PENSACOLA, Fla. - Naval Education and Training Professional Development and Technology Center (NETPDTC) is hosting a group of chief petty officers (CPO) to conduct an Advancement Examination Readiness Review (AERR), Jan. 27-Feb. 7.
AERRs are required when a major enlisted bibliography reference changes. The latest review centered on the Logistics Specialist (LS) and Musician (MU) ratings. Chiefs who are selected as Fleet Subject Matter Experts (FSME) for the AERR panels are responsible for determining the content of E4 through E7 rating advancement exams. Chiefs with experience in diverse platforms or recent experience on a major rating skill-set are highly desirable.
"We are in the middle of a two-week long AERR with an incredibly talented group of CPOs from our rating communities," said Chief Logistics Specialist (SW/AW) Ray Paradis, a subject matter expert and LS training manager assigned to CSS. "We are making significant progress for future rating exams. Our team has a solid plan to improve the current exams and resources."
During the AERRs, the FSMEs ensure the bank of test questions reflect current training for each rating and take into account the rapid pace of modernization and technological integration into the fleet. AERRs also allow rating experts to update and fine-tune the existing bank of exam questions before writing new test items.
"It is a major undertaking when you conduct an AERR for an entire rating," said Senior Chief Logistics Specialist (AW/SW) Chaddrake Lavallais, an LS community training manager at Center for Service Support (CSS). "These question banks will test the knowledge of our sailors based upon current knowledge and practices. It’s paramount we ask them questions which reflect the occupational skills they utilize every day in the fleet."
"The Navy advancement system benefits because of the diversity of rating knowledge being represented," said Lavallais. "Our group contains a plethora of experience, and each group of experts brings a lot of ideas to future exams."
The exam reviews are conducted at Saufley Field in Pensacola, Fla. The reviews are usually completed within two weeks, with each rating warranting a review about every two years. Updates to the AERR schedule are published quarterly.
CSS and its learning sites provide sailors with the knowledge and skills needed to support the fleet's warfighting mission. More than 300 staff and faculty work hand-in-hand with the fleet and are dedicated to ensure training is current and well executed on behalf of 10,000 sailors who graduate from CSS courses annually in the administration, logistics and media communities.
For more news from Center for Service Support, visit www.navy.mil/local/css/.