FTO Basic

28 CEUs (Minnesota POST)
3-day course

Our San Jose-based Field Training Officer Basic course prepares newly appointed FTOs for the important and challenging role they have in shaping the future of today’s modern law enforcement agencies.

This course develops FTOs to be the best trainers possible. It focuses on how to teach, how to coach, how to address training problems, and how to evaluate performance. Upon completion of the three-day classroom portion of this course, participants will return to their agencies for an orientation to the field-training program used by their agency. Your FTO coordinator, using our guide, will instruct the participants in the format, forms, timeline, capabilities and limitations of your particular program.

No matter what field-training program your agency uses, this course will meet your FTO-developmental needs.

View current course schedule.

COURSE CONTENT

  • Field training philosophy
  • The role of the Field Training Officer
  • Communication skills
  • DISC personality profile
  • Adult learning
  • Learning preferences
  • Generational differences
  • How to create training opportunities
  • Performance documentation
  • Performance appraisal
  • Evaluation exercises

DAY ONE focuses on how to teach, including the Department of Justice FTO program recommendations such as learning preferences, generational differences, and the importance of personality in reading and communication.

Day One Agenda

  • Introduction and course overview
  • FTO program overview — Phase training, DOR, Program issues
  • Role of the FTO
  • Organizational skill set assessment
  • Adult learning
  • Problem- and scenario-based learning
  • Learning preferences

DAY TWO focuses on coaching and communication, including role plays confronting performance issues and performance improvement, and the impact of personality on communication and evaluation.

Day Two Agenda

  • Review of Day One
  • Performance scenario #1
  • Coaching
  • Performance Improvement Plan (PIP)
  • Performance scenario #2 — PIP writing and presentation
  • DISC Personality Inventory
  • Performance scenario #3 — PIP writing and presentation

DAY THREE focuses on evaluation, which includes evaluation exercises in which attendees are welcome to use their own DOR or our San Jose-based template.

Day Three Agenda

  • Review of Day Two
  • Evaluation overview
  • Categories and behavioral anchor
  • DOR / Narrative — Fahd Case
  • Evaluation exercises
  • Out of class assignments and course evaluations

Upon completion, each attendee will return to his or her agency for an orientation to the particular field training program that his or her agency uses.