Designing Training Courses for Law Enforcement and Applying Learning Styles
Similarly to courses structured for training law enforcement in digital forensic investigations (Genoe, Toolan, & McGourty, 2014; Stephens, 2012), the RITES course requires an ability to problem solve, pay attention to detail, and have a mindset for investigation and intelligence. Considerations are directed by course aims “to provide investigating officers with the skills necessary to obtain, evaluate and use online information … apply[ing] best practice in respect of proper authorization and recording processes for online investigations” (College of Policing, 2017, para. 3).
For a number of years, police training programs adopted a “militaristic environment” (Birzer, 2003, p.30) which a number of authors (Birzer, 2003; Haberfeld, Clarke, & Sheehan, 2011; Vodde, 2009) state is not conducive to learning, as “it is essential that training is conducted in such a way as to be as meaningful as possible to the adult participants” (Birzer & Roberson, 2007, p. 226). The RITES course adopts both andragogic (i.e. self-directed learning and sharing of experiences) and pedagogic (i.e. dictating learning in the form of traditional lectures) approaches to learning which seemingly prove efficacious when training police officers (Birzer, 2003; Haberfeld et al., 2011; Queen, 2016). Tong, Bryant, & Horvath (2009, p.210) state that “training and learning styles need to reflect that uncertainty of police work and the principles that should inform practice.” Traditionally, lecture style approaches to educating learners are “almost always the most inefficient way of learning” (Grace, 2001, p.125), and while it is unlikely for the RITES course to accommodate every style of learning, a concerted effort is made to engage their audience. By embracing modern approaches, College of Policing trainers afford the officers a better chance of applying their acquired skills to real-life scenarios.