A REPORT

 

 

DEALING WITH

 

THE JUSTICE INSTITUTE

Of

BRITISH COLUMBIA

 

FIRE AND SAFETY DIVISION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IN COOPERATION WITH:

 

BC PROFESSIONAL FIRE FIGHTERS’ ASSOCIATION

BC VOLUNTEER FIRE FIGHTERS’ ASSOCIATION

FIRE CHIEFS’ ASSOCIATION OF BC

FIRE PREVENTION OFFICERS’ ASSOCIATION OF BC

FIRE TRAINING OFFICERS’ OF BC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROLOGUE

 

Over the past number of years, there appears to be a mounting frustration with the Justice Institute of BC, Fire and Safety Division.  This has been reflected by comments made by the customers of the Division at the meetings of the various Associations.  In some circles, it is felt that the Division no longer meets the needs of their customer.

 

As a result, members of the Volunteer Fire Fighters’ Association of BC and the Fire Chiefs’ Association met in the spring of 2000 to create a questionnaire on the Fire Safety and Safety Division that could be used as the basis for a report.  This questionnaire was distributed prior to the conferences of the five fire service associations in the province for distribution to their members.  The goal was then to compile the information for meeting of the associations in September.

 

This meeting took place in Richmond, September 27, 2000.  This report represents some of the concerns of the five fire service Associations and is meant to be a positive document in aiding the Fire and Safety Division in meeting the expectations and needs of its clients.

 

This report hopefully provides a basis for discussion for the Fire and Safety Division and the various fire service Associations.  It is extremely important both the Fire and Safety Division and Associations to work together to change the current situation.  The concerns as identified within this report must be addressed with a view towards change both for the benefit of the customer and Fire and Safety Division.  The failure not to change could have serious impacts for the training of fire service personnel within the province.

 

The report does not seek to identify all the concerns that may have arisen, nor does it attempt to provide all the solutions.  It is hoped that it will provide a basis for discussion that will result in improved fire service training for all fire service personnel in province whether they are career, volunteer or industrial.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE QUESTIONNAIRE

 

 

 

Although most of the respondents dealt with the actual questions, a summary of their comments fits in with the four main principles in the questionnaire.

 

ACCESSIBLE

Programs should be easily accessible for all Departments throughout the province.  In general terms, this means offering courses at times and locations that are convenient to the user.  This should mean offering courses locally and on weekends.  The programming, in addition to the current formats, should be in blocks in order to meet the needs of the customer.  There is a strong perception that most programming is offered and focused in the Lower Mainland.

 

ATTAINABLE

Programs should be offered in lengths and formats suitable for the needs of the customers.  In addition to the formats currently in place, this could mean a greater effort to reduce repetition of course content by the use of common modules or by recognition of course content for one program if taken for another program.

 

AFFORDABLE

The major problem in this regard is the need to access Fire and Safety Division instructors at Fire and Safety Division locations.  This is seldom the most affordable method of delivery from the Department’s perspective.  A greater effort must be made to provide Fire and Safety Division and local instructors using regional facilities, so as to reduce costs.  The Fire and Safety Division needs to expand the use of evaluators throughout the province.  Although there is some recognition of the funding problems with the Division, there is a problem whereby the students and Departments can not afford the programs. 

 

CONSISTANT

Over the years, the Fire and Safety Division has lost some credibility by changes in course criteria and offerings, without a smooth transition or consistent recognition of previous work.  Often the changes are to the detriment of the student.  Programs appear and disappear without apparent rhyme or reason.  For a student working and planning over several years, it often seems that courses change and disappear before they can be completed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The questionnaire asked five basic questions.

 

1)      Does your Department use the Justice Institute Fire and Safety Division programs for staff development?  If so, which programs?

 

It would appear that virtually all the respondents used the Fire and Safety Division programs.  One respondent or another listed all the programs offered by the Division. It should be noted that there appears to be a great deal of satisfaction with the programming.  This speaks well of the programming offered by the Division as it is used extensively around the province.

The major concerns are in area of customer service and lack thereof.

 

2)      What problems have occurred in program delivery that your Department would appreciate being corrected?

 

In this section, all the respondents had concerns with the program delivery in one manner or another.  Themes have emerged as a result of the comments and will be listed in the next section of the report.

 

3)      What can the Justice Institute Fire and Safety Division do to help improve on its service to your Department?

 

Unfortunately, as with some questionnaires, this question did not receive a lot of attention.  However, some excellent comments were received and will be included in the next section of the report.

 

4)      Are you considering or are you using another Fire Training Academy or Educational Training facility?  If so, which programs or Institutions?

 

Very few responded that they were using another Institution.  This speaks well for the Fire and Safety Division in that most respondents continue to use the available programming.  Where respondents were using other Institutions it was mainly for management training and being done at the local University or Community College.  The troubling comments from some respondents was that they were looking elsewhere for training and in fact had made contact with other Institutions or were planning on developing their own internal training programs.

 

5)      Are you satisfied with the service you are receiving from the Justice Institute Fire and Safety Division?

 

Although this question could be considered a leading question due to question 2, the answers are revealing when all respond that they are not satisfied.  Most respondents emphasized concerns with “service” not so much the product.  It is hoped that this report will be the beginning a process that will change this answer.

 

 

 

 

CONCERNS AND CONCEPTS

 

This section will outline the concerns and some concepts in order to provide the Fire and Safety Division with additional knowledge of the customer.  The section will allow the commencement of a dialogue between the Fire and Safety Division and its clients as well as an opportunity for the Division to provide and express their concerns and solutions.

 

DELAYS

 

EXAMS

This has been a chronic problem for many years and still exists today.  Exams are delivered late or exams do not arrive in timely fashion after the completion of a course.  This is found throughout all the Fire and Safety Division programming.

 

 The Fire and Safety Division needs to streamline its exam process and ensure that exams for all programs are sent out and results returned in a timely fashion.

  

TUTORS

A common complaint is that tutors are slow in marking and returning projects.  In some cases waits of up to three months have occurred.

 

REGISTRATION

Program registration is taking too long.  In some cases, waiting for four to six weeks for student numbers and for course materials.

 

These delays make it extremely hard for Departments to motivate students to continue their studies.  This causes some students to give up on their education or to do things like “exams take so much time to arrive that we do not start studying until the exam arrives”.  Departments find themselves trying to defend the Division, a situation that they should not be placed in.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to establish a performance criteria for the tutors and then develop a method of monitoring performance.  This criteria should be a written policy of the Division so that both the student and the tutor are well aware of the system.  The student or Department could do this within the Division or externally.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AFFORDABILITY

 

The programs offered by the Fire and Safety Division need to be affordable to all its clients.  Most small Departments have little or no training budget and cannot afford some of the programming.  Even large Departments have begun to research programming that is less expensive than that of the Fire and Safety Division.

 

This is a concern that Fire and Safety Division must deal with.  As the programming prices continue to rise, the client base will become smaller reducing the revenue stream.

 

COURSE AVAILABILITY

 

The Fire and Safety Division must ensure that it offers courses in timely fashion based on demand.  Students have finished distance education must wait considerable amount of time in some cases due to the lack of classroom courses.

 

The Fire and Safety Division should offer classroom portions of distance education on a semester style approach.  The number of programs would be based on enrollment.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to offer programming which is currently only available in the Lower Mainland, throughout the province.  An example would be Dangerous Goods and Live Fire in order to complete the BC Standard.

 

The Fire and Safety Division should consider further use of evaluators and adjunct instructors.

 

COMMUNICATIONS

 

ESSENTIALS EDITION 4

The exams for the fire fighter program were changed without notification to Essentials of Fire Fighting 4th Edition.  This created considerable problems in the teaching of students who were only exposed to the 3rd edition.  No advanced notice was given, nor was there any appearance of concern for the vast majority of the fire service that is still using the 3rd Edition.

 

CHANGE IN THE BRIDGING REQUIREMENTS FOR OFFICER PROGRAMMING

The bridging steps for fire fighters to switch from the Company Officer program to the Leadership program were changed without notification.  In fact, there has not been any notification to date and would appear that the bridging steps are different for different students.

 

GENERAL COMMUNICATIONS

The Fire and Safety Division is slow to answer questions whether they are written or verbal.  It is not uncommon to make a number of calls or write more than one letter in order to receive a response.  In addition, in talking to different people at the Fire and Safety Division, one will sometimes receive different responses to the same question.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to provide proper and timely communications when it changes anything major in its programming.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to establish a performance standard for responding to written and oral communications.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to ensure that all staff are aware of programming and are responding to the customers in the same manner.

 

STAFF VACANCIES

 

A recent situation arose where staff members were off for various reasons.  During this time programming was delayed and customers were unable to receive answers to their various concerns.

 

The Fire and Safety Division should cross train staff in order to provide a continuity of service.

 

POLICIES

 

The Division needs to establish clear, consistent criteria to assist Fire Departments to meet provincial standards through the Division’s programming.  In addition, there needs to be a clear understanding of the requirements and policies that affect the customers of the Fire and Safety Division in accessing programming.  In some cases, there is a perception that “special deals” are made available to some Departments but not others and that the Fire and Safety Division does not follow its own policies.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to revisit their policies and to provide all Departments using their programming new copies of the policies.  The Division then must adhere to the policies even if it means that students may suffer from decision made internally in their Department that goes against the policy of the Division.

 

CUSTOMER INPUT

 

One of the major complaints from the field is that the Division does not listen and nothing changes.  A number of comments were received that people have been talking to the Division for years and that Associations have made comments to Division staff at conferences all to no avail.

 

The Division also needs to get out into the field and discuss issues with the regions.  Despite the attempt by the Division to move some programming into the province, the perception is that the Division is centralized in the Lower Mainland and does not care about the rest of the province.

 

The Division also needs to educate the fire service about the restrictions and operations of the Justice Institute as a post secondary institution.  This needs to include the mandate of the Institution and how the Division fits into it.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to re-emphasize the role of the Standards and Cirriculum Committee in its role as an advisory Committee to the Division.  This Committee would provide a focus for the customer to provide comments to the Division and would provide the Division the opportunity to provide answers to concerns from the field.

 

The Fire and Safety Division should establish regional meetings with members of the fire service throughout the province.  Fire and Safety Division staff would be able to develop a liaison with their customers and have direct feedback.

   

OUTDATED PROGRAMMING

 

Over the past number of years the Division has provided excellent programming, however, for one reason or another it has become dated.  There is no better way to turn a student off programming than providing material that even the student knows does not apply in today’s day and age.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to find the resources to ensure that all programming offered by the Division is up to date.

 

PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENTS PRIOR TO COMPLETE READINESS

 

The Division needs to temper program announcements prior to the completion of all aspects of the program.  In the past the Division has announced various programs but has not had the total program ready for the students.  This has created frustration for students wishing to enroll in portions that have been announced but are not available.  This also affects the credibility of the Division in the ability to offer programming.

 

The Fire and Safety Division should not announce programming until all facets have been completed.  The Division should communicate this to the customers in order not raise expectations of new programming coming out instantly.

 

RECOGNITION OF EDUCATION

 

The Fire and Safety Division has been reluctant to recognize other education in order to challenge or request transfer of credit for courses offered by the Division.  In fact in some cases the Division has been reluctant to even apply credits or transfer of credits for its own programming.  This was evident in the education credits required for the Career Fire Fighter Pre-employment Program.  Education is education and the Division needs to be more aggressive in applying transfer of credit as is found in all educational institutes.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to be more responsive to transfer of credit both internally with Fire and Safety Division programming and courses taken from other institutions.  The Division should prepare a list of programs approved for transfer of credit.

 

TECHNOLGY

 

To date the Fire and safety Division has not taken advantage of electronic technology.  Fire Instructor I was advanced a number of months ago as a first using computer technology and the Internet.  Nothing has happened since.

 

The Fire and safety Division needs to accelerate the plan to use computer technology in order to increase the access to programming by students and Departments throughout the province.

 

STANDARDS PERCEPTION

 

Currently, the perception, in smaller Departments, is that the Fire and Safety Division is placing too much emphasis on NFPA and IFSAC programming to the detriment of other programming available through the Division. 

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to emphasize which programming are based on which standards.

 

The Fire and Safety Division needs to communicate the budgets for the various programs and whether they are either cost recovery or subsidized.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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