Evaluation of an Adaptive Training System for Submarine Periscope Operations

Abstract

Recently, there has been an increased interest in technology-based training, both in academic and military settings. While many instructors have adopted computer-based training methods in their classrooms, researchers have not come to an agreement as to what type of computer-based training methods are most effective. In our study, we compared an adaptive training system to one that was non-adaptive in the context of a submarine periscope task. The adaptive system adjusted both the difficulty of scenarios and feedback given to the trainee based on their performance during training. While average learning gains between groups did not differ, trainees in the adaptive condition were more consistent in their task performance during the post-test and took less time to make their calls in both post-test and transfer scenarios. Our results generally supported the use of adaptive training over non-adaptive training, and we discuss directions for future research.