The efficacy of an andragogical instructional methodology in basic police training and education.

摘要

The principle mission of policing in the United States, unchanged since its inception, serves to\udmaintain social order and control. As society continues to grow, mature, and evolve, so too\udhas the complexity of fulfilling this mission. Because today’s sophisticated, fast-paced, and\udever-changing society continues to experience unprecedented social, cultural, legal, political,\udeconomic, and technological changes, the expectations of its police have grown exponentially.\udWith recruitment, the training of new police officers has broad implications for their ability to\udmeet new and changing duties and responsibilities.\udWhile a traditional, pedagogical, military model of training may have at one time served the\udneeds and interests of police and society, its applicability and efficacy has been called into\udquestion. It is theorized that an andragogical (adult based) instructional methodology will\udserve as a more effective means for training police recruits.\udAndragogy, rooted in the belief that adults learn differently than children, bases its practices\udon the needs, interests, readiness, orientation, experience, and motivation of the adult learner.\udConsidering these needs, andragogy focuses on facilitating a holistic, integrative, and\udcollaborative approach to learning that places a strong emphasis on experiential learning.\udWhile anecdotal data suggests that andragogy yields greater outcomes in learning and\udcompetencies when compared to a traditional, pedagogical, military model, the absence of\udempirical data served as an impetus to this study which revealed that an andragogical\udinstructional methodology was more effective.