Simulate, a Texas aviation training company, expected to whip the competition with FasTrakits computer-based training (CBT) curriculum for corporate pilots. Instead, the new venture sent Simuflite into a nose dive. An analysis revealed that in traditional ground-school training, pilots asked questions and learned from war stories told by classmates and instructors. However, with FasTrak, pilots sat in front of a computer for hours, trying to absorb information. Their only interaction was to tap the computer screen to provide answers to questions, and that novelty wore off quickly. Pilots soon got bored with the CBT ground school; as a result, it soon lost its effectiveness.
• What does Simuflite's experience suggest about the limitations of interactive media and CBT?
• In which situations is CBT most likely to be beneficial to the trainees?