Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2007

City

Dayton

Abstract

The research literature documents distinct differences in teaching skills among instructors in a variety of fields. Some seem to be naturally skilled, whereas others seem to face more challenges in the instructional setting. Although several investigators have addressed a variety of questions concerning flight instructor training, more research is needed to elucidate the instructional competencies associated with successful instruction in this critical field. The proposed poster will present the preliminary results of an observational study designed to identify flight instructor competencies and patterns of instructional behavior. A preliminary set of essential instructor skills was developed based on instructor competencies as defined by the International Board of Standards for Training, Performance and Instruction (Klein, Spector, Grabowski, & de la Teja, 2004). Behaviors specific to flight instruction were then identified. During the Fall semester of 2006, 17 Certified Flight Instructor students were videotaped as they were instructing other students on a flight simulator. The researchers coded the student instructor behaviors using a data collection software product, Noldus Observer. Initial analyses revealed several distinct patterns in flight instructor behaviors. The poster will present the behavioral patterns observed in this study. The ways in which these data may be used to develop further studies to investigate methods of enhancing instructor performance will also be discussed.

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