OSCE workshop in Ankara looks at how e-learning can be used to train police

A two-day OSCE workshop that began 9 June 2011 at the Turkish National Police Academy in Ankara looks at how e-learning can be used to train police officers.

Sessions at the workshop focus on topics related to police training e-learning, including methodologies and design; evaluation and assessment, and copyright and security.

The meeting provides participants – police trainers, practitioners, academia and representatives of international organizations and the private sector - with an opportunity to learn from each other, said Knut Dreyer, the Senior Police Adviser to the OSCE Secretary General.

"We will look at the advantages of e-learning to police training institutions and hear about each others' experiences, so that we can avoid repeating mistakes that have been made elsewhere," he said.

The OSCE Strategic Police Matters Unit supports OSCE participating States in policing matters, including by providing training courses. The unit also maintains the Policing OnLine Information System (POLIS), an on-line resource centre for police and law enforcement officers, policy analysts, policy makers, evaluation experts, and donors in the field of policing and rule of law. Through POLIS, participating States can share information about effective practices in the area of policing.

POLIS could be used to share e-learning modules, said Dreyer, adding that such material should be added to the system starting later this year.

On the sidelines of the workshop, the OSCE and the Turkish National Police Academy signed a protocol under which they agree to share information and co-operate.