Evaluating the Effectiveness of Blended Learning Strategies in Navy Training

NPS NRP Project PosterThe Navy needs better ways to train, educate, and assess higher-order cognitive skills, applied proficiencies, and teamwork abilities. Currently, the Navy's approaches to Instructional System Design (ISD) do not adequately address the development of personalization and adaptive training techniques integrated into the future learning continuum concept required by Ready Relevant Learning (RRL). Adopting a blended training environment approach, which combines a plethora of learning approaches empowered by the modern technology solutions, web-based delivery, and traditional classroom methods, could offer a balanced solution to developing modernized, efficient, effective, and adaptable training delivery systems with integrated ability to assess training quality and impact on Fleet readiness and on-the-job performance. This study will evaluate the effectiveness of blended training environments against traditional training methods currently used in Navy rating training. The evaluation will use the existing classroom-based curriculum and learning materials in carefully designed reconfigurations that mix web-based interactive content and in-class activities, coupled with an online student evaluation system. Based on the findings, we will present a roadmap on how to implement, adopt and integrate the most efficient training solution that supports the CNO directed acceleration of RRL and provides lessons learned across all Navy formal accession training.N1 - Manpower, Personnel, Training & EducationThis research is supported by funding from the Naval Postgraduate School, Naval Research Program (PE 0605853N/2098). https://nps.edu/nrpChief of Naval Operations (CNO)Approved for public release. Distribution is unlimited.