“Academy  Progressive  Preview  PART  ONE”    

There  are  certainly  additional  explanations  and  references  in  the  complete  video,  but  this  set  of  notes  is  designed  to  give  you  a  super  fast  review  of  the  content  that  you  can  use  as  pre-­‐study  material  or  to  consolidate  what  you  learned  in  the  video.    Question  on  TV  Shows:      Question:  “Hi  John  Thank  you  for  your  great  tricks  and  tips.  In  regards  to  this  week  and  your  comment  not  to  watch  too  much  television  etc.,  we  now  have  TV  programmes  such  as  Gold  Coast  Cops  and  NT  Cops.  As  this  shows  actual  footage  of  Qld  and  NT  police  officers,  do  you  still  recommend  not  taking  too  much  in  from  these  documentaries.  Also,  could  I  please  ask  to  receive  your  extra  resources  on  visualisation.  Kind  regards,  Tracey.”    Cautions  explained  on  reality  TV  show:  

- Purpose  of  show  is  entertainment  and  not  training  - Very  selective  footage  that  does  not  reflect  the  true  nature  of  police  work  

- Best  practice  not  always  shown  - Some  police  instructors  would  actually  strongly  discourage  viewing  these  shows  for  this  reason.    

Benefits  may  include:  - observing  public  reaction  to  police  officer  actions.  Again,  with  caution  as  only  a  partial  picture  and  scenario  is  shown  on  the  tv  show  

- learning  what  NOT  to  do.  There  are  often  examples  where  you  can  learn  from  officer’s  mistakes  on  these  shows.  

         

Scenario  Training    

- Police  shooting  story  in  New  York  and  the  potential  disastrous  outcomes  of  a  chain  of  events  that  trigger  numerous  errors.  

 

   

- Participation  is  key.  You  learn  just  as  much  in  training  as  in  real  life.  Training  has  much  less  actual  risk,  even  though  you  get  the  benefits  of  high-­‐perceived  risk.  This  is  why  the  scenario  training  is  so  valuable.    

- “Good  judgement  is  often  the  result  of  experience  and  experience  is  often  the  result  of  poor  judgement.  

 

   

- Use  the  scenario  training  as  a  ‘sandpit’  to  improve  your  judgement  through  poor  judgement.  The  best  way  is  to  have  a  go  and  don’t  be  afraid  to  make  decisions  or  speak  up.    

- This  is  your  only  shot  to  build  confidence  in  a  completely  safe  environment.  

 - The  training  is  only  as  good  as  you.  If  you  participate  fully  you  will  get  the  most  benefit.    

- It  is  also  the  ‘sandpit’  to  observe  your  fellow  recruits.  You  will  likely  be  working  with  some  of  your  recruits  out  on  the  street  once  you  graduate.  Learn  about  how  others  react  and  what  to  watch  for  in  other  officers.  

 - Plus  keep  in  mind  the  scenario  training  is  not  the  place  to  ‘prove  yourself’  independently  of  other  recruits.  It  is  your  opportunity  to  build  teams  and  strengthen  your  relationships  with  other  recruits.  Focus  on  team  building.  

 - Maintain  objectivity  in  order  to  streamline  your  decision  making.    

Scenario  Success  (explained  in  detail  throughout  the  video  presentation)  

 

     Please  watch  the  full  video  for  full  explanation.  However  here  are  a  few  highlights  of  what  to  take  away:    Action  Steps  at  Academy:  1. Note  taking  skills  both  in  and  out  of  the  ‘box’.    2. Respect  for  others  in  scenario:  3. Understand  the  foundations  this  is  building  –  this  ‘playing  field  to  build  trust’  

4. Asking  you  partner’s  opinion  when  appropriate  5. Watching  others  when  you  can  -­‐  Benefit  of  being  outside  the  frame  

6. Practice  showing  up  with  confidence  here.  Fake  it  till  you  make  it.    a. People  are  looking  for  someone  to  take  control  (in  a  real  situation).  Your  first  impression  and  the  value  and  impact.  This  leads  onto  the  pre  action  steps  below.  

Additionally,  here  are  some  action  steps  you  can  take  right  now  BEFORE  starting  at  the  academy.  These  are  patterns  and  habits  you  can  start  forming  right  now  that  will  set  you  up  for  success  in  scenario  training.    Pre-­‐action  steps  in  the  lead  up:  ie.  Right  now    

1. Look  people  in  the  eye  –  when  walking  around,  but  don’t  pick  fights!  Look  people  in  the  eye  when  talking  AND  when  listening.  Huge.    

2. Start  paying  attention  to  people’s  expressions.  So  watch  them  when  they’re  talking  and  see  if  you  can  garner  what  they  mean.  A  great  activity.  Watch  TV  without  the  sound.  This  is  a  fantastic  way  to  develop  your  instincts  about  a  person  changing  demeanor.  At  the  academy,  your  decisions  on  what  actions  to  take  will  need  to  change  rapidly  as  scenarios  develop.  So  the  better  and  more  natural  you  are  at  picking  up  on  subtle  differences  and  shift  in  people’s  mannerisms,  the  faster  you  can  shift  and  adjust  in  scenarios.  

 a. Additionally  this  is  a  culture  crossing  tool.  If  you  are  developed  in  reading  faces  and  emotions  then  you  can  communicate  much  better  when  talking.  This  goes  both  ways,  as  people  will  often  be  reading  into  your  body  language  more  than  what  you’re  actually  saying.  This  is  relevant  to  the  next  point  on  how  you  project  yourself  in  scenario  training  and  in  general.  

 3. Project  purpose  and  confidence  in  the  way  you  conduct  yourself.  Just  focus  on  ONE  thing.  Avoid  the  stuffed  scarecrow  appearance.  Do  this  by  raising  your  ‘V’  straight  up.  This  is  the  small  ‘v’  at  the  top  of  your  rib  cage.  Imagine  attaching  a  string  on  this  and  pulling  straight  up.  This  one  movement  adjusts  multiple  parts  of  your  posture  in  one  simple  step.    

Additional  point:  The  submissive  gesture  of  exposing  your  neck  by  raising  your  head.  Instead  keep  your  chin  down  and  head  level.  This  indicates  confidence  and  a  subtle  statement  that  you  are  ‘in  control’  simply  by  the  way  you’re  standing.  Please  watch  the  video  for  full  explanation.  

Driver  Training    

   We  covered  a  detailed  example  giving  context  on  the  controversy  emergency  driving  and  particularly  of  aborting  pursuits.  In  2013  a  teenager  was  killed.    The  take  away  findings  we  discussed:    Independent  Police  Conduct  Authority  Chair  Judge  stated  that:    "In  the  early  stages  of  the  pursuit  Police  generally  complied  with  policy.  However,  when  the  suspect  continued  to  drive  at  high  speed  on  the  wrong  side  of  a  dual  carriageway  the  officer  should  not  have  continued  the  pursuit.  

"His  decision  to  do  so  posed  an  unjustified  risk  to  members  of  the  public,  the  Police,  Mr  Mika  and  his  passengers.  

       

What  is  Driver  training  and  what  is  the  purpose  here?    

   Ultimately  the  key  is  to  know  your  outcome.    The  value  of  driving  within  policies    Understanding  Risk  vs  Reward  and  the  context  of  this  within  emergency  driving.    Driving  attitudes  are  your  best  start  point  for  preparing  for  emergency  driver  training.  You  can  develop  a  suitable  attitude  before  you  even  start.          

The  academy  action  steps  are  identical  to  what  we  discussed  in  the  scenario  training.  So  once  again  use  the  WATCH  acronym.    

     Of  particular  note  is  to  ‘take  notes’  during  all  your  debriefs  –  not  whilst  driving…        

Pre  action  steps  for  right  now:    Understand  that  driving  familiarity  is  a  pre-­‐requisite.  This  doesn’t  mean  having  a  license.  It  means  being  very  familiar  with  driving  a  car  –  potentially  a  manual  car.      Should  you  take  a  pre-­‐driving  course?  Limit  this  to  a  short  defensive  driving  course  teaching  emergency  braking  and  some  basic  vehicle  handling.  This  would  typically  be  one  or  two  days  only.  Anything  longer  you  may  risk  learning  incorrect  habits  that  will  actually  contradict  your  police  academy  training.      Lower  your  expectations  of  other  drivers  and  road  users.  People  will  do  stupid  shit  on  the  road.  Getting  upset  or  frustrated  about  this  is  a  waste  of  your  energy.  Accept  it  and  take  action  where  appropriate.  Otherwise,  let  it  go  (rather  than  let  it  ‘get  to  you’).