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Home: Miles Hamby, Ph.D. Dissertation
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Learning and Teaching Styles of Airline Pilots A
research project conducted for a doctoral dissertation at the University of
Maryland by Miles
M. Hamby, Ph.D., 2001 Executive
Summary Introduction. Pilots
and instructors from a prominent regional airline were the subjects of
research into the effect learning styles and teaching styles have on the
satisfaction of pilots and instructors with airline training programs. The
training programs under consideration were Crew Resource Management (CRM),
Company Indoctrination Training (INDOC), Aircraft Systems Ground School
(SYSTEMS), and Flight Simulator (SIM).
Click here to view my full dissertation Learning
and Teaching Styles of Airline Pilots. |
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Problem Statement. A major problem
facing regional airlines today is retention of qualified pilots.
Surprisingly, studies have shown that pay is not the primary reason for
retention or separation. As training is a significant part of an airline
pilot’s employment, satisfaction with the training experience could be
significant in a pilot’s decision to remain with a particular company or seek
employment elsewhere. Hypothesis. The
hypothesis of this research was that deference to a pilot-trainee’s learning
style while engaged in training would provide a more satisfying training
experience. The effect of increased satisfaction would hopefully improve
retention, though this hypothesis was not directly addressed in this
research. Learning Style and
Teaching Style Theory. There are
many theories of how adults learn and teach. In education research, a current
focus seems to be David Kolb’s theory. Kolb developed four learning styles
based on his theorized cycle of learning – Diverger,
Assimilator, Converger, Accommodator. Kolb also
developed a Learning Style Inventory (LSI) instrument to identify an
individual’s learning style, according to his theory. Two other education
researchers, Wheeler and Marshall, theorized that if individuals prefer to
learn in a certain style, then it stands to reason that there must be a
certain style of teaching that best teaches to that respective learning
style. Wheeler and Marshall then developed the Trainer Type Inventory (TTI)
to identify four trainer types congruent with Kolb’s four learning styles –
Listener, Director, Interpreter, Coach, respectively. The TTI was used in two
ways: to identify an instructor’s preferred teaching style, and to identify
how the trainee perceived the delivery of the instruction he/she received. Neither the LSI or TTI have been applied to airline
pilots. Satisfaction with
Training. The independent variable in this research (that is,
the object being affected by learning and teaching style) was a pilot’s
satisfaction with training. This was measured by an instrument created by the
researcher which simply asked the pilot-trainee to circle his/her level of
satisfaction with each of the four training programs. Satisfaction levels
were rated as Very Satisfying – Satisfying – Neutral – Unsatisfying – Very
Dissatisfying. Methodology. Two surveys
were composed: one for the pilot-trainees and one for the instructors. The
pilot-trainee survey, called the 2000 Aviation Training Survey (ATS), was
designed to identify the trainee’s learning style (using Kolb’s LSI),
identify his/her perception of instructional delivery in each of the four
training programs, identify certain demographic data (including age, gender,
and flying hours), and to identify his/her level of satisfaction with each of
the training programs. The instructor survey was designed to identify the
instructor’s teaching style (using Wheeler’s and Marshall’s TTI), the
instructor’s learning style (using Kolb’s LSI), certain demographic data, and
the instructor’s level of satisfaction with each of the programs as an
instructor. All survey responses were voluntary and anonymous. Of 1,200
pilot-trainee surveys sent out, 250 were completed and returned. Of 50
instructor surveys sent out, 26 were completed and returned. Results and
Interpretations. Following is a
condensed summary of the key results and how they might be interpreted. 1.
Kolb’s Learning Style had no effect on a trainee’s
satisfaction with the training experience. That is, a trainee’s
exhibited level of satisfaction is independent of his/her learning style as
identified by Kolb’s LSI. 2.
Wheeler’s and Marshall’s Trainer
Type had no effect on an instructor’s satisfaction as an instructor. 3.
Demographics had no effect on satisfaction with training
for pilot-trainee’s or instructors. That is, a trainee’s level of
satisfaction was independent of his/her age, gender, educational level, or
flying hours. 4.
Perceived style of instructional delivery had significant,
universal effects on trainee satisfaction. Specifically, the
descriptors ‘Immediate Feedback’, ‘Got Us Involved’, and 'Active Participation’
significantly increased the score of satisfaction and the descriptors ‘Little
Involvement’, ‘Personal Judgment’, and ‘Mostly Symbols’ decreased the level
of satisfaction. 5.
There was no correlation between
the satisfaction an instructor had taking any of the four programs as a
trainee and his/her satisfaction in teaching that program. 6.
There was no correlation between an instructor’s learning
style and his/her teaching style (that is, between the LSI and TTI). That is,
the way an instructor prefers to teach is not necessarily the way he/she
prefers to learn. 7.
Instructors tended to prefer
teaching SIM significantly more than teaching CRM, INDOC, or SYSTEMS. Conclusions. Significance of the Instructor in the
Training. A current trend in
airline pilot training is to replace the stand-up instructor with
computer-based training. The results of this study demonstrate a significant
contribution to satisfaction of the personal contact between the student and
instructor. Removing this contact could appreciably diminish that
satisfaction and possibly have repercussions on learning effectiveness as
well. Benefit to the Regional
Airlines. This study has demonstrated a definite link between
instructional delivery and a pilot-trainee's satisfaction with the training.
Although none of the four teaching styles, as described by Wheeler and
Marshall, appears to have an effect when taken as a whole, there are certain
descriptors of teaching behaviors within each description that appear to have
a universal effect upon satisfaction. Regardless of the trainer type, when
teaching, instructor deference to these universal descriptors, such as
'Active Participation', 'Immediate Feedback', and 'Got Us Involved', would
probably result in a more satisfying experience for the pilot-trainee and
ultimately lead to improved retention of not only the pilot, but also the
instructor. This is especially significant for contract training companies
whose product is solely the training of airline pilots (as opposed to airline
companies whose product is the transportation of passengers and cargo) and
whose customer base is dependent upon the satisfaction of the contracting
airline company. If a number of pilots from the customer company complain
about an unsatisfying experience with the training they received, then the
customer company will seek its training elsewhere. Therefore, airline
companies and contract training companies should emphasize these universal
teaching behaviors, their effects, and their application in formal instructor
training programs. -- If you would like a copy of the full
dissertation or have questions regarding my data, please email me at the
address above left. -- ~ fin. |
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