Evening star., 1919-12-28
Plan TO EDUCATE
SOLDIERS OUTLINED
| BY GEN. ". G. HAAN
Useful Trades and Academic
! Studies Will Be Taught
r in Army.

Proposed educational plans which
will make the United States Army a
"vast university in khaki have been
clinched and arrangements are being
completed to make the doughboy the
best educated soldier in the world.
This announcement was made in a
statement issued yesterday by Maj.
Gen. William CT. Haan, assistant chief
OF staff in charge of education and
recreation work in the Army.
The fact that education and recre-
alton as applied to the new Army have
passed the experimental stage and are
already vital factors in the training
of soldier was demonstrated at a
convention of Army educational Of
ficers held at Camp Zachary Taylor.
near Louisville, Ky, on December g.,
10 and II. according to Gen. HAM
Explanation of Plan.
The plan is explained briefly as
follows:
The appropriation of s2.00O,oOo by
Congress. to be devoted to education
al purposes during the fiscal year of
1870. will finance the proposition.
Instructions have been sent to COM
manding generals of all divisional
camps and territorial departments to
appoint officers known as recreation and
education officers to assume direct
charge of the work.
One civilian at least, an expert in
educational lines. will be associated
with the directing officer of this branch
as an adviser in the establishment of
schools and manual training classes
Under the system it is possible for
men to receive instruction so as to fit
them to be carpenters, blacksmiths,
pharmacists, dental assistants, engine
workers, mechanics. craftsmen, stenog-
raphers. truck gardeners, motor driv
ers, repair men, telegraphers, radio and
telephone operators.
Such educational subjects as English,
geography, mathematics. United States
history and modern languages are also
to be taught.
y standard War Department certifi-
cate. to be presented upon display of
a certificate from the local command
ing officer showing the man has COM
pleted course successfully, will be
adopted The possession of such a
certificate by a soldier who has been
discharged with a character of Eek
cellent" will be sufficient recommen-
dation to civilian employers as to the
qualifications of the discharged SOL
dier for employment
NO longer is the Army merely con-
cerned with the making of a recruit
into an efficient fighting man, by Civ
ing him the prescribed system of
military training only for a few hours
of the day and leaving him almost
entirely to his own resources for the
remainder of the day. 1t now as
sumes responsibility for the entire
twentyfour hours of his day. and
sees that every portion is gainfully
spent in useful study or helpful
recreation. In the soldiers life edu
cation and recreation now have equal
places with military training, and
are definitely scheduled in the pro-
gram of daily work.
Gen. Hams Statement in Part.
"All training, whether purely mill
tary or educational, has as it's main
object the development of the soldiers
mind to make him responsible think
ever poorly he may be educated, or
however limited his experience, has
still a thinking mind. and that mind
is active practically all the time. Such
man is perhaps inca pable at the
moment of looking at affairs in a broad
sense, but the object of all training
must be to guide that mind in the
direction of right thinking. In order
to accomplish this the instructor him
self must be able to estimate about
what are the channels Of thought in
the mind of the man being trained, in
order that he may so conduct his own
part of the work as to gain the con-
fdence of the men he is inStructing or
leading
I'm developing the soldiers mind the
most rapid progress is made by plac-
ing upon the man, as early as practic-
able, as much responsibility as he can
stand. This placing of responsibility
on the man stimulates his pride. raises
his self-respect and urges him to
better effort. This is applicable in all
kinds of training. 1t is character
building, frequently called moral train
ing, and the most effective means of
stimulating self-development."