Spring_bok said:
Once a soldier has completed a PLQ he is qualified to teach. The whole CC qualification is not a new debate but the policy is pretty cut and dry right now. I was a crew commander on Roto 13 and when I got back I wasn't allowed to crew command anymore. AVAMS was written off for most guys in the regiment if they had any CC experience. We are seeing guys do at the regiment do a PLQ and a year later do the DP3. BTW at this point in time you do not need to be qualified DP3 to get promoted to MCpl and you don't need to be a MCpl to do a DP3. Point being don't confuse the two. And as far as being a requirement of the trade, most(not all) new MCpls will do a year taking care of the Troop Leader first.
I would argue that post pretty much wrapped up everything into a pretty package: you are taught basic leadership stuff and how to teach. Then you will learn to crew command on the DP3 ARCC (much better now than in the not so distant past). Then get promoted. And then, you will likely gun for (AKA babysit) the Tp Ldr. And then CC. And while babysitting the Troopie (or gunning for a patrol commander or junior, take the time to think about what needs to be done (i.e. put yourself in their mindset and go through what you would do) and LEARN, LEARN, LEARN). The amount of learning and practicing you do on course (ARCC) DOES not make you into Rommel, believe it or not. You may think that you are shit-hot because you passed, but your knowledge at that level is only the tip of the iceberg. I learned far more from instructing MCpls and Ph3 (and PRes equiv), from watching them and the other instructors, and from thinking "what would I do in this case?" and then sometimes learning from the student, because they had a different take on the given situation.
For anybody who thinks that that is not the way it should be, I will state that I am 100% behind the way that it is now, as it was criminal the way it was done in the past (making soldiers CC without proper training). The "mentoring" process that was used "back in the day" probably did little more than to teach people bad habits which then had to be unlearned for the 6A (there's the Regimental way, and then there's the School way: I'll let anybody with a goodly amount of brain power figure out which might be better). Granted there was a higher comfort level (for those with CCing experience who did the 6A) with being used to being on the right side of the turret, but I wish I had been taught properly from the get go. Only so much gets learned through osmosis: most "trained" CCs that I had didn't always go through the correct steps, procedures and/or drills, and most sure as hell didn't take the time to explain what was going on in their head (most probably weren't sure themselves :
).
I used to argue that there should have been Corps (Arty, Engr, Armd) specific modules (that word/concept is only a relatively recent addition to the training lexicon: it used to be pretty much all or nothing) at the end of the CLC/JLC/PLQ, but I suspect the almighty dollar spoke louder than common sense. There was a very large training gap between the CLC (and usually getting promoted to MCpl in a relatively short period) and the time that you were trained on your 6A (in my case, 10 years, with 6 years as a MCpl and crew commanding on 2 SFOR tours (first one only part time, second tour as a Jr Cmdr)), and most people were usually employed in the next rank level role without the requisite training. Again, criminal.
I guess the moral of the story is this: never stop learning and do the best at whatever job you have, as even the most mundane job will give you the opportunity to learn something that you will need in the future (i.e. as a ration NCO or Admin NCO, learn from the Course WO, as logistics (bullets and beans) is something that most jr soldiers don't think about, and it will pay off when you become a Tp WO). And the way things are moving now, I am pretty certain that guys will be wearing a crown on their sleeve when they go up to get their CD in the not too distant future, so start the learning/observing/analyzing now. So don't be like me, and many others: when you're in a position to learn, ask as many questions as you can, and get involved with being on exercise, on course, or on the job; it will definitely make the time go by quicker, and you'll have learned something new, to boot.
Al
