Our answer to the proficiency drop-off problem: structured sustainment.<\/strong><\/p>\n It is challenging for language professionals to set aside the time, find the right resources, and hold themselves accountable with so many competing obligations. To maintain proficiency outside of a formal training event (acquisition or enhancement) you need to provide your sustainers with structure<\/em>.<\/p>\n Structured sustainment, as we see it, follows a simple framework:<\/p>\n How can you execute this three-step framework\u2014and how can the CL-150 Platform help?<\/p>\n 1. Identify required proficiency<\/strong><\/p>\n This step is up to you and your language program, but you can refer to your organization\u2019s guidance (for example, a DoD Instruction or equivalent civilian\u00a0organization instruction). It\u2019s important that program managers understand not only the larger organizational needs, but also consider the proficiency level required for individuals to be fully effective on the job.<\/p>\n 2. Create a sustainment policy<\/strong><\/p>\n A successful sustainment policy should answer two questions: what and how much. What<\/em> should sustainers be doing on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis to maintain proficiency and how much<\/em> time should they spend completing those tasks?<\/p>\n Those questions are best answered by each individual program, depending on the required proficiency identified in step 1, but the CL-150 Platform provides options for daily, weekly, and monthly engagement that can be incorporated into any<\/em> sustainment policy.<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0 Track to enforce and motivate<\/strong><\/p>\n All activity in the CL-150 Platform is tracked and reportable to the sustainer and the program manager. Tracking increases motivation and highlights opportunities for intervention. It allows you to effectively manage and accurately report at the program level.<\/p>\n With a few clicks, you can run a Program Manager Report to see sustainers\u2019 efforts, including learning time (time spent in the CL-150) and self-reported time (time spent elsewhere, but reported in the CL-150). This real-time oversight helps you quickly identify sustainers who are falling behind, making it possible to provide additional support (increased sustainment hours, a mentorship program, etc.) to those who need it, before<\/em> significant proficiency loss can occur.<\/p>\n For your sustainers, CL-150 lessons provide the flexibility and relevance to be motivating and engaging, covering current events that language professionals will want<\/em> to understand to maintain regional and cultural expertise.<\/p>\n For program managers, structured sustainment on the CL-150 Platform removes much of the administrative burden while increasing visibility. Minimal admin set-up is required for maximum oversight, so you can effortlessly identify sustainers at risk of falling below the required proficiency and prevent<\/em> proficiency loss.<\/p>\n A more effective sustainment program starts with theory, but in practice, CL-150 supported sustainment programs are already improving outcomes for USG language programs:<\/p>\n \u201cWe haven\u2019t had a proficiency test failure in 170 days, which is a testament that the CL-150 Cohorts and Reporting works.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cOne of our sub-pro Arabic linguists enrolled in your MSA Cohort and went from a 1+ on reading to a 3 within 3 months.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThe CL-150 and Cohorts are an integral part of our program.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Ready to provide your sustainers with the structure they need to prevent proficiency drop-off? Let\u2019s talk: usg@transparent.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" How can you, as a program manager, ensure that your team’s language skills are maintained and improved career-long, avoiding the nearly inevitable cycle of proficiency drop-off and costly re-training? In other words, how can your language program make the transition from the yellow line to the blue line in the chart below? That was the…<\/p>\n![\"prevent](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/cl-150-bulletin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/39\/2019\/12\/Career-long-curve-new.png\")
<\/p>\nStructured Sustainment Framework<\/h1>\n
\n
Structured Sustainment with the CL-150 Platform<\/h1>\n
\n
![\"CL-150](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/cl-150-bulletin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/39\/2019\/05\/Learned-Vocab-Refresh.png\")
being forgotten. Ten minutes each day reviewing their Learned Vocab adds up to roughly 40 hours per year!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
![\"CL-150](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/cl-150-bulletin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/39\/2019\/12\/Cohort-lessons-culture-reading-comprehension-1024x523.png\")
<\/li>\n![\"CL-150](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/cl-150-bulletin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/39\/2019\/12\/Program-Manager-Report-Parent-Group-1024x520.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"prevent](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/cl-150-bulletin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/39\/2019\/12\/Career-long-curve-new-350x209.png\")