National Park Service
Servicewide Training and Development Program
COMPETENCY-BASED TRAINING
In 1995, the National Park Service approved and adopted the NPS Employee Training and Development Strategy. The Strategy’s mission statement is: The National Park Service is committed to the professional growth and continuous learning of all its employees, and will provide them with a comprehensive, mission-focused training and development program. The Strategy also identifies six goals that identify ways to accomplish the mission statement. Two of the goals articulate ways to develop and implement competency-based training:
What is a Competency?
The NPS Employee Training and Development Career Planning and Tracking Kit (1996) provides the following definitions:
Since 1995, essential competencies for over 225 occupational groups in 17 career fields have been identified at the entry, developmental, and full performance levels. Training Manager positions have been established to represent each major career field and have the responsibility for developing and implementing Servicewide training and development programs. The Tracking Kit includes the essential competencies for employees in each career field. It can be accessed at "The Learning Place" web site under the Park Net Home Page at: www:nps.gov/training/npsonly/npsescom.htm.
What is Competency Based-Training?
The Strategy enhanced the NPS Training and Development Program by focusing on competency-based training rather than just the traditional approach of identifying a training need and then attending a training program based on incomplete instructional objectives.
Competency-based training answers all three components of good instructional objectives:
The strengths of competency-based training are that it is:
This goal of this approach is to provide both employees and supervisors with the tools needed to tailor the personal development of each NPS employee, and to focus on the outcome of achieving the competencies. It facilitates the achievement of competencies in several ways, including life experience, formal education, apprenticeship, on-the-job experience, self-help, mentoring, and training courses, programs, and activities (including long-distance strategies such as CD-ROMs and Internet-Based Training).
For additional information, contact:
Tony Knapp, Training Manager