Learning

Our instructors have all taught at the department and fire academy level.

We value that highly. That means they have taught the current and future generations of firefighters.

What that taught us is something that sounds very simple but is easily overlooked.

The relationship between learning and stress.

An easily way to understand is if you compare it to listening and noise.

The more noise there is the harder it is to listen. Now you can try to focus but that becomes difficult. Thus you listen less when there is a higher noise level.

When learning we do the same with stress. Stress whether internal (hungry, tired, girlfriend leaving you) or external (bunker gear, environment, yelling) the higher the level the harder it is to learn.

Now hold on....I am not saying sit in a recliner in an air conditioned room and teach throwing ladders.

However, in the beginning, when you teach in the simplest form do it with the least amount of stress. Think of the first time you taught forcing a door. The student wasn't blacked out breathing air in full gear.

As the recruit/firefighter/officer progresses the amount of stress can be increased.

There is definitely a time for a high amount of stress.

Crawl, walk, walk some more, then run.

There is a place for classroom instruction.

There is a place for hands on.

The most important part is learning...

Always forward, always moving.

-Train or Die