activities throughout the world are relying more heavily on the internet and telecommunications technologies. Subsequently, it is a natural progression to explore the possibility of using these technologies to provide training to distant locations at reduced cost, increased efficiency and convenience. DISAM collected data from respondents using the commercially available software program, Perseus Survey Solutions for the web V2.0, a product of Perseus Development Corporation. This program allowed for the creation and distribution of survey information by collecting, analyzing and reporting results to the survey administrator. The Perseus program allowed for the establishment of a collection file, which was downloaded and the data set was analyzed for trends. The format of the survey allowed the respondent to answer the various questions as well as defining specific goals that were desired. Respondents were asked to note their preferences for studying multimedia lessons delivered via the personal computer either in the workplace or at home. DISAM did not record or maintain data on the identity of the respondent, ensuring complete anonymity. Data were collected over a period of several months. Data Collection Data collection was straightforward. Each respondent was requested to identify the organization or assignment which best described their work location, number of years working in security assistance, and grade or rank. In addition, the respondent was requested to respond to a number of questions concerning prior attendance in formal DISAM training courses, either in resident at Wright-Patterson AFB or one of the numerous on-sites. Each respondent was requested to respond to having previous experience with distance learning or web-based training and if the respondent had a preference to either internet/web or CD-ROM CD-ROM: see compact disc. CD-ROM in full compact disc read-only memory Type of computer storage medium that is read optically (e.g., by a laser). media format. The survey asked if the respondent would participate in security assistance training via the internet/web or CD-ROM and if their preference was to study during duty hours, off duty hours or a combination. Finally the respondent was asked if the virtual classroom were provided, which topics in security assistance would be most beneficial to the respondent and were any other topic area s that were not covered not covered Health care adjective Referring to a procedure, test or other health service to which a policy holder or insurance beneficiary is not entitled under the terms of the policy or payment system–eg, Medicare. Cf Covered. that needed to be covered in the virtual classroom. Results A total of 274 responses were received on the survey with the majority, 62 percent, from three general organizations, SAO/DAO, implementing agencies and DoD field activities. (Figure 1). Of the 274 responses over 50 percent (139) had five or more years in a security assistance related position and additional 59 (21.5 percent) between one and three years of experience. (Figure 2) Of the respondents 36.5 percent were in pay grades GS-12/13 or O-3/4 which is consistent with the known demographics The attributes of people in a particular geographic area. Used for marketing purposes, population, ethnic origins, religion, spoken language, income and age range are examples of demographic data. for the security assistance community. (Figure 3) GS-14 or O-5 made up an additional 17.2 percent. Most had attended at least one traditional DISAM course during their career (56.2 percent) with 23 percent attending three or more. (Figure 4) Most, 65.7 percent, have never previously participated in distance or web-based training. (Figure 5) If given a preference to a mode of either web-based (internet) and/or CD-ROM media, most respondents 62 percent indicated either internet/web or CD-ROM was acceptable. (Figure 6) An additional 20.4 percent indicated only the internet as an acceptable medium. CD-ROM was the least acceptable with 15.3 percent. (Figure 7) When asked if they would participate in security assistance training via internet/web or CD-ROM-based Virtual Classroom, an overwhelming 84.7 percent responded favorably fa·vor·a·ble adj. 1. Advantageous; helpful: favorable winds. 2. Encouraging; propitious: a favorable diagnosis. 3. . Those responding favorably to the distance learning alternative indicated a preference for either during regular duty hours (46.0 percent) or a combination of both on and off-duty (38.7 percent), while 12.8 percent indicated a preference for off-duty hours only. (Figure 8). In addition to general questions concerning preferences, the survey requested the respondents to indicate topics they would be most interested in if the CONUS Orientation course Noun 1. orientation course - a course introducing a new situation or environment orientation course, course of instruction, course of study, class - education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings; "he took a course in basket weaving"; "flirting is not were offered via Virtual Classroom. Overall, the average response was favorable fa·vor·a·ble adj. 1. Advantageous; helpful: favorable winds. 2. Encouraging; propitious: a favorable diagnosis. 3. with an average of 3.1 on a scale which ranged from 1 (not at all interested) to 5 (completely interested). (Graphs 1 and 2). The respondents were required to grade each topic area currently offered in the CONUS Orientation course and indicate their level of interest. The most requested topics were foreign military sales That portion of United States security assistance authorized by the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended, and the Arms Export Control Act of 1976, as amended. This assistance differs from the Military Assistance Program and the International Military Education and Training Program process (3.7), foreign policy, legislation, and the security assistance budget (3.6), FMS FMS - Flexible Manufacturing System (factory automation). agreements - terms and conditions (3.5), FMS acquisition policy and process (3.5) and security assistance funds management (3.4). The least favorable were topics on introduction to security assistance (3.1), introduction to the security assistance organization (3.1) and international armaments cooperation program (3.1). Even though these three topics exhibited the lowest overall scores an average 3.1 indicates a moderate interest in the subject topics. Discussion What is Distance Learning? Distance learning is a structured, flexible alternative for the student unable to attend traditional classroom courses using a variety of media to include computer conferencing See chat, videoconferencing and data conferencing. , compressed video compressed video - video compression services, independent study, interactive television, on-line (internet) and satellite video-conferences. (Northcentral Technical College Accreditation Northcentral Technical College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association (NCA).[1] Several programs are accredited by other accrediation bodies. Program). In this survey, DISAM only explored using the future student's personal computer via the World Wide Web or through a combination of web-based and CD-ROM media. Discussion of Survey Results In the past, most distance education (learning) focused on adult learners Adult learner is a term used to describe any person socially accepted as an adult who is in a learning process, whether it is formal education, informal learning, or corporate-sponsored learning. , with an increase in alternative work arrangements, coupled with flextime flextime, system of assigning hours for work that permits employees to choose, within specified limits, the hours that they will be at their place of employment. In many companies, there is a "core time" when all employees must be present each workday. and work-at-home arrangements has led to greater individual responsibility and learner autonomy Learner autonomy has been a buzz word in foreign language education in the past decades, especially when talking about life-long learning skills. It has transformed old practices in the language classroom and has given origin to self_access_language_learning_centers around the (Spodick 1995) The concept of distance learning has been in existence for many years, recent studies have indicated that about one-third of the nation's 2-year and 4-year post-secondary education institutions offered distance education courses in the 1997-1998 academic year with another one-fifth planning to start offering such courses with the next three years with an estimate of 54,470 different distance education courses offered, (Lewis, Snow, Farris and Levin, 2000). Distance education in the United States Education in the United States is provided mainly by government, with control and funding coming from three levels: federal, state, and local. School attendance is mandatory and nearly universal at the elementary and high school levels (often known outside the United States as the is not nearly "high tech" as everyone imagines while video conferencing See videoconferencing. (communications) video conferencing - A discussion between two or more groups of people who are in different places but can see and hear each other using electronic communications. and real-time transcontinental virtual classrooms may be the wave of the future, today's distance learning often employs the more common technologies of video cassette video cassette Noun a cassette containing video tape video cassette n → videocassette f video cassette n → , CD-ROM, local TV broad casting and electronic mail, (Helf, 1999). The onset of web-based internet access See how to access the Internet. and the web page development of many organizations both private and public has highlighted the ease and convenience of exploring distance learning as an alternative to the face-to-face classroom setting. Some respondents expressed concern over losing the interaction among the instructor, "a live professor" and the students. However, there were just as many respondents that thought the idea of the virtual classroom was a viable alternative. Distance learning allows the student to learn and continue their education and work at their individual pace. The author does not dispute that a significant amount of learning is realized in the classroom environment where ideas can be discussed and fully understood. Within the security assistance community, training of the workforce beginning with baseline knowledge of the security assistance process is paramount to mission accomplishment. The reduction of the workforce and increased demand for productivity are driving factors in the exploration of an alternative method of keeping the community trained. Some respondents to the survey addressed this issue and expressed concern that personnel cutbacks would not permit them to find time during normal working hours to participate in training. It is critical to train the workforce in the unique aspects of foreign military sales process but equally important to keep the workforce current in an increasingly changing environment. A number of respondents commented on the need of refresher training Refresher training is a form of updating military knowledge of the reservist troops. After one has completed the conscription service, he or she can be called for refresher training for some amount of days. on selected topics would be beneficial for personnel that had a great deal of experience but may need assistance specific issues. In a recent DSCA DSCA Defense Security Cooperation Agency DSCA Defense Support of Civil Authorities DSCA Differential Strain Curve Analysis DSCA Deep Sound Channel Axis DSCA Debt Service Coverage Account DSCA Document Signer Certification Authority employee survey, employees felt they were adequately trained to produce high-quality work. The increasing workload and the reliance on performance measurements to drive improvements in quality, cost, and timeliness indicate that exploring an alternative method of learning is appropriate. Distance learning is not the overall solution to time management in training. There are a number of challenges that must be overcome for distance learning to be a viable alternative. These include, just to mention a couple, technological literacy Technological literacy is the ability to understand and evaluate technology. It complements technological competency, which is the ability to create, repair, or operate specific technologies, commonly computers. including computer literacy Understanding computers and related systems. It includes a working vocabulary of computer and information system components, the fundamental principles of computer processing and a perspective for how non-technical people interact with technical people. and loss of content in the technology, and providing information rather than instruction, (Spodick 1995). In addition, concerns were expressed in the survey that guidelines must be in place to insure minimum standards for each agency to give time, space, adequate resources and privacy necessary to successful completion of the course. These comments implied that distance learning would occur during regular business hours BUSINESS HOURS. The time of the day during which business is transacted. In respect to the time of presentment and demand of bills and notes, business hours generally range through the whole day down to the hours of rest in the evening, except when the paper is payable it a bank or by a . Distance learning can occur during off-duty hours using computers at the student's resident. The data in the survey are split on this issue, 45.85 percent indicated a preference for distance learning during regular duty hours, 12.8 percent on off-duty hours and the remaining a combination of off-duty and duty hours. Personal home computers are more commonplace today then ten years ago. A recent April 1999 survey conducted by CommerceNet/Nielsen Media Research discovered that 92 million people have access to the internet. Individual commands will have to establish policies for training during duty or off duty hours. Based on the responses obtained in the survey the majority would utilized the opportunity if presented regardless of the time of the training. The respondents indicated a preference for a number of topics to be included in the virtual classroom with foreign military sales process and foreign policy, legislation, and the security assistance budget. Both these topic areas are covered extensively in the DISAM CONUS (SAMC SAMC Sergeant Audie Murphy Club (US Army) SAMC S-Allylmercaptocysteine (water-soluble sulfur compound present in aged garlic extract) ), CONUS Orientation (SAM-CO) and Overseas Course (SAM-O). Those topics are time sensitive and changes occur frequently. The virtual classroom would provide a means of keeping the security assistance community informed of changes. Overall, acceptance of all topics was high. Conclusion Based on the results of the survey, distance learning is a viable alternative to the traditional classroom instruction. Distance learning allows the student to use a combination of web-based or CD-ROM media to stay current in the fast-paced security assistance environment. Each self-paced learning course may to taken at the student's time either on or off-duty based on the individual command's policy. About the Author Commander Hawkins is an assistant professor and has been at DISAM since December 1995. He is a graduate of the California Polytechnic State University This article is about the university in San Luis Obispo, California. For Cal Poly Pomona, see California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. California Polytechnic State University, commonly called Cal Poly , San Luis Obispo, California San Luis Obispo (IPA: [sæn 'luɪs ə'bɪspoʊ]; Spanish for St. Louis, the Bishop) is a city in California, located roughly midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles on the Central Coast. and holds a Master of Science in materiel ma·te·ri·el or ma·té·ri·el n. The equipment, apparatus, and supplies of a military force or other organization. See Synonyms at equipment. acquisition management from the Florida Institute of Technology Florida Institute of Technology is an independent technical college located in Melbourne, Florida (Brevard County), United States. It was founded by Jerome P. Keuper on September 22, 1958 as Brevard Engineering College, absorbing the University of Melbourne, and changing its name . He is the Deputy Director of Research and the functional coordinator for contracting and acquisition topics in all DISAM courses. Bibliography Spodick, Edward F., 1995, The Evolution of Distance Learning, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST, or UST) was established in 1991 under Hong Kong Law Cap. 1141 (The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Ordinance), as one of eight universities in Hong Kong. The current president is Professor Paul Ching-wu Chu. Library. Helf, Gavin, Front Line, Spring 1999, "Revelations about Distance Learning in Central Asia." Lewis, Laurie; Snow, Kyle; Farris, Elizabeth; and Levin, Douglas, Spring 2000, Education Statistics Quarterly, "Distance Education at Postsecondary Education Institutions: 1997-1998." North Central Technical College Programs, http://www.northcentral.tec.wi.us/distance/.
Current Organization or Assignment
SAO/DAO 21.90%
DLA/DoD Field Activities, JSG Field 20.80%
Agencies (NIMA, etc.)
Implementing Agencies 20.07%
Other (Please go to question 2 below.) 12.77%
Headquarters/policy formulation (DSCA, 10.95%
Services Headquarters)
International Customers/Purchasers 4.38%
Unified Commands 4.38%
Not Answereed 3.35%
Commercial Defense Industry Personnel .07%
(not serving as contract employees to
the U.S. government)
Note: Table made from pie chart
Years in Security Assistance
Related Position
More than five (5) years 50.73%
Between one (1) and three (3) years 21.53%
One (1) year or less 18.25%
Between three (3) and five (5) years 8.03%
Not Answered 1.46%
Note: Table made from pie chart
Years in Security Assistance
Related Position
GS-12/13 or O-3/4 36.50%
GS-14 or O-5 17.15%
GS-9/10/11 or O-1/2 14.96%
GS-7/8 or E-7/8 10.22%
Not Applicable 8.39%
GS-6/E-6 or below 5.84%
GS-15/O-6 or above 5.47%
Not Answered 1.46%
Note: Table made from pie chart
Number of DISAM Courses
One (1) or Two (2) 56.20%
Three (3) 22.99%
None (0) 18.96%
Not Answered 1.82%
Note: Table made from pie chart
Previous Distance Learning Participation
No 65.69%
Yes 32.85%
Not Answered 1.46%
Note: Table made from pie chart
Media Preference
Either internet, web or CD-ROM 62.04%
is acceptable
Internet/World Wide Web (Web) 20.44%
CD-ROM 15.33%
Not Asnwered 2.19%
Note: Table made from pie chart
Training Via Internet
Not Answered 1.46%
Yes 84.67%
No 13.87%
Note: Table made from pie chart
Time Participation
Not Answered 2.55%
During regular duty hours 45.99%
A combination of both on and off-duty 38.69%
hours
During off-duty hours 12.77%
Note: Table made from pie chart
Topics in Security Assistance Introduction to Security Assistance Introduction to the Security Assistance Organization Ethics and Standards of Conduct Foreign Policy, Legislation, and the Security Assist. Budget Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Process FMS Agreements - Terms and Conditions LOA Loa (lō`ä), longest river of Chile, 275 mi (443 km) long, flowing S from the Andes, N Chile, then W and N through the Atacama Desert, before turning W to the Pacific Ocean. Entries, Amendments, and Modifications Technology Transfer and Export Control International Armaments Cooperation Programs FMS Acquisition Policy and Process Security Assistance Training Management Security Assistance Automation Initiatives DoD Logistics Systems for FMS Follow-on Logistics Support for FMS FMS Materiel Distribution FMS Pricing Security Assistance Funds Management Advanced Topics Antiterrorism an·ti·ter·ror·ist adj. Intended to prevent or counteract terrorism; counterterror: antiterrorist measures. an and Force Protection, Level 1 certification SAO Sa´o n. 1. (Zool.) Any marine annelid of the genus Hyalinæcia, especially H. tubicola of Europe, which inhabits a transparent movable tube resembling a quill in color and texture. Entitlements and Support System Intro to the Security Assistance Network (SAN) Human Rights Awareness End-Use Monitoring Transfer and Disposal of U.S. Origin Defense Equipment FMS-Specific MILSTRIP MILSTRIP Military Standard Requisitioning & Issue Procedures Procedures Supply Discrepancy Reporting (SDR See software defined radio. ) for FMS Offset Agreements DSCA Reinvention Initiatives and Status Current Issues in Security Assistance (Updated monthly). |
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