Military Education

Military Education

The term education can be interpreted in more ways than one. Some would say education involves sitting through lectures and learning grammar and arithmetic. Defining education is very difficult and everyone has a different opinion, however the criterion, training in a specific skill, knowledge, and thinking for yourself accurately describes education. Because military training satisfies the criterion it can be classified as a valid form of education.

Training in specific skills is quite possibly the main focus of the military today. Much like a college student studying to become an expert in his/her field, such as architecture or history, a member of the military trains in a specialty as well. Many jobs exist in the military, a great number of them being parallel to the civilian world. For instance, a military judge seeks to promote order and truth just like a civilian judge would in a criminal case. Air traffic controllers at airports direct commercial air traffic exactly like military air traffic controllers would at a military base. All of these people train in these skills in order to do their job properly. Most of the time, as in civilian life, these individuals are trained in nothing else so all their efforts can be concentrated. One of the most predominant skills taught in the military is leadership/decision making. No matter what rank a person in the military is he or she will soon have to take charge of others in the chain. If the person is an officer they will have enormous responsibilities, mainly being responsible for the lives of their men and the equipment they have control over. The ability to take charge of any situation is something instilled in every soldier from day one. Soldiers are taught to endure many hardships such as fatigue, stress, and physical discomfort and continue until the mission is accomplished. These traits when carried over into civilian life greatly increase the chances of success. Inc. magazine recently published a cover story entitled “Corps Values” in which the United States Marine Corps was called the “Best management-training program in America.”(Freedman 56) In this article James Warren, founder of the Warren Financial Group, was quoted as saying, “The Marine Corps allowed us to make sure we could understand the worst-and best-case scenarios, take care of everyone else first,...

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...ow this unwritten set of rules, for they are the ones protecting these rights. Whether in a leadership position or in combat, soldiers are expected to get the job done whatever it takes. Soldiers are taught how to accomplish certain tasks using specific methods, however they are also taught to improvise if the situation arises. Sometimes following exact directions just won’t work because of one situation or another, and a soldier must stray from the path in order to accomplish the task. Whatever the situation is, students and soldiers alike learn to distinguish from right and wrong and learn how to make decisions for the better, because this is an important criterion of education.

When military training is brought up, the first thing that probably comes to mind is images of soldiers running through mud pits with machine guns. This image is probably not thought of as education. Defining education is very difficult and everyone has a different opinion, however the criterion, training in a specific skill, knowledge, and

thinking for yourself accurately describes education. Because military training satisfies the criterion for education it is a valid form of education.