Army Reserve instructors go where you go

Courtesy Photo | Soldiers of the Puerto Rican National Guard and Maj. Erick Vega from Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico, and Capt. Melvin Arreaga from Bayamon, Puerto Rico, work together on a case study of the countries involved in the 1956 Suez Crisis using the Ends-Ways-Means methodology during Intermediate Level Education at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, Sept. 30.  

CAMP BONDSTEEL, KOSOVO

10.22.2010

Courtesy Story

21st Theater Sustainment Command

Story by 7th Civil Support Command Public Affairs

CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo – A 7th Civil Support Command mobile training team deployed to Kosovo and provided educational training to deployed senior captains and majors at Camp Bondsteel Sept. 24-Oct. 4.

The 7th Warrior Training Brigade's Intermediate Level Education Mobile Training Team from Grafenwoehr, Germany, is comprised of three instructors and one intern. The team conducted the training as part of a fully integrated all Army component mission.

The active component provided the facilities, and the Army Reserve provided the instructors who taught students who were National Guard and Army Reserve.

“Our goal is to provide first class training wherever the Soldier is conducting missions,” said Lt. Col. David Craine, the 7th WTB schools commander. “It is much more cost effective and efficient to take a handful of instructors to the students than the conventional way of doing business, which is sending a soldier away for a couple of weeks to the states.”

Craine was able to coordinate with the quality assurance team from the Command General Staff College located in Fort Leavenworth, Kan. The college’s quality assurance team accompanied the ILE Mobile Training Team into theater on one of their earlier rotations where they accredited the course.

Craine has been teaching the ILE course for more than five years from the conventional school house platform. He said the biggest hurdle is accessing CGSC’s Blackboard site. Blackboard is a digital tool that allows students the ability to read course work, review grades and watch streamed videos that apply to course lessons. Blackboard requires a lot of bandwidth to operate.

“A big challenge is the connectivity,” Craine said. “Once you bridge that, we are ready to go, wherever the soldiers need us.”

“I believe it is key to ensuring our fellow deployed officers continue their educational goals, even down range,” he said.

Distance learning is available, but the ILE Mobile Training Team focuses on the experimental learning model that is hard to replicate through distance learning.

The experimental learning model focuses on the learning process for the individual student. It allows students to interact and discuss course materials with their classroom peers and breaks away from the lecture instruction model to more student interaction. Distance learning, or web-based training, does not allow for student interaction as well.

“As educational requirements change for Soldiers, the learning platform must adjust to the conditions of flux,” said Lt. Col. Vincent Buggs, deputy commander, 7th WTB. “The 7th WTB is no exception. Being aligned with [the Joint Multinational Training Command]and 7th CSC allows our command the ability to be operational in nature – to perform a critical mission.”

The program is expanding into teaching multinational and U.S. government civilians. Currently, all multinational students go to Fort Leavenworth, Kan., for ILE training. The 7th WTB is currently working with JMTC to develop a partnership program with multinational countries to participate in ILE training. In June, the 7th WTB had its first government civilian attend ILE in Europe.

“This was a major milestone for the brigade,” said Buggs. “ILE classrooms should reflect the total force that encompasses joint services, civilians and multinational students.”

As the Department of Defense shapes resources for the future force, military education must adapt and redesign itself to support the force with limited resources.

“I do not foresee missions slowing down, so the trainers will have to be prepared to support the warfighter in combat,” said Buggs.

The 7th WTB supports the mission of JMTC in Grafenwoehr, Germany, and the 7th CSC. For more information on Army Reserve schools, please contact Mr. Paul Kendzierski, at [e-mail]

• Date Taken: 10.22.2010
• Date Posted: 10.22.2010 06:38
• Story ID: 58609
• Location: CAMP BONDSTEEL, ZZ