Optimization of Training Effectiveness of Physical Protection Course for Asian Region: Best mix of
in-person and virtual methodologies

During the COVID-19 pandemic, ISCN has developed several online training courses on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear security for the regional participants to minimize the impact of global travel restriction. Those courses consisted of on-demand e-Learning and interactive live lecture and group exercises. ISCN has also developed virtual tour program for site visit and video materials for online courses, and designed courses using these tools in various combinations to enhance the effectiveness of the training. ISCN gradually resumed in-person international/regional training courses in summer 2022; however, instead of going back to the in-person style before the pandemic, it explored the best mix of in-person and virtual methodologies it has developed for the past 2 years. ISCN and U.S. DOE/NNSA through Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) jointly restructured the ISCN annual Regional Training Course on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and Facility (PP-RTC) and the conducted the Course as inperson in October 2022. By combining in-person and virtual methodologies, ISCN and SNL successfully designed the 2022 PP-RTC to optimize its curriculum. This paper reports on the development, implementation, and feedback from participants of PP-RTC to share ISCN’s experience and contributes to further enhancing effectiveness of capacity building in nuclear security. This paper also reports on the ability to expand the in-person learning experience because of the implementation of the virtual tools and on the advantages and disadvantages of each methodology. The conclusions will provide information such that courses can be further improved to maximize effectiveness of both methodologies.