december2021january2022 - 24

INTERNATIONAL
THE ACCELERATION
OF DIGITALIZATION
taught in a synchronous online environment,
with the presence of an instructor.
These include courses in integration, operations
in adverse weather conditions, airside
safety, security and dangerous goods, "
he says. " In addition, the training and
qualification courses for functions such
as passenger service agent, ramp assistant
and ramp operations supervisor, also have
a face-to-face practical component and
assessment through on-job learning and
assessment on top of the online synchronous
component. "
Many of the courses that specialize an
employee in a certain area, or which complement
technical training, are taught to be
delivered online, affirms Miguel.
" Internally, some courses have been
taught completely online, namely safety
management system (SMS), ISAGO for
aircraft assistance service providers and
training for e-instructors on eLearning, "
he says. " The courses with a behavioral
component that aim to raise awareness
and promote safety are now completely
taught in an online environment, either
synchronous or asynchronous. These
include human factors and crew resource
management (CRM), leadership and safety
management. "
Challenges of an Online
Learning Program
In order to qualify for an aircraft ground
handling function, the physical/in-person
environment is conducive to training, since
knowledge of the space where the activity
will be developed and the tools to be used in
carrying out the tasks is of valuable importance,
observes Miguel.
" Among the major challenges of an
online learning program, we identified
the restructuring of course programs,
including the workload and the teaching
methodology, " Miguel says.
" In a virtual environment, interaction
and motivation techniques to foster group
dynamics are completely different from
those used in face-to-face learning, and
the training of instructors requires that
they be prepared for changes in behavior
in the face of the virtual teaching model.
Finally, there was also a restructuring of
the assessment of learning, " he adds.
LeDuc believes limited personal interaction
is the biggest barrier in the implementation
of online learning programs.
" The majority of the communication is
non-verbal, and this can be missed in a
virtual setting. We ask that the camera be
on during training sessions and that the
team members give their full attention
By Mario Pierobon
From an institutional point of
view, the pandemic accelerated
the capacity for exchanging information
between companies and
various authorities with much
greater agility, according to ABESATA's
president Ricardo Miguel.
" People who previously had difficulty
participating in meetings
and training, only held in person,
were able to get involved much
more and this brought significant
gains, " he says.
The acceleration of digitalization
also led to the acceleration of
an old demand in the sector -
the creation of a certification of
regularity for companies in the
ground handling segment, points
out Miguel.
" The certification provides a distinction
to those companies that
actually invest in qualification
and training with a sustainable
business plan to place themselves
on the market, " he
says. " In Brazil, the seal will
be launched in early 2022
and is being titled CRES
(Certificate of Regularity in Auxiliary
Services to Air Transport).
Service users, whether they are
airlines or aerodrome operators,
will now have a reference. "
24 GROUND SUPPORT WORLDWIDE DECEMBER 2021/JANUARY 2022
Photo courtesy of ABESATA
december2021january2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of december2021january2022
