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Augmenting Military Skills with Online Education

Online education in the military is a growing trend related to the needs of modern life and military effectiveness. “ Computer literacy is now considered an essential battlefield skill ” (Stapp, 2001, p. 26).   The modern use of technology is important for successful completion of military objectives and use of advanced weaponry. Online education also offers greater cognitive development for military students that seek to balance their military learning with their educational pursuits to create greater personal and professional advantages. A presentation by Susan Bricker (2012) offers some insights into the needs of online military learners and some of the challenges they face.  There are many similarities and differences between military and non-military learners. The greatest success seems to come from self-motivation and time management. Self-motivated learners engage in learning for learning sake by setting goals and engaging in those goals. Independent time management req

Engaging Military Students for Greater Learning

Active military learners enjoy online education due to the ability to complete their functions in the military and move forward with their career goals that would not be possible in ground-based school settings. David Starr-Glass completes a phenomenological study of military learners and how instructors can help them engage with their classmates more and raise their learning levels (2013). The findings have implications for both online and off-line schools.  Active military members in college are 1% while veterans are 3% of all students in higher education (Radford & Weko, 2011). Military students have similarities with the general population but also remarkable differences. These differences require additional effort by instructors to ensure that the learning environment is conducive to student development.  Military students live in a hierarchical world of chains of command. They deal with hot situations and cold situations while bouncing between them. Hot situation

Developing the Next Wave of Leaders

Leadership in the military is an important concept that helps to push the envelope to achieve higher objectives. According to the author Douglas Crissman, leadership includes enhancing decision-making skills, confidence and problem solving to reach new heights. Without developing these skills leaders may have limited ability to handle difficult problems.  The Center for Army Leadership Annual Survey of Army Leadership (CASAL) assesses the attitudes and perceptions of leadership development. The lowest rated competence for the fifth year in the row is developing others. A total of 59% of Army leaders were regarded as effective at developing their subordinates. A quarter of all units indicated a low or very low priority on leadership development activities.  Improving consistency and ability of unit level leadership includes: -Increased awareness about leadership development as a process versus a single event. Training should be seen as the totality of its program versu

The Benefits of Reverse E-Teaching in Military Education

The concept of reverse teaching has been around for nearly 200 years. In practice it has led to both strong and poor performance of students. This is often dependent on the motivation of the student and whether or not they are actively reviewing materials and making connections between that information. A paper by Maria Constantinescu (2013) discussed how reverse teaching works with e-platforms in the military.  Reverse teaching is a process whereby the teacher provides the necessary materials and tools for students to understand theoretical concepts. Students study on their own time and then come back to class to show what they know. It is based off of a model implemented by the 1817 Colonel Sylvanus Thayer at West Point who is known as “Father of the Military Academy”.  The same process also occurs in an online environment whereby the instructor provides the right materials and students use these materials to study the concepts. The class is used as a place where they c

The Changing Nature of Military Education

Military education has come a long way over the past hundred or so years. The authors John Persyn and Cheryl Polsen (2012) discuss the changes in military education and how it has adopted new technologies as well as more complexity to match the environments in which members now find themselves. They discuss the trends in military education that includes more distance education as well as higher levels of critical thinking and problem-solving skills.  During the Civil War education was primarily focused on learning how to read. The first textbook was the Bible as this is something many of the military members carried. The skills needed for successful service were relatively simple and the ability to read was of minor concern. As the military grew in ability the needs to read and write instructions become more pronounced.  Today’s military is very complex and even lower rank enlisted members have needs for education and the ability to handle complex equipment. Higher level of