Training Academy Research Articles

Examining Cadets’ Beliefs about Meditation Using the Reasoned Action Approach

Meditation has been shown to be a character and virtue formation tool due to its emotion regulation capabilities. Training academies can help their students better develop their character by enabling meditation behavior acquisition. This study examines United States Military cadets’ beliefs about meditation as a means of informing education and intervention programming to maximize the likelihood of cadets adopting the behavior. Implications and suggestions for character education programs are provided.

Upper body push to pull ratios in law enforcement officer recruits.

Law enforcement recruits (LER) often encounter shoulder injuries, which may cause attrition from academies. Investigating required upper body muscular fitness may inform of muscular balance around shoulder joints through anterior and posterior ratios in LER. To investigate push to pull ratios (P2P) and factors related with P2P in LER. LER (95 males; 12 females) completed testing during a single session in the academy's first week: body mass, one-repetition maximum (1RM) bench press, push-up repetitions (reps) to failure, and pull-up reps to failure. Calculations were: estimated pull-up 1RM=body mass+0.033*(body mass x pull-ups); endurance P2P (eP2P)=push-ups / pull-ups; strength P2P (sP2P)=bench press 1RM / estimated pull-up 1RM. Pearson correlation coefficients assessed relationships among tests and P2P (p < 0.05). The sP2P was positively correlated with bench press 1RM and push-ups. The eP2P was negatively associated with pull-up reps and 1RM. Females had similar eP2P, but lower sP2P than male recruits (p < 0.05). Practitioners may benefit from examining eP2P and sP2P as they should not be used interchangeably. Future research should examine whether the P2P ratios are associated with injury and subsequent inability to successfully complete law enforcement training academies.

Interdisciplinary training academy for integrated substance/opioid use disorder prevention and health care: A workforce catalyst report.

Addressing the opioid crisis requires attention to the fact that people with opioid use disorder are affected by multiple systems and professionals working across disciplines (e.g., primary health care, social work, psychology). Thus, we developed the Interdisciplinary Training Academy for Integrated Substance/Opioid Use Disorder Prevention and Health care (ITA). The purpose of the ITA is to connect multiple systems to aid in the development of practitioners who are broadly prepared to address the opioid crisis. Herein, we use preliminary descriptive methods to illustrate early outcomes related to 30 weeks of interprofessional training rotations across all system levels related to policy, prevention, treatment, integrated care, harm reduction and recovery support services. Overall, the ITA has assisted fellows in garnering 7,257 hr of training to become holistically competent behavioral health providers. Preliminary data indicate that most cohort graduates intend to pursue employment in a telehealth or primary care setting that serves medically underserved communities. In sum, we offer a new concept for remote field education that engages learners as curriculum developers, educators, and emerging practitioners with expertise across ecological systems. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Digital Financial Management Training for MSME in Cikarang

As an entrepreneur, MSME actors certainly need sales records that describing overall their business that they manage well and efficiently. Many businesses are having difficulties to grow up because of the problem of untidy records or even not being recorded at all. Digital financial management is one of the trainings for beginner digipreneurs in order to prepare tough entrepreneurs to increase their business income, manage finances and access funds by utilizing technology. Participants of the Digital Entrepreneurship Academy Training – Beginner Class will learn about managing business finances using applications, how to get capital to expand a business, market products digitally through integrated electronic transaction services that are devoted to improving the welfare of MSME actors on an ongoing basis through digital transaction services that can answer various administrative and financial problems in the MSME ecosystem. The training is carried out offline at a predetermined location from March – July 2022, divided into several waves, the waves are carried out for 2 days with a training duration of 13 JP. In this training, participants get 6 materials in theory and practice which have been prepared by Community Service Partners, BPPTIK RI.

Adherence to the police code of silence: examining changes in recruits' perceptions during the training academy

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the nature of the code of silence among police recruits in an effort to provide recommendations to reduce its occurrence and harm to society.Design/methodology/approachData analyses are performed on a multi-agency sample of 645 police recruits in the United States. Specifically, analyses are conducted on pre- and post-academy panel data to assess changes in recruits' perceptions of code adherence over time as they begin their immersion into the police culture.FindingsResults demonstrate that police recruits' willingness to report a fellow officer is reduced by the end of the academy and that several individual and organizational factors impact recruits' code adherence attitudes over time.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the policing literature by exploring changes in recruits' code adherence attitudes over time.

Relationship between training load and law enforcement recruit injuries during academy training

Introduction: Law enforcement is a profession interspersed with periods of high intensity, physically demanding occupational requirements such as chasing suspects. To prepare for this occupation, law enforcement agencies typically utilise training periods known as academies. These academies represent a sudden increase in physical training load, and mental stress. It is therefore unsurprising that these periods of training typically result in high rates of injury. The aim of this research was to assess the relationship between training load factors and injury risk in law enforcement recruits.

Do police academy fitness scores correlate to final academic scores in cadets; a pilot study

Introduction: To successfully complete academy training, law enforcement recruits must exhibit proficiency in both, levels of physical fitness and academic testing/cognitive abilities. Insight into the relationship between levels of physical fitness and academic testing could provide valuable information into the improvement of academy preparation and training. The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between physical fitness tests and academic scores for cadets currently in academy.

Profiling the Typical Training Load of a Law Enforcement Recruit Class.

Law enforcement academies, designed to prepare recruits for their prospective career, represent periods of high physical and mental stress, potentially contributing to recruits’ injuries. Managing stress via monitoring training loads may mitigate injuries while ensuring adequate preparation. However, it is vital to first understand an academy’s typical training load. The aim of this study was to profile the typical training load of law enforcement recruits over the course of 22 weeks. Data were prospectively collected using global positioning system (GPS) units placed on recruits during a portion of the academy training, while a desktop analysis was retrospectively applied to six other classes. A Bland–Altman plot was conducted to assess the agreement between the two methods. A linear mixed model was conducted to analyse the difference in distances covered per week, while other variables were presented graphically. Adequate agreement between the desktop analysis and GPS units was observed. Significant differences (p-value < 0.01) in distance covered (9.64 to 11.65 km) exist between weeks during early academy stages, which coincide with increases (~6 h) in physical training. Significant decreases in distances were experienced during the last five weeks of academy training. Most acute:chronic workload ratios stayed between the proposed 0.8 to 1.3 optimal range. Results from this study indicate that large increases in training occur early in the academy, potentially influencing injuries. Utilizing a desktop analysis is a pragmatic and reliable approach for instructors to measure load.

The Role of Legal Education for the Performance of Police Interventions at the Academy of the Police Force in Bratislava

This paper studies the law-related learning process at a state university and emphasises its peculiarities and special status. Certain law subjects offered at the Academy of the Police Force in Bratislava (Slovakia) are presented and the importance of legal education concerning the performance of the police service is stressed. The authors offer a brief overview of the assigned study fields and programs and list the law subjects that have a special place in the Police Academy training system. They share their practical knowledge and experience obtained while teaching selected law subjects. The paper has been developed within a national research project and the attention is given to selected attributes of the learning process — the police law — as its knowledge is crucial for the performance of police interventions. The paper underlines the legitimacy of obtaining law-related knowledge, which the Police Academy graduates will need in their future police career.

Analysis of a State Police Academy Menu Cycle for Dietary Quality and Performance Nutrition Adequacy.

Law enforcement officers have high rates of overweight and obesity. With diet as a leading risk factor, training academies present an opportunity for early-career nutrition intervention. Our purpose was to determine the dietary quality (DQ) and performance nutrition adequacy of a state police academy’s cafeteria menu. This cross-sectional content analysis included six weeks (three daily meals, Monday–Friday) of a police academy menu. Nutrient content was determined by portioning menus, gathering food specifications, and performing nutrient analysis. DQ was assessed using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI) 2015. Statistical analyses included independent t-tests and Cohen’s d. The total HEI score was 54/100. Subcomponent scores indicating adequacy included added sugar (5/5), total protein (4.97/5) and whole fruits (4.77/5). Seafood/plant proteins (0.33/5), fatty acid ratio (1.31/5), and dairy scores (1.59/10) needed significant improvement. The menu met the recommended intake for 13 of 19 nutrients investigated. Nutrients that did not meet adequacy were calories (% mean difference, needs-menu = 36.7%), carbohydrates (52.3%), vitamins D (82.5%) and E (66.7%), magnesium (44.1%), and potassium (41.8%). The academy menu leaves room for improvement in DQ and shortfall nutrients. By increasing low scores, the overall DQ of the menu will increase and supplement missing nutrients.

English linguistic knowledge of police trainees in SAPS training academies

This article reports on the findings of a study about South African Police Services (SAPS) training with specific reference to English linguistic knowledge of police trainees. English linguistic training in (SAPS) training academies have become central to both training and teaching and learning. Despite several benefits identified in literature regarding adequate English linguistic knowledge, the training in SAPS leaves much to be desired. Therefore, the impetus of this paper is to make a case to challenge the tacit and poignant factors affecting effective SAPS training program with specific reference to English linguistic competence. The researcher makes a case that the training program in its current state is faced with many challenges and intricacies that hampers it from achieving one of its goals which is to produce police officers with adequate workplace English linguistic competency. A mixed research approach was adopted to investigate the phenomena. The research instruments were a locally designed questionnaire complimented by in-depth interviews with a selected sample and extensive literature review of scholarly literature on the matter. Needs Analysis theory was adopted as the pillar in this study. Among the findings was the lack of expertise in teaching English writing by police instructors. The study also found that SAPS Language policy is �completely� silent as far as pedagogy is concerned in SAPS training academies. The study also found the other a systemic problem called �placement conundrum�. Furthermore, the study also found that ineffective English writing screening measures for police recruits contributes to the problem. In addition, the other unsurprising was the over dominance of physical training over academic teaching in the training colleges. This study underscores the crucial aspect of reflective research as a source of information for improving training in SAPS training academies.�

Are soccer players born later in the year more technically skilled than those born earlier in the year

In many youth sports, selection into elite training academies is dominated by athletes born earlier in the year. Previous research suggests this is partly due to these athletes being more physically developed than their younger peers. How athletes born later in the year survive in elite academies is less understood. Here, we tested the hypothesis that players born later in the year are more technically skilled than their peers born earlier in the same year. Using 150 youth players (10–19 years of age) from an elite Brazilian soccer academy, we measured each player's date of birth, height, and mass; sprinting ability; dribbling ability; and kicking accuracy and speed. We found most players in this academy were born in the first half of the year, and those born earlier in the year (relatively older) tended to be taller and heavier than those born later in the same year (relatively younger). In addition, relatively older players were faster when sprinting and dribbling the ball in a straight line. Conversely, relatively younger players were more accurate when passing the ball with their nondominant foot, providing some evidence these players were more technically skilled than their older peers of the same age. We suggest skill tests with youth players need to consider relative age and physical size in order to best assess a player's potential.

Profiling the injuries of law enforcement recruits during academy training: a retrospective cohort study

BackgroundInjuries within law enforcement are a significant issue as they increase organisational costs and workforce strain. As one of the biggest risk factors of future injury is previous injury, minimising injuries suffered during academy has multiple beneficial and long-term effects, including a healthier and fitter police force. The purpose of this study was to profile the injuries sustained at a law enforcement academy to inform future injury mitigation strategies.MethodsInjury data were provided retrospectively (from May 2012 to September 2019) from the official insurance records of a law enforcement academy and included nature, location, and activity performed at time of injury. A total of 4340 (3288 males, 938 females, 114 sex not stated) recruits participated in academy training during this period. Inclusion criteria for the data were (a) injury record related to a recruit, and (b) the recruit was injured during academy training., with injury defined as tissue damage caused by acute or repetitive trauma, inclusive of musculoskeletal, neural, and/or integumentary systems but excluding general medical conditions such as cardiac (e.g. heart attacks) or respiratory (asthma) that was subsequently reported for worker’s compensation. Injury incidence rates and proportions were calculated and a Spearman’s correlation analysis was conducted between injury rates over successive classes.ResultsAn injury incidence rate of 368.63 injuries per 1000 recruits per year was calculated in this population, with a moderate correlation coefficient (rs = 0.60) of increasing injury rates over chronologically occurring classes. Females also had higher injury rates than male recruits, even across various fitness levels. Trauma to joints and ligaments (49.30%) was the most common injury, and the knee the most common location (23.17%) of injury. Physical training (56.10%) was the most common activity being performed at the time of injury.ConclusionsThis research demonstrates a large number of lower limb, musculoskeletal injuries that often occur during physical training. Further research is needed to assess suitable injury mitigation programs.

Breaking the Code of Silence: The Importance of Control Systems and Empathy Toward Outgroups

This study used data from 654 new officers attending several training academies in the United States to examine changes in recruits’ attitudes toward the code of silence. The results of multivariate multilevel growth models showed that recruits’ experiences at the academies strengthened their adherence to the code. The results also showed that shifts in officers’ attitudes about the community, seriousness of the misconduct, expected discipline, and familiarity with agency policies were directly associated with changes in their adherence to the code, but changes in job satisfaction and perceptions of organizational justice were not. Female officers exhibited less adherence to the code in incidents of physical violence compared with male officers. The results confirm the need for reform in police training. Specifically, academy leaders should ensure that instructors and training materials present positive images of the community as well as strengthen social control systems which reinforce the importance of reporting coworker’s misconduct.

AI-Based Situation Awareness Assessment

Navigational Safety in maritime operations is a high priority issue. In a recent collaboration between IHPC and SP, an AI-based Behaviour Competency Assessment Tool prototype was developed to aid instructors in assessing soft-skill competencies of watchkeepers conducting navigation, and a proof-of-concept demonstration was performed for Situational Awareness at SP’s Singapore Maritime Academy (SMA) training simulator. Use of our tool can help remove human bias by providing detailed behaviour-specific analysis to aid instructors in making their assessments.

Developing the Visual Art Lesson Attitude Scale Towards School Stakeholders

Bu çalışmanın amacı, Kıbrıs’ın kuzeyinde bulunan ilkokulların ders programında yer alan Görsel Sanatlar Dersi ile ilgili okul paydaşlarının tutumlarını belirlemek adına ölçek geliştirmektir. Söz konusu amaca yönelik sanat eğitimi ile ilgili alan yazın taranmasının yanı sıra, araştırma kapsamında olmayan 10 okul paydaşıyla yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme yapılarak görsel sanatlar dersine yönelik 5’li Likert tipinde 9 maddeden oluşan, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) katsayısının 0.931, Cronbach's Alpha değerinin ise .957 olarak bulunduğu geçerli ve güvenilir bir Görsel Sanatlar Dersi Tutum Ölçeği geliştirilmiştir. Araştırmanın nitel boyutundaki çalışma grubunda, 2019-2020 akademik yılında ilkokullarda görev yapan 10 okul paydaşı yer almaktadır. Araştırmanın 326 kişiden oluşan nicel örneklemini ise ilkokullarda görev yapan öğretmen, yönetici, denetmen ve Atatürk Öğretmen Akademisi’nde öğrenim gören aday öğretmenler oluşturmaktadır.

DEVELOPMENT OF LAW ENFORCERS’ COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN ТHE USA

Based on the study of the experience of training law enforcement officers in the United States, there has been stressed in the article on the need to improve the police training considering development of communicative and interpersonal skills. These skills as well as creative thinking, problem-solving and decision-making skills are among the most needed for the professional efficiency of every law enforcement officer. The author considers that a new law enforcement agency serving the social needs and protecting the rights of citizens requires modern approaches to the police training. So, as the community-oriented policing is an important aspect of law enforcement work, police training academies should train their officers to interact effectively with public. Coming from the USA research outcomes, the core interpersonal competencies for law enforcement officers are identified as following: ability to use good judgment and to problem solve; capacity for empathy and compassion; capacity for multi-tasking; ability to demonstrate courage and to take responsibility; ability to be resourceful and show initiative; demonstrating assertiveness; possess and demonstrate integrity; capacity for engaging in teamwork and ability to collaborate. The contemporary methodologies like problem-based learning, communications-based instructions, and practical scenario training providing development of law enforcers’ communicative and interpersonal skills are analyzed in the article. Within training programs these methods integrate many of the educational results such as: thinking critically with the ability to analyze complex problems; locate, assess, and utilize significant educational resources; display outstanding skills related to written and oral communications; and develop into life-long learners by using their intellectual and content knowledge. The author says that the experience of the USA police training according to the mentioned sphere can be crucially useful for the police reform process in Ukraine.&#x0D; Кеу words: communication skills; interpersonal skills; law enforcers; police training; the USA.

Real World Feedback: How Well Did the Virtual Training Academy Prepare California's COVID-19 Contact Tracing Workforce?

To effectively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, California had to quickly mobilize a substantial number of case investigators (CIs) and contact tracers (CTs). This workforce was comprised primarily of redirected civil servants with diverse educational and professional backgrounds. The purpose of this evaluation was to understand whether the weeklong, remote course developed to train California's CI/CT workforce (i.e., Virtual Training Academy) adequately prepared trainees for deployment. From May 2020 to February 2021, 8,141 individuals completed the training. A survey administered ~3 weeks post-course assessed two measures of overall preparedness: self-perceived interviewing proficiency and self-perceived job preparedness. Bivariate analyses were used to examine differences in preparedness scores by education level, career background, and whether trainees volunteered to join the COVID-19 workforce or were assigned by their employers. There were no significant differences in preparedness by education level. Compared to trainees from non-public health backgrounds, those from public health fields had higher self-perceived interviewing proficiency (25.1 vs. 23.3, p < 0.001) and job preparedness (25.7 vs. 24.0, p < 0.01). Compared to those who were assigned, those who volunteered to join the workforce had lower self-perceived job preparedness (23.8 vs. 24.9, p = 0.02). While there were some statistically significant differences by trainee characteristics, the practical significance was small (<2-point differences on 30-point composite scores), and it was notable that there were no differences by education level. Overall, this evaluation suggests that individuals without bachelor's degrees or health backgrounds can be rapidly trained and deployed to provide critical disease investigation capacity during public health emergencies.

Effects of a healthy lifestyle intervention and COVID-19-adjusted training curriculum on firefighter recruits

There are knowledge gaps regarding healthy lifestyle (HLS) interventions in fire academy settings and also concerning the impacts of the pandemic on training. We enrolled fire recruits from two fire academies (A and B) in New England in early 2019 as the historical control group, and recruits from academies in New England (B) and Florida (C), respectively, during the pandemic as the intervention group. The three academies have similar training environments and curricula. The exposures of interest were a combination of (1) an HLS intervention and (2) impacts of the pandemic on training curricula and environs (i.e. social distancing, masking, reduced class size, etc.). We examined the health/fitness changes throughout training. The follow-up rate was 78%, leaving 92 recruits in the historical control group and 55 in the intervention group. The results show an HLS intervention improved the effects of fire academy training on recruits healthy behaviors (MEDI-lifestyle score, 0.5 ± 1.4 vs. − 0.3 ± 1.7), systolic blood pressure (− 7.2 ± 10.0 vs. 2.9 ± 12.9 mmHg), and mental health (Beck Depression score, − 0.45 ± 1.14 vs. − 0.01 ± 1.05) (all P < 0.05). The associations remained significant after multivariable adjustments. Moreover, a 1-point MEDI-lifestyle increment during academy training is associated with about 2% decrement in blood pressures over time, after multivariable adjustments (P < 0.05). Nonetheless, the impacts of pandemic restrictions on academy procedures compromised physical fitness training, namely in percent body fat, push-ups, and pull-ups.

How much training do English male academy players really do? Load inside and outside of a football academy

To date, no studies have investigated the loads undertaken by elite youth footballers outside of their academy commitments. This study aimed to understand the load of English male academy football players' activity both inside and outside of the academy, as well as, how this load varies between age groups and days. Fifty-two male academy footballers were asked to record the duration, intensity and mode of moderate to vigorous physical activity undertaken outside of their academy training. These data were then combined with session Rating of Perceived Exertion load undertaken inside the academy over the corresponding period. Data were analysed using linear mixed models. The coefficient of variation (CV) was the between-subject standard deviation as a percentage of the mean. The variation of activity types players undertake outside the academy reduced with age. There was no significant difference in the ‘outside of academy’ load between age groups, but there was a significantly greater CV in the Under 15/16 (U15/16) group (CV = 164%) compared to the U12 (CV = 107%) and U13/14 (CV = 119%) age groups ( P = 0.001). For the U12 group, there were no significant between-day differences in load outside of the academy or the combined (inside and outside) load. For the U13/14 and U15/16 groups, there were significant between-day differences in load outside of the academy, as well as, significant between-day differences in the combined load. Practitioners should consider how activities undertaken by players outside of the academy setting contribute to the weekly load periodisation and should modify their training schedules accordingly.