45B-2

 

 

As the only higher education institution in the Mid-Atlantic area offering HACCP training to regional poultry and seafood processors, University of Maryland has committed its resources across the state to promote the development of HACCP education.  However, in the past, much of the learning in these training workshops has been rote, relying solely on intensive lectures and handout materials.  As research has clearly demonstrated that the more students become involved with the ‘real life’ situations the more they learn, we strongly feel that the training mechanism for HACCP workshops needs to be transformed in order to address emerging food safety issues. 

The objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of an active mechanism incorporating primary trait analysis (PTA) and a pedagogical reasoning model in HACCP training.

HACCP problem scenarios were defined around a specific trait of interest based on three knowledge base components: subject matter knowledge, knowledge of learner, and knowledge of educational purposes and values.  Grading and program assessment were focused on how the trainees could be the one controlling the technology, knowing the techniques, and properly use available tools.

By using the PTA problem scenarios derived from the pedagogical reasoning model, students were able to practice how to apply their knowledge to an industrial problem situation.  An evaluation process based on the five-level PTA scales was employed, including breakout sessions and a closing interview.  During the years of 2000 to 2002, at least sixty students completed this HACCP training program with a grade average of 80.4±3.1, better than the 72.2±4.5 from previous years (1998 to 1999).  Positive feedbacks were gathered from the internship evaluation. 

This active mechanism enables trainees to effectively exercise in-depth observation and to identify linkage to the knowledge acquired.  It should serve as a model for other HACCP training programs across the country.