DTMS Training

Introduction

During a recent poll of ten Training Specialists with the 6th CERFP, it was determined none have completed formal training on the Digital Training Management System (DTMS) software. Poor record keeping has led some of the departments to be in noncompliance with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) guidelines. The regional office offers a five day training program throughout the year. Due to the departments’ current locations and recent budgetary constraints, the Training Specialists are unable to travel to the nearest regional office for training. The software is designed to track all individual training requirements such as Hazardous Material Awareness (HAZMAT), Hazardous Material Operations, Incident Command System (ICS) courses and other FEMA mandated trainings. This Instructional Unit (IU) will facilitate the Training Specialists with comprehension of the resourcefulness of DTMS and the ability to fulfill the Deputy Director’s objective to streamline all reports.

Learning Environment

Content Resources: The content will be delivered through the use of an online course and each Training Specialist will have to download a copy of the v7 DTMS User Manual.

Technology Resources: All ten Training Specialists will utilize their assigned laptop using a secured line. Each person will ensure they have their own log in credentials and supporting browser.

Instructional Facilities: The Training Specialists can work from their workstation or work as a group in a designated conference room. Each department will provide a Wi-Fi hotspot as a backup.

Human Resources: Personnel in Kingsville, Laredo and Round Rock will block off at least one hour per week from their work schedule to work on the IU. The Master Trainer will be available to answer any questions through the use of email.

Intended Audience

Primary Student Group: Ten seasoned Training Specialists from three different departments of the 6th CERFP.

General Characteristics: Four have Search and Extraction backgrounds, three have advanced HAZMAT operations training, two oversee the three departments and one was recently reassigned from the Civil Support Team. One is a female while the rest are males. 75% are Hispanic and are bilingual. Only two are college graduates. One has a Criminal Justice degree while the other has a History degree with teaching experience. The age range is 26 to 42.

Number of students: The training is intended for ten personnel.

Location of Students: Three personnel are located in Laredo, three in Kingsville and four in Round Rock.

Experience Level: All ten Training Specialists have military experience and have been in their current position for more than one year. Nine were part of the 2014 Exercise Evaluation (ExEval) which took place in Oklahoma. They all use DTMS on a regular basis to submit monthly department training reports.

Attitudes: The personnel are energetic and willing to learn. Most of their DTMS knowledge is based through the on-the-job-training concept. They are looking for a better approach to streamline all reports as the organization is preparing for the 2016 ExEval. Since they know the training requirements have to be properly recorded, they look forward in understanding every function of DTMS.

Skills and Impact Potential to Succeed in the Learning Environment: Each person should have a basic understanding of the required training requirements by FEMA. All Training Specialists have the basic computer skills to attend online training.

Overarching Instructional Goal

Upon completion of this training module, all ten Training Specialist with the 6th CERFP will be able to illustrate full comprehension of DTMS and the capacity to employ each functional key by:

  • Summarizing the capabilities of DTMS reports.
  • Identifying where the forum is located for challenging questions.
  • Creating long and short range calendar goals.
  • Indicating what training requirements are not in DTMS.

Explanation of the Goal to Select Audience Members

I called five of the ten Training Specialists and explained the purpose of the IU. The other five were not available. For those that I spoke with, they welcome the additional training to understand how to navigate DTMS. One pointed out there is a PowerPoint Presentation but it only details the general information of DTMS. One has to download over 300 pages for step by step instructions which can be frustrating when dealing with report deadlines. The IU would provide a quick tutorial on the functionality of DTMS.

Summary

            DTMS was designed to assist organizations in tracking all training requirements. Prior to attending the 2014 ExEval, each department had their reporting format and was hesitate to utilize the one provided by the regional office. Excel spreadsheets are being used to keep track of all training requirements and are constantly sent through email. The intent of the IU is to show the Training Specialist how to navigate DTMS and to streamline all training reports.