The pseudonymous ‘Steve B’ hits 3 nails squarely on their heads. In ‘A New Approach to Command Post Training,’ (Wavell Room, 10 July 2018) he provides us alongside a study on the electrical flow status of battalion-level ascendancy postal service exercises inwards the British Army, a diagnosis of the malady that plagues such undertakings, together with a promising prescription for a cure for that particular ailment. To endure to a greater extent than specific, ‘Steve B’ describes ‘overly scripted’ events ‘with express ambit for gratuitous play or imagination from either side, argues that these neglect ‘adequately copy the mental together with physical strain of combat’, together with proposes that they endure replaced alongside a smaller number of exercises inwards which consummate brigades engage each other inwards full-scale, free-play plain exercises. The work that ‘Steve B’ describes, the declaration that he makes, together with the solution that he proposes, are far from new. Consider the following, written past times Sir Francis Tuker presently after the Second World War.
“The extraordinary ambivalence of our commanders together with their inability to seize upon the occasion tin sack alone stimulate got been due to the preparation they had been given together with especially to that given at our Staff College inwards England, where the occluding clouds of 1914-1918 hung over the teaching together with settled damply upon all original thought. Gideon together with Scipio Africanus would stimulate got had a sparse time. The swiftness of the coming tactics, of communications together with mechanization, were unimaginable inwards a excogitation which was slowed downward to the mensuration of a Equus caballus pulling a limber, together with to the cavalry ‘Affair of Cérizy’ of 1914.
This spellbinding traditionalism continued at that house until good into the belatedly ‘twenties together with much of it held on until later. Unfortunately, it was thence the designing for the Staff College inwards India. Excellent staff officers emerged, men capable of the highest efficiency, exemplified past times such slap-up projects every bit ‘Overlord’, but inevitably in that location came forth astonishingly few capable fighting commanders for a state of war of manoeuvre. Paper, paper, together with to a greater extent than paper! The diagrammatic rigidity of the 1918 artillery governed battle, together with minds became conditioned past times it.
It should endure forbidden to instruct tactics, fifty-fifty on the ground, at such an institution together with for sure never on paper. Tactics are absorbingly interesting together with especially together with so when full-sized units together with formations are out on the country, gratuitous to human activity against each other inside the loosest of the instructions to the umpires. There is no such affair every bit a tactical doctrine; together with tactics which are mulled virtually together with produced from a junta of instructors are alone the compromise which inwards state of war falls inwards the dust. The involvement of officers together with men inwards the plain of study must endure maintained at all costs; therefore, on no concern human relationship should it endure made the plain of study of an examination.”*
*Sir Francis Tuker, Approach to Battle, (London: Cassell, 1963), pp. 144-145
The sort of exercises recommended past times ‘Steve B’ together with General Tuker are inherently expensive and, every bit a result, volition necessarily endure every bit rare every bit rainstorms inwards the Mojave Desert. Thus, inwards guild to brand the most of such events, commanders volition desire to ensure that all of their subordinates are able to brand the most the experience. In other words, they volition desire to behave preparation that prepares participants to acquire from the things that they do, together with observe, inwards the course of study of large-scale free-play plain exercises.
The most obvious of these preparatory problems autumn into the category of free-play plain exercises on a smaller scale. Less obvious, but also of slap-up value, is the usage of determination games of diverse sorts, and, inwards particular, determination games based on events that genuinely took place. Known variously every bit decision-forcing cases, historical immersion problems, together with historical map problems, these are exercises that house participants inwards the usage of a existent soul (the ‘protagonist’) together with enquire them to solve a peculiarly challenging work that he faced at unopen to betoken inwards the past.
Exercises of this sort are sometimes engaged inwards the places where the historical determination inwards query was genuinely taken. (In that case, they are known every bit “decision-forcing staff rides.”) As a rule, however, the presentation, discussion, together with resolution of decision-forcing cases tin sack accept house anywhere, inwards a classroom, at a sand table, or nether a tree. This makes them cheap, together with thus the sort of affair that tin sack endure done every bit oft every bit fourth dimension permits.
Some decision-forcing cases resemble the ‘decision-forcing illustration studies’ used at the Harvard Business School. That is, prior to discussing the work (or problems) inwards question, participants read articles that depict the province of affairs at hand. In the realm of tactics, however, most decision-forcing cases are ‘conference style’ exercises, inwards which relevant facts virtually the protagonist together with his work are presented inwards the course of study of the discussion. (This is why such exercises are oft described every bit ‘tactical determination games based on existent events’.)
The creation of a decision-forcing illustration is a uncomplicated process. One remove do piffling to a greater extent than than uncovering a adept concern human relationship of a tactical appointment that took house at unopen to betoken inwards the past times together with re-arrange things together with so that the tale is told from the betoken of persuasion of the protagonist. (This means, of course, removing whatever information, such every bit details of the enemy guild of battle together with the intentions of the enemy commander, that could non stimulate got been available to the protagonist prior to his decision.)
Presenting a decision-forcing similarly straightforward. The facilitator (as the soul running the practise is oft called) begins past times telling the tale upward to the betoken where the protagonist is faced alongside his kickoff decision. At that juncture, he picks ane of the participants, addresses him past times the cite together with seat of the protagonist, together with says, “Sir, what are your orders?” This leads to a give-and-take (known every bit ‘the Socratic conversation’) inwards which participants offering upward their solutions to the work at hand, critique the solutions offered past times their peers, together with exchange, inwards a spirit of opened upward together with respectful inquiry, the ideas together with observations that inevitably arise.
The clandestine to the effective appointment of a decision-forcing illustration lies inwards the mental attitude of the facilitator. Neither lecturer nor inquisitor, the facilitator avoids both the making of arguments together with the passing of judgements. Rather, his principal duties are the presentation of problems, the sparking of discussions, together with the provoking of thought. Indeed, inwards the realm of decision-forcing cases, the Holy Grail of facilitation is a give-and-take inwards which participants engage each other to such a score that the facilitator finds himself alongside little, if anything, to do. (In other words, the best facilitator is ane who ‘works himself out of a job’.)
While inherently uncomplicated, the creation together with facilitation of decision-forcing cases is far from easy. Those who undertake this function volition stimulate got a slap-up bargain of ‘unlearning’ to do. In particular, they must rid themselves of the thought that an teacher is a form of informational quartermaster, charged alongside the acquisition, maintenance, issue, together with render of particular facts, arguments, together with items of nomenclature. Rather, they must screen the usage of game master, someone who sets upward situations inwards which participants are forced to devise, describe, together with defend specific solutions to particular problems.
Most of the time, a decision-forcing illustration concludes alongside ‘the residuum of the story’. Also called ‘the reveal’, ‘the epilogue’, or ‘the historical solution’, this is a brusk concern human relationship of the determination taken past times the protagonist together with the results that followed. Not to endure confused alongside ‘the correct answer’ or a ‘directing staff solution’, this provides participants alongside the might to compare their ain solutions alongside something that happened on an actual battlefield. (Some facilitators delay the epilogue until several days stimulate got passed, thereby giving participants fourth dimension to ponder the solutions that they offered inwards the course of study of the discussion. Others betoken players towards the library, inviting them to uncovering the historical solution for themselves Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 few facilitators refrain from providing whatever closure at all. After all, they reason, the betoken of a decision-forcing illustration is non to satisfy curiosity, but to awaken it.)
Those interested inwards learning the fine art of creating decision-forcing cases together with facilitating Socratic conversations volition uncovering much of involvement on The Case Method inwards Professional Military Education . An outgrowth of a decade-long first aimed at promoting the usage of decision-forcing cases inside the USA Marine Corps, this website is percentage of the Military Instructor ‘cluster’ of blogs together with give-and-take forums (https://teachusmc.blogspot.com/).
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