Author(s)

EMRAH KAZAN, MUMTAZ USMEN, BEDEL DESRUISSEAUX, SERHAN KAYA, MUSSIE SEYOUM

Abstract

As construction safety and health standards evolve due to changing industry practices and stakeholder expectations, and the mandates get stronger on compliance with these standards, the need for training programs become more pronounced. This paper covers the training material development and program delivery and evaluation efforts associated with two standards promulgated by the US Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), namely Respirable Crystalline Silica (29 CFR 1926.1153) and Excavation and Trenching Safety (29 CFR 1926 Subpart P). The work reported here was undertaken through OSHA’s Susan Harwood program. The developed training materials consisted of PowerPoint instructional modules; pre-tests and post-tests to measure incremental knowledge improvement; and trainee opinion surveys to evaluate the efficacy of the training materials and training delivery systems incorporated in the programs. Trainees included employees and employers representing various trades (operating engineers, laborers, masons, bricklayers, pipelayers and others). The delivery was performed by a traditional classroom format for the silica training, while lecture-based traditional and online training were separately offered for excavation safety. Kirkpatrick’s model for learning assessment was adopted, employing level 1 and level 2 evaluations. It was found that both the lecture-based traditional and online training delivery were effective tools, although they have their advantages and disadvantages. Based on a limited study using cross-tabulation, no statistically significant correlation could be identified between levels 1 and 2 assessment results.

Keywords

training effectiveness, Kirkpatrick model, OSHA standards, respirable crystalline silica, excavation and trenching safety, traditional and online training