Online academy
Academy adopts Google Classrooms for 32 recruits to learn the basics of being a police officer
Recruits in the New Britain police academy are up every morning to attend 7 a.m. roll call, then a full day of classes ending with a round of grueling physical training in the late afternoon. But they never see an instructor face to face. Like public schools across the country, the academy has stopped in-person classes and switched to online education.
Recruits in the New Britain police academy are up every morning to attend 7 a.m. roll call, then a full day of classes ending with a rounds of grueling physical training in the late afternoon.
But they never see an instructor face to face.
Like public schools across the country, the academy has stopped in-person classes and switched to online education. Instructors are teaching Constitutional law, report writing, juvenile law and dozens of similar topics through Google Classrooms; the 32 recruits attend remotely from their homes.
“The video conference system has worked out pretty well. Everyone has the same access to the instructors, there’s a chat bar where they can log questions. And here, we can watch them all on a grid,” Sgt. David Mann said.
Classes began this week, and instructors have been busily adjusting their presentations to succeed in a distance learning environment. The plan is to focus on academic topics in the first months, then transition in late summer to the hands-on skills such as shooting, emergency driving, self defense and interview techniques.
“We’re front loading the schedule with what we can teach online, and placing anything with physical interaction toward the end,” Mann said. “We’re hoping by then the precautions are lifted and we can be getting them in here.”
Police trainers across the nation are trying to maintain a similar balance: Teaching as much as possible remotely, while making arrangements as safe as possible for the training that must be face to face.
Even ceremonies have be changed to meeting distancing rules; the Massachusetts state police used Gillette Stadium for commencement earlier this month. All 240 new troopers wore masks and stood 6 feet apart; relatives watched online because no spectators were allowed.
Academies in Maine, Massachusetts, West Virginia and elsewhere went to all-online education after the coronavirus restrictions hit in mid-March. Most are looking to do very small-group lessons with extra precautions when they reach the hands-on topics.
At the Connecticut Police Officer Standards and Training Council in Meriden, the plan is to do any such in-person training with only a handful of students at a time. Instructors and cadets will have personal protective equipment and maintain distancing, Administrator Karen Boisvert said.
The New Britain academy is planning virtual lessons about two months ahead, and will adjust its schedule depending on public health regulations and the status of the coronavirus.
This year’s class includes eight recruits for the city’s police force; the rest of the class that graduates will go to the West Hartford, East Hartford, South Windsor, Bristol, Torrington, Manchester, Wethersfield, Waterbury, Bloomfield departments as well as the state motor vehicle department’s police force.
Recruits must be in uniform when the check in at 7 a.m. on webcams.
“They stand at attention, we do an inspection of their uniform to be sure they’re dressing appropriately, they’re pressing their uniform and standing correctly,” Mann said. “We do PT at the end of the day — calisthenics and everything with body weight so they don’t need equipment.”
An instructor oversees their workout on an 82-inch monitor, which shows all 32 students at once. The instructor coach individuals who fall behind or need to adjust what they’re doing. Trainers keep close watch on the monitor.
“We pay attention very closely to where their eyes are going. But they know the rules they’ve all agreed to, and one of our main values is integrity,” Mann said. “We reinforce our expectations and the importance of being ethical.”
Recruits must download an app on their cellphones to map their daily training runs, and they submit a screenshot at the end. Quizzes and tests are done online.
Chief Christopher Chute said the training division was eager to take on the challenge of running an academy online. So far, Mann has been surprised at how well the academy is going, and praised the trainers who’ve had to adapt they styles on the fly.
“The drawback with this is the interaction, that personal touch, getting the feedback,” Mann said. “You definitely have to rely on non-verbal cues to make sure you have everyone’s attention.
“In the class on interrogation, there’s a time for role playing — that’s one part we’re trying to reserve for when we can get them here in person,” Mann said. “Stress management, human interpersonal behavior — those are the things you’d like to get done in person.”