Accelerating Instructor Mastery (AIM)

Military instructors need instructional competencies and domain expertise in order to adequately train warfighters for mission readiness. However, they are not often afforded the time, resources, or computer-based, self-guided learning opportunities to fully develop teaching skills prior to instructional duty. Design Interactive, Inc. will develop the Interactive Military Instructor Training and Assessment Technology (IMITATE), a tablet-based, adaptive training tool that meets the challenge for accelerating military instructor mastery through strategic integration of highly effective training interventions (e.g., video self-modeling, prompting, and peer rating and critical review of instructional behaviors). IMITATE facilitates expert evaluation of trainee skills during practice of key performance areas (KPAs) of the Marine Corps Instructor Mastery Model and provides feedback in after-action review. The modular framework allows for flexible implementation of capabilities based on facility resources and technological limitations to support stand-alone or networked solutions. Adaptive training capabilities address trainee-specific deficiencies to speed skill development and boost knowledge retention. IMITATE will promote sustainment and operational utility by providing authoring capabilities that result in a repository of learning material to drive the transition from basic to senior-level instructor, as well as focus on the key skills separating senior and master-level instructor competency.