Scenario Based Training – Training in the real world

Learning a technique or skill is one matter; employing and applying them to real situations is another. An important factor in helping trainees undergoing the Basic Officers’ Course (BOC) make the transition from acquiring a technique to its mastery is the use of simulated environments. For this reason, there is a need for suitable locations on which to carry out reality based tactical training for Prison Officers. To fulfill this need, the Prison Staff Training School (PSTS) faced the challenge of locating a venue that could simulate the physical structure of an actual prison, specifically, one that the officers were going to have to work in.

With the construction of Changi Prison Complex, scenario based tactical training in a simulated environment took a step towards becoming reality. Based on the actual construct, mock prison cells were built in Training Village @ Home Team Academy for the sole purpose of providing training officers with first hand experiences of crises, in a “real world setting”. The simulated prison setting allows tactical trainers to create the “volatile” scenarios that may occur in a riotous situation. Having the trainees role-play in a dynamic environment help them better apply and adapt their tactical knowledge in reaction to the different situations that may happen on the grounds.

The objective of scenario based tactical training is to allow prison officers to apply the tactical knowledge they have acquired in a real world setting. The more skills a prison officer can utilize and execute effectively during the simulation, the greater the likelihood of him or her successfully resolving a crisis in reality.

With video recording facilities and Housing Control Center (HCC) capabilities on the cards, we are poised to further improve the training delivery by leveraging on technology. Experiential training in Training Village will effect a paradigm shift in our mindsets, from classroom-based to scenario-based training. Welcome to the real world!