When COVID-19 cases erupted across the nation in spring 2020, many federal agencies that provide educational opportunities and continuous training for their workers scrambled to adopt a virtual learning model.
To keep training and education moving for workers during the pandemic, federal agencies used everything from simple videoconferencing tools and cloud-based productivity suites, such as Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, to more complex applications such as simulations and learning management systems.
“There are some things we would do differently, but some things we will do exactly the same,” says Todd Boudreau, deputy commandant of the U.S. Army Cyber School at the Cyber Center of Excellence (CCoE), Fort Gordon, Ga.
“But it absolutely raises our confidence that if we had to go through this again, we are much more prepared,” he adds.
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The Army Kept Cyber Classes on Track
Soldiers assigned to support signal, cyberspace and electronic warfare operations take training courses at Fort Gordon that last from four weeks to nearly 18 months.
Because hundreds of trained soldiers graduate and hundreds more new soldiers begin training each week at the base, the CCoE could not allow pandemic-related delays to push training behind schedule.
“In the initial months of the pandemic, there was a mad dash to adopt virtual learning. Many organizations found themselves shopping for learning technology to give their people an opportunity to continue to learn and grow,” says Erik Williams, a senior consultant at MDA Leadership Consulting.
In order to keep the training on track, the center — like so many civilian schools and universities — incorporated remote learning and reduced class sizes, and required in-person students to wear masks and socially distance, says Dwayne Williams, deputy commandant of the CCoE’s Signal School, which focuses on voice and data communication services.
For soldiers who needed to be quarantined as well as those taking classes remotely, the CCoE built Wi-Fi networks in the barracks. The soldiers used personal devices such as smartphones to access videoconferencing tools to attend lectures and obtain educational content, he says.
“Instructors created basic course materials and uploaded them so the soldiers could access them,” Dwayne Williams says.
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