Suitable For

The course module is aimed at Service personnel/MOD civilians who conduct External Evaluation, in particular individuals employed in TRAs.

Course Aim

The Defence Systems Approach to Training (DSAT) Course Module 6 – External Evaluation is aimed at staff within a TRA (normally within an External Evaluation team) whose primary role is to devise an External Evaluation strategy, collect and analyse External Evaluation data, and present External Evaluation findings to determine how well training prepares people for their jobs.

Course Essentials

Entry Requirements

Applications should be made to DCTS Course Booking Cell. Courses are loaded 8 weeks prior to their start date. Applicants should pay particular attention to the section on course module justification and provide as much detail as possible to help DCTS staff determine their suitability for this module, or possibly other DSAT course modules. Line Managers/Candidate Sponsors are to confirm that candidates will complete the stipulated readings and learning activities prior to attending a particular workshop. Failure to do this will result in an application being rejected. Candidates who do not complete the reading and learning activities upon arrival at DCTS may be removed from the workshop.

• College: Defence Academy
• Category: Professional Development
• Duration Details: 3 days.
• Location: RAF Halton
• Delivery Method: Classroom
• Course Contact Details: Tel: 01296 656376 and Mil: 95237 6376

Course Objectives

The course module will help prepare staff to:

• Measure changes in the behaviour of individuals as a result of a training activity.
• Measure how well the enhancement of knowledge/skills/attitudes has prepared individuals for their role.
• Measure the contribution of training to the achievement of operational and/or business goals (e.g. post project evaluation in a major equipment acquisition project).
• Develop an External Evaluation strategy that describes when and how to collect data.
• Develop External Evaluation data collection instruments that are valid and reliable.
• Collect External Evaluation data from a variety of sources, such as course documentation, graduates of the training programme, line managers/supervisors of graduates, minutes of meetings, visit reports, unsolicited feedback etc. using observations, questionnaires and interviews.
• Analyse qualitative and quantitative External Evaluation data.
• Present External Evaluation findings to determine the subsequent impact on performance after a training activity (and therefore the validity of the training in preparing individuals for their role).
• Document in an auditable way analyses, decisions and recommendations (normally in an External Evaluation Report).

Course Components

Part 1 Workshop Preparation:  prior to attending the Residential Workshop, candidates must complete the following readings and learning activities, which cover DSAT and External Evaluation activities/deliverables (estimated time to complete will vary from candidate to candidate depending upon individual levels of experience and learning styles, but on average should take ~9 hours):

• JSP 822: Governance and Management of Defence Individual Training, Education and Skills:
  • DSAT QS (~2 hours)
  • Part 5, Chapters:
  • 2 – DTSM 2: Needs Analysis (~2 hours)
  • 8 – DTSM 8: Evaluation of Training (section on External Evaluation only) (~2 hours)
  • 10 – DTSM 10: Data Gathering and Analysis (~2 hours)
• DSAT Course Module 1 – DSAT – MOD Systems Approach to Training (hosted on the DLP), Code DSAT-02 (~3 hours).

Part 2 Workplace Training: this will cover Single Service and local procedures and processes and will be managed locally before and after Part 3. Additional CPD may include training in Data Gathering, Statistical Analyses, etc. In addition, ongoing support of the material covered during the Residential Workshop will be provided by DCTS through the maintenance of an External Evaluation on-line resource.
Part 3 Residential Workshop: the 2.5 day Workshop, which runs at DCTS, provides additional underpinning knowledge and practice in the core skills required to conduct all aspects of the External Evaluation function of DSAT.

Further Information

NOTE:  Candidates who have previously attended the External Evaluation (ExVal) Course No. 3009 or Validating Training Requirement Course No. 7002 need not attend this course module.

Last updated: 13 May 2013