(This is a post appearing at
http://atcea.com in search of a wider audience for comments)
In running trainees through sim problems, care is taken to insure standardization. Problems are scripted in detail and little variation is allowed. This is to insure that each student receives, to the extent possible, the exact same problem as every other student. We do this in the interest of fairness.
My question: is it really fair?
No two people learn in exactly the same way. Some of us are visual, others auditory. Some are logical, some artistic. There are "linear" and "circular" thinkers and some folks learn more quickly than others. If we teach everyone the same way, does this insure fairness or does it insure that some will have an advantage? Will quick learners do better than slow? Will good typists have an advantage over the "hunt-and-peck" crowd? Who is favored by a "by-the-numbers" approach?
If our goal is to train everyone the same, the regimented approach is fine. If our goal is to give every student an equal opportunity to succeed, a strict adherence to standardized instruction will fail us.