HEATHER CASPI
Firehouse.com News
Firefighters found themselves at an extremely engaging, in-your-face
presentation when they attended "High-Impact, High-Energy Training"
at the Firehouse Expo in Baltimore last week.
The presenter, Assistant Chief Timothy Sendelbach of Missouri, TX
Fire and Rescue Services, instantly threw the crowd off guard by
walking among them and demanding to know why they came to his class.
After a moment of confusion, the crowd was swept into the
interactive, often humorous multi-media presentation about how to
update training methods and increase the fun and effectiveness of
training.
"How many of you guys have gone to training and said, 'My gosh, I'd
rather pull my fingernails out?'" Sendelbach asked. "Why? Because
it's boring."
He stressed that people need to be challenged every time they train,
and that departments need to stay innovative by listening to ideas
from outside sources.
Sendelbach argued that one of the biggest problems in training,
created over the past 20 years, is that typically trainers are put in
that position because they didn't quite make a promotion or have an
injury. Departments aren't looking for enthusiastic people who enjoy
being there, he said.
"If you want to make training fun, put people in there that want to
do it," he said.
He suggested that departments even consider young firefighters for
training positions, by evaluating them on their accomplishments
rather than years on the job. Although they might end up training
more experienced firefighters, this can work as long as the trainers
really know what they're doing and capitalize on the experience of
the older firefighters, he said. By asking questions, everybody
learns from each other.
"Don't stand up there on a soap box and think that you know it all.
Get everybody networking," Sendelbach said.
Sendelbach admitted that he too went into training because of an
injury, at age 25, but said he stayed there because of the
satisfaction and reward of sharing information.
He says training should be action-oriented, with classes followed up
by hands-on activities, not just eight-hour lectures or training
videos. And drills should be geared toward both rookies and older
firefighters so that both are challenged.
Another piece of advice was to "Get dirty with the troops. Don't ask
them to do something you're unwilling to do."
Sendelbach also talked about ensuring that training is technically
safe, noting that a number of firefighters are killed each year
during training exercises.
"Good training may give you a bump or a bruise but should never put
you in an ambulance," he said.
He also advised that training never be used as a punishment, or
people will automatically have a sour attitude toward it.
He suggested that departments be progressive and adjust training for
the younger generation, which has grown up exposed to different
things than older firefighters. And he asked departments not to shun
the styles of any region like the Northeast or the West Coast, and
never believe that your department can't learn from others, even if
it's one of "the best."
"If we always do what we've always done," he said, "we'll always get
what we've always got."
