Role playing in flight instructor training: How effective is it?

Flight instructor training has remained largely unchanged since the beginning of aviation. The current method of training mostly involves the flight instructor trainee "role-playing" as the instructor to their instructor who is "role-playing" as the student. An analysis of the behaviors of flight instructor instrument trainees exhibited while teaching their peers (other classmates) indicates that the behaviors are different than those used when teaching an actual instrument student. This research suggests that the method in which flight instructors are trained produces behaviors that do not translate to real-world instruction, therefore potentially hindering the development of effective flight instructors.