Military Education: A Reference Handbook

(Hardback)

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Description

Professional Military Education (PME) is broader and more rigorous than is widely understood in the United States. Improving educational programs within the military service branches is at the very center of ongoing force transformation efforts and advanced educational opportunities occur at various, set levels of military experience. Military education increasingly conforms to standards imposed by outside civilian accrediting bodies and is mandated and monitored, to an extent, by Congress. Military Educationexplores this often-overlooked area of education within the context of the modern military force structure. In this unique work, Watson chronicles the evolution of professional military education during the last sixty years. Careful to draw distinctions between training and education, she briefly traces the history of PME and examines some of the major personalities involved in shaping it, as well as the evolution of the curriculum stressed in PME programs. Her narrative, combined with key documents, a glossary, and a timeline of important events, dispels popular notions of an uneducated military force.

Reviews

As the Long War gets longer the adequacy of professional military education will increasingly come under scrutiny. More soldiers and scholars should focus on the issue so that when the questions are asked, they have good answers. Watson's Military Education may be a good place to start. * ARMY *
Watson outlines the development and history of professional military education since the 1800s, describes its curricula and specific institutions (along with contact information for them), and details the biographies of key figures such as Theodore Roosevelt and Dwight Eisenhower. Roughly half of the volume is taken over by documents representing samples of a wide range of topics, from founding orders of institutions to education policies. Document dates range from 1946 to 2006. * Reference & Research Book News *

Author Bio

Cynthia A. Watson has been Professor of Strategy at the National War College since 1992, serving as a core course director, Associate Dean of Faculty and Curriculum, Director of Faculty Development, and Director of Electives. She earned a Master's Degree from the London School of Economics and a Doctorate from the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Watson has authored several books on security issues, including Nation-Building (2004), U.S. National Security (one of CHOICE's top books of 2002), U.S. National Security Interest Groups (Greenwood, 1990), and was contributing co-editor of Political Role of the Military (Greenwood, 1996). She has written many articles as well. Her current research interests revolve around China's growing role in Latin America.