CPPD Conducts Navy Instructor Training Course Pilot

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (NNS) -- The Center for Personal and Professional Development (CPPD) completed a three-week pilot of the new Navy Instructor Training Course (NITC) April 6 at CPPD Learning Site Dam Neck in Virginia Beach, Va.

NITC is scheduled to replace the Journeyman Instructor Training (JIT) course Oct. 1. The largest change to the course is the addition of a full week of instruction. The purpose of the pilot was to validate the curriculum, materials and course length.

"The overarching goal of this course revision is to provide the best possible instructor development process," said CPPD Commanding Officer Capt. John Newcomer. "CPPD's goal is to help Sailors be ready to deliver any Navy course by providing high-quality training and performance support to meet the demands of the Navy training - and operational - environment. CPPD strives to develop instructors by creating solid foundational teaching skills and inspiring the confidence to deliver world-class training to the fleet."

NITC provides students the opportunity to develop the entry-level instructor skills necessary to perform their instructional responsibilities effectively in any Navy training situation.

"The success of the Navy depends to a great extent on the effectiveness of the instruction that individuals receive during training," said Senior Chief Engineman Ronald Shasky. "As a Navy instructor, they will play a critical role in providing our operating forces with personnel trained to maintain a high degree of fleet readiness."

The largest training gaps between JIT and NITC identified during the initial course analysis were the need for more basic instructor skills, instructor role modeling, and student teach-back opportunities - critical in building students' skills and confidence.

"The additional 40 contact hours will develop a more qualified instructor to meet the demands of the instructor certification process at the gaining training activity," said Senior Chief Fire Controlman Anthony Colliver.

Sailors assigned to instructor duty must complete this course, which trains Navy, Marine Corps and Defense Department personnel, as well as allied foreign nationals, in the application of principles of learning; instructional methods, strategies and techniques; and effective communications, oral questioning, and presentation techniques appropriate to Navy learning environments.

Sailors who have attended JIT will not be required to attend NITC. To support those attending JIT, CPPD is considering making some of the NITC-specific training available on the CPPD Instructor Community of Practice page on Navy Knowledge Online.

Like JIT, students graduating from NITC will be granted the 9502 Navy Enlisted Classification code.

The NITC development team began the redesign process by involving key players early. "We started by involving our stakeholders in the revision process from the very beginning," said CPPD Instructor Development Continuum Program Manager Gerald Lindsay. "A representative from every major CPPD learning site was brought onto the team as well as representatives from Naval Education and Training Command to aid in the development of the new course. Content Review Teams (CRTs) were established and given access to a shared virtual workspace so they could readily access the newly developed content and provide feedback to the team."

Lindsay said that feedback from the team was provided in a variety of ways. For example, the virtual workspace had adjudication pages where members identified potential pitfalls of the proposed content. Bi-weekly meetings allowed everyone to voice concerns or praise of the content that was developed. Field tests were also conducted for each of the three weeks of the course.

"The field tests proved extremely effective because the CRT got to see the content 'in action,' and we conducted daily 'hot washes' to iron out any difficult or questionable areas of the curriculum and delivery," said Shasky.

The CRT and the field tests were put in place to get valuable feedback from stakeholders as well as to expose them to where the course was headed and what they could expect to see out of their future instructors. "The CRTs and field tests helped help streamline the process in such a way that when the course pilot took place, we were as close to a 'ready to deliver product' as possible," said Lindsay.

The change from JIT to NITC benefits instructors because the training includes an extensive range of methods that support lifelong learning and continual development, according to CPPD Acting Director of Training Jean Kirchner. "Sustained training and education are essential processes for the continual improvement of an instructor's performance and his or her career development path," she said. "The additional week of training will enhance skill sets of an entry-level instructor to directly support the instructor certification process. As a result, this will provide more competent, qualified instructors, which will improve fleet readiness."


The majority of the Sailors who completed the NITC pilot were assigned to instructor duty, with two students who wanted to develop their instructional techniques and strategy skills, and enhance their public speaking capabilities.

NITC will be taught at CPPD Learning Sites Pensacola, Fla.; Dam Neck, Va.; Groton, Conn.; Kings Bay, Ga.; Newport, R.I.; Great Lakes, Ill.; San Diego; Bangor, Wash.; and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Instructor billets have been allocated at these sites to instruct approximately 4,500 personnel per year.

Student feedback from the NITC pilot was very positive. "One student said it was one of the best courses that he ever attended, and it helped him to overcome his fear of public speaking," said Colliver. "These instructional techniques and strategies will aid him for the rest of his career, and his personal life, too."

For more information about the Center for Personal and Professional Development, visit https://www.netc.navy.mil/centers/cppd/.

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For more news from Center for Personal and Professional Development, visit www.navy.mil/local/voledpao/.