FOREWORD

An international system for sharing course material can be effective only if all the material used is prepared to defined standards which ensure the complete applicability of the contents and presentation of each particular subject. The methodology to be used to achieve the systematic preparation of TRAINAIR PLUS Standardized Training Packages (STP) is set out in detail in this TRAINAIR PLUS Training Development Guide which is intended as the handbook for all STP development activities within the TRAINAIR PLUS Programme.

This methodology has a history dating back to the 1960s when the American Telephone Company, AT&T, set standards for course material to facilitate sharing between member companies within their corporate system. The methodology was adopted and further developed by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in 1975 and through their CODEVTEL Programme applied to the establishment of a very widely used international telecommunications training material sharing system. In 1980, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) further adapted the methodology in setting up TRAINMAR which became a major source of training for ports and shipping throughout the Developing World.

ICAO originally relicd on its Standardizcd Training Guidelines to set global training material standards in civil aviation. However, recognizing the potential benefits to the Civil Aviation Training Centres (CATCs) of the Developing World of the international sharing of high quality standardized civil aviation course material and the effectiveness of the ITU/UNCTAD methodology, in 1989 ICAO undertook to develop its TRAINAIR Programme based on these earlicr programmes. TRAINAIR was strongly supported by the UNDP Division of Global and Interregional Programmes (DGIP) through the project INTI871012 during whicli tlie initial adaptation of tlie UNCTAD standards was carried out to suit civil aviation's particular applications. The first edition of the Training Development Guide (TDG) was the result of those adaptations.