Changes in the Basic Safety and Security Course

We received lots of positive comments and useful feedback and with this we adjusted the Programme and the content of the Basic Safety and Security Course.

The main adjustments:

* Time for Ammunition awareness has been reduced. Although an important topic, not many aid workers are confronted with landmines. This subject is integrated in the new module: Field Safety Skills. The topics of this module are (il)legal checkpoints, weapon/mines/ammunition awareness, ambush, vehicle procedures and communication. It also prepares you also for complex attacks like the one in the Westgate Mall in Nairobi.

* Information Security has been integrated in the Security Awareness module.

* We have added two new modules: Mental Resilience (stress and trauma) and Gender and Safety. In the first participants will  learn signs of stress and how  to deal with this stress; and  the second focusses on gender security issues

* We also added more practical exercises to existing modules. For example, during Emergency First Response module participants will now practice the Car Accident simulation where they are confronted with a serious car accident with multiple wounded persons. Also, we adjusted some of  the simulations on Saturday.

* During the Dealing with Aggression module we added the Attack Cycle. This cycle describes the activities criminals/ terrorists perform before an attack. Noticing and disturbing this cycle will limit the attackers.

* The Module Security Awareness is now interactive using an app. The participants can give live feedback to the trainer and answer questions via their mobile phone. For participants without a smartphone we have extra tablets available.

* We will focus more on serious gaming, a game or story that is designed for the primary purpose of learning. The fake but very dangerous country Bekuran will continue to be the stage for the course and participants will be submerged in Bekuran during the modules and simulations.

* This serious gaming element, together with more digital interactive media opens the road for future developments. Mid 2015 we will start to develop an e-learning module. This module is intended to support the Basic Course and is to be used for learning after the course. There will be more news in 2015 about this module.

More information on the Basic Safety and Security Course can be found here.