Film and Radio Guide (Oct 1945-Jun 1946)

10 Volume XII, No. 8 of well-established teaching and testing techniques. There was lavish use of training films, models, and other teaching aids, but these were intended to supplement, not to substitute for, competent teaching. Perhaps the single aspect most characteristic of the armed forces’ training programs was their reliance in so far as possible on learning by doing; in particular, on learning by working with materials and machines in the same setting in which they would be found on the job for which the trainee was being prepared. As regards the second misconception, it must be observed that the objectives of the two programs are so radically different as to make a general comparison of their relative achievements pointless. Judging the training programs of the armed forces in terms of the realization of their legitimate objectives, we find them successful far beyond the most optimistic original expectations. However, it should be recognized that these objectives were quite limited in scope. Most of them were concerned with the development of technical skills usually involving mastery of only a few processes or machines. Furthermore, where an objective was concerned with imparting an attitude or a mode of behavior, it was always an attitude or behavior pattern determined by military requirements, and therefore specifically defined and imposed upon the trainee from above. Indeed, it was this very definiteness of the basic objectives which permitted the efficient simplicity and directness of the programs that were organized to attain them. Different Goals In contrast, consider the objectives of the secondary-school FILM AND RADIO GUIDE A Classroom Film for English Teachers ^^The 8 Parts of a Business Letter” 1 REEL, SOUND, 16MM Written and Directed By William Lewin Chairman, English Department Weequahic High School, Newark Produced by Q. R. Taylor Rental, $1.50 Sale Price, $24.00 INTERNATIONAL THEATRICAL & TELEVISION CORPORATION 25 WEST 45th ST., NEW YORK 19 program. Certainly, they can not be limited solely to providing training in specific skills. The development of character, the imparting of democratic ideals, the presentation of at least a basic minimum of the general knowledges and cultures necessary for intelligent citizenship (as well as for more interesting living), and perhaps above all, the stimulation and training of the capacity to think — these have been and must continue to be among the great goals of the educational program in a democracy. What is more, the program can be truly successful only in so far as the attitudes, ideals, and behavior patterns it seeks to establish are finally the result of the student’s own selection and initiative. The differences between the two programs stand out even more sharply when we consider the ultimate function of the trainee. In the armed forces, he is being prepared to assume a specifically defined role in a highly regimented organization. He is a cog in the machine. It is not necessary for him to understand the over-all situa tion in which he functions, nor is he permitted to criticize or make decisions about it. All his time and effort are disposed of in detail by the military organization, and such initiative as he may wish to exercise is sharply limited by the requirement of strict obedience. In the public school, on the other hand, the individual is being prepared to exercise intelligently the wide freedom and initiative that a democratic society permits. Understanding of the complex social picture is necessary not only for the individual’s success, but also for the success of the whole society of which he is a member. As a citizen, it becomes his duty to criticize and help improve the conditions under which all must live, and the stimulus for such action and progress must arise out of the individual’s own initiative and sense of social responsibility. Analysis Granting the limited character of the objectives of the armed forces’ training programs, their phenomenal success still remains an important edu^ cational fact. It is illuminating to analyze some of the elements of that success. 1. Motivation : The outstanding factor in the armed forces’ training program was the willing learner. Being at war provided so unchallengeable a motive for learning that it was unnecessary to “sell” any of the programs to the trainee. The trainee was not merely willing. He was anxious to learn anything that would help him to function better in the military environment. 2. Concentration : The conditions under which the trainee lived in the armed forces favored the concentration of his maximum energy and effort on