Program comparison1

GEORGIA TECH RESEARCH INSTITUTE Cultural Training Program Comparison for the Human Terrain System Jennifer Rachels Alex Shema Erum Jilani Executive Summary The scope of this cultural training program comparison is to provide information on comparable training programs that could be used as a source to generate ideas for HTS curriculum planning and development. The sponsoring agencies of the cultural training programs currently included (Marines, Department of State Provincial Reconstruction Teams, and Peace Corps) have vastly different needs and duties, but this does not detract from the ability of this overview to delineate common elements of a cultural training program, and to outline how each sponsoring agency has tailored those elements to meet the needs of their trainees in the field. This outline of each program is provided in the first section of the paper. The closing section of each program’s outline contains how this agency’s solutions to its particular needs may also be applicable (or a lesson learned) for HTS. Because each program contained similar elements, the overview lends itself to a matrix presentation comparing each program, which constitutes the second section of the paper. Not considered in this paper are particular training modules offered in these programs. Instead, presented here are the facts of each program’s training needs; pre-deployment activities; training design and supporting materials; administrative, medical, financial and psychological support during training; and performance evaluation. The outcome of this overview may have been inhibited by a lack of materials available for public review. However, this limitation was easily overcome: the details of the training classes delivered weren’t necessary, and our research was supplemented by personal interviews with program participants, blogs, and some second-hand information presented in observer accounts. While this paper is meant to be an overview of these programs for the purposes of directing further inquiry, the authors viewed their sources with a critical eye. Past training participants revealed that some of the direct information that is available for review presents an idealized version of the training program’s operation and the future duties of the participants. Again, firsthand accounts and other supporting material overcome this problem. Both the Department of State’s Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) and Peace Corps had a wealth of information available on the materials used in training, and criticisms of participants. The idea that cultural differences create and exacerbate military conflicts is not new, but the creation of an institutionalized program to handle diffusing or understanding those cultural differences is still in its early stages. As a result, this paper included the Peace Corps- a long-standing program that requires a heavy concentration on cultural knowledge. Also included is the training Program for the Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Iraq and Afghanistan. This program operates in a similar area to the current HTS operating theater, and is also evolving rapidly as the State Department learns more about the program’s successes, challenges, and shortcomings. This paper can grow as relevant programs and materials are discovered. US Air Force’s cultural training program is a current candidate for inclusion in to our overview framework. Also, the cultural training programs of armed forces in other countries may be included in future research. Table of Contents Marines Corps Cultural Training Program Requirements Organizational Needs The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is a relatively small force compared to the other services. For this reason, the Corps has a propensity to grant high levels of authority to junior level officers, adapt relatively easily to changing times and adopt unorthodox methods. As an organization the Marines are purposefully decentralized, making it an adaptive and flexible force. The flexible nature of Marine Corps operations is not at odds with disciplined operations. In preparing for Marines Corps military operations, there are standard considerations during the mission planning phase. These come under the rubric of METT-T: Mission, Enemy, Troops and support available, Terrain and weather, and Time. In some cases, particularly in urban environments, METT-T becomes METT-TC (C= Civilian considerations). As military operations become meshed with nation- building activities, and battles are replaced with long-term counterinsurgency efforts, “C becomes ‘civilian cultural considerations’.” Historically, the Marines Corps prioritized cultural studies and training in “soft skills” for its men and women. Marine Corps cross cultural training teaches Marines how to operate within the operational culture of a society, first focusing on cultural concepts which can be applied to all cultures and then focusing on specific areas of operation. The Marine Corps refers to the intersection of military operations and culture in the area of operation as “operational culture”. For the individual Marine, cultural education makes the understanding of culture operationally relevant. The philosophical basis of Marine cultural education is, in USMC terms, the “Five Operational Culture Dimensions of the Battlespace”: ,[object Object]

Beliefs and IconsThe training audience Integrating culture in the military domain is turning into a basic component of basic Marine Corps training. The Marine Corps cultural training, and the trainee, differ according to where the trainee is receiving their training, and the location of that training diifers, most often, along the lines of rank and career status. Insert here: table w/ description of the Marine that attends PMW, PTP, and MCU++++++++++ Professional Military Education (PME) At the initial levels of structured military training, whether it be the enlisted Entry-Level training and Marine Combat training or Officer Candidates School and The Basic School, new Marines are taught to receive and respond to culture as a mainstream part of being a Marine. At the level of second lieutenant at The Basic School and sergeants in EPME Marines start to grasp the Five Operational Cultural Dimensions (discussed later in this paper). Pre-Deplyment Training (PTP) Marines Corps University Pre-Training Activities Qualification of the trainee Administrative, Financial, psychological Support Provided by during Pre-Training Activities Training Design, Methods, and Supporting Materials The content, delivery, and philosophy of cultural training for Marines differs according to the rank, deployment status, and career status of the Marine. For instance, the basic PME delivered to all Marines is not concerned with learning about specific cultural groups or specific regions of the world. Instead, PME’s primary focus is on developing appropriate intercultural skills and introducing concepts appropriate to any area of operation. PTP provides the utilitarian, region-focused, specific knowledge for which PME is the basis. PTP makes Marines deployment-ready for their operating environment, providing basic cultural information specific to the Area of Operation (AO). Marine Corps University The Marine Corps University (MCU) was founded on August 1, 1989 and is located at Quantico, VA. The schools within the MCU claim a much longer history dating to 1891. The University’s main objective is to: “Develop, deliver, and evaluate professional military education and training through resident and distance education programs to prepare leaders to meet the challenges of the national security environment…” >>>>>>>Do they sit in a class? Lecture style? Projects? In a true university setting? Homework? Papers? As stated in the introduction, the philosophical basis of Marine Corps cultural training is the Five Operational Culture Dimensions of the Battlespace: environment, economy, social structure, political structure, and beliefs and icons. According to the USMC philosophy, all cultures are organized according to this set of dimensions and these dimensions can be applied to any culture in the world. The five dimensions are derived from three anthropological models applicable in military operations. Table +++++Anthropological Models and the Explanation of Conflict ModelDefinition of modelMilitary operational applicationOperational Culture DimensionsEcologicalFocuses on the relationship between cultures and the physical environmentWar is related to battles over limited resources.Dimension 1: The Physical EnvironmentHow does a cultural group determine the use of the physical environment? “Who has access to important physical resources”, and how does the culture view those resources (“e.g. land is owned or free to everyone”).Dimension 2: The EconomicHow do people in a culture “obtain, produce, and distribute physical and symbolic goods” (e.g. bartering or monetary systems)Social StructureFocuses on the influence of social structure on peoples ranking in societyConflicts results from vying plays for power in an unequal social structure.Dimension 3: The Social StructureHow do people organize the political, economic, and social relationships? How does the organization influence “the distribution of positions, roles, status, and power within culture groups”?Dimension 4: The Political StructureWhat are the “political structures of a culture group and the unique forms of leadership within such structures (bands…councils, hereditary chiefdoms…).” What are the distinctions “between formal, ideal political structures versus actual power structures”?SymbolicFocuses on a group’s beliefs, symbols and rituals.War is an unevitable conflict over identity and ideology between competing systems.Dimension 5: Beliefs and SymbolsWhat are the “rituals, symbols and practices associated with a particular belief system” that “influence a person’s world view”? ++++++++++comment HOW BASIC USMC TRAINING ELEMENTS ARE APPLIED IN DIFFERENT OPERATING ENVIRONMENTS Dimension 1: The Physical Environment Training PhilosophyOperationally Relevant Components the Marines should be trained to assess and evaluateQuestionsThe location of villages and towns are often dependent on the location of food, water and material for shelter. Modern day roads and cities could be built based on ancient trade routes.WaterWhat are the cultural rules about water’s use? What roles are expected of Marine personnel with respect to water use and provision? What is the relationship between water use and ritual? What is the symbolic significance of water? Who customarily has what jobs, roles, and functions with respect to water? Who, in the AO, has customarily controlled access to water, and how have they used that for power, influence, etc.? What is the scarcity of water in relation to intensity to use? What kinds of operational considerations are influenced by water,or override cultural aspects of water as a physical resource? LandWhat are the symbolic meanings of certain sub-districts in the AO, and how do groups within the AO view this symbolism differently? What are particular land formations that are visually striking, with local significance?What land in the AO is/is not appropriate for certain groups of people to use? Who, locally, has legitimate ability to determine outsiders’ access to land? What are the local conventions of private, communal, and state ownership/use of land? What is the relationship between the political map’s national/regional boundaries, and what people living in the AO see as the boundaries that matter, in political, economic, genealogical, and security terms? What are the geographic area’s principles of division, and relationship between dividing lines and access to both tangible and symbolic resources? FoodWhat are the local staples, and what is the required labor to grow, prepare and serve them? What kinds of locally-accepted foods are considered strange, dangerous, or not even food to less-traveled Marines? What foods—eaten either by U.S. personnel or by local people are so out of place as to raise concerns about health or sanitation? What foods are served by whom, to indicate the status of server or guest? How do Marine operations or logistics impact the ability of local people to obtain essential foodstuffs? What foods have which kinds of ritual significance? What are the time- or calendar-related roles of what kinds of foods?Which foods are strategic commodities, inasmuch as controlling access to them influences one’s coercive or political power? What, in local terms, is considered food sufficiency, food scarcity, and the proper role of external forces in providing food? Materials for ShelterHow do structures fit the geographic, climatic, and physical aspects of the environment? What do the internal and external appearances and materials used in structures communicate about building purpose, occupant status, etc.? What materials for building, repair, and maintenance are local to the AO? What are the central tactical implications of building styles, neighborhood layout, etc? Climate and SeasonsHow does the climate influence local attitudes to, and capabilities for work, business, and combat? What is the relationship between climate and season, on the one hand, and battle rhythm and operational tempo, on the other? What, in local terms, passes for good weather, bad weather, etc?Fuel and PowerWhat are the locally found, or locally produced sources of power and fuel? What is the relationship between local elites and access to/provision of fuel and power?How does the larger government authority provide, or control access to power? What do local people expect of outside forces in terms of power/fuel provision and protection? What are local work-arounds to deal with shortages of power and fuel, and how do Marine operations impact them? What local issues regarding power and fuel are overshadowed by more pressing operational considerations? Dimension 2: Economic Training PhilosophyOperationally Relevant Components the Marines should be trained to assess and evaluateQuestionsEach of economic model provides a different approach to understanding economic relationships. As a result, all three models can be seen as explaining economic behavior using complementary rather than mutually exclusive perspectives. This means that in any AO: 1. There will be an informal economy 2. The informal economy will exist intertwined with the formal economy 3. Economies will work as networks of exchange 4. Economic interactions will structure social relationships Thus, no one approach here provides a complete picture. Marines will probably find they use all three methods of analysis when working in a new region. Formal and informal economic systems What categories of people are active in the AO’s informal economy? On what commodities/services does the informal economy focus? What is the relationship between the informal economy, on the one hand, and unregulated movement of people, crime, and violence, on the other? How will Marine operations impact the informal economy and the people in it? How will the Marine impact on the informal economy influence attitudes of certain sectors of the population to the Marine presence? How does the formal economy rely upon the informal economy, and what abuses of the AO’s population does this cause? What opportunities exist for the AO’s population, based on the formal economy’s relationship with informal economic practices?What are formal/informal economic actors’ expectations of the state or over-arching political-military authority, with respect to involvement in or disregard for economic activity? What is considered an “illegal” good or service in the AO, on what basis? What goods/services are legal, but culturally frowned upon? Who deals in these goods/services? How will Marine expenditure in the local informal economy, or employment of local informal economic actors, influence the socio-economic balance of power in the AO? Economy as a network of exchange How are important physical resources (food, clothing, shelter, cars etc.) obtained by local peoples? How do people gain access to critical services such as medical care, transportation, or education? Would a specific operational plan improve or block access to critical goods and services? What is the degree of (in) equity in the distribution of goods and services among the population? Who seems to control the distribution of goods and services, and how? Would a planned operation change this distribution pattern? Along with or instead of money, what do local peoples rely on to obtain and exchange goods in the region? If money is not the primary economic system, how could the operational plan be adjusted to use the existing alternate economic systems effectively?Economy as a way of structuring social relationships What are the main economic systems in place in the region (pastoralism, agriculture, industrial production—all three may be present simultaneously)? What are the economic rhythms of the community (migration seasons, planting and harvesting, market day, work hours)? What are the important features of the environment that determine the economy of the AO? How is wealth distributed? Does wealth seem to be concentrated in the hands of certain individuals or groups? On what basis? How do local economic structures reflect the relationship of the group to the larger political and state system? Dimension 3. Social Structure Training PhilosophyOperationally Relevant Components the Marines should be trained to assess and evaluateQuestionsA social structure consists of how societies distribute power and status within the group. This structure places boundaries on people’s behaviors, and limits access to certain people. This structure also connects individuals and groups, and defines the kinds of interactions they can have. AgeAt what age is someone considered a child or adult? What specific ceremonies mark the transition to adulthood? Which new social privileges are granted to men and women when they pass these manhood or womanhood rituals? What are locally accepted or expected economic roles for what U.S. society considers children? How should Marines prepare to respond to children that act as soldiers in militaries or insurgencies, or participate in violent activities against U.S. forces? What special status or roles are accorded to the elderly? Is there an age grading system that stratifies people according to their age and stage in the life cycle? And if so, what rights, roles and duties do people have at each stage? GenderWhat work, roles, activities and spaces are assigned predominantly to men and women? Who undertakes which tasks and where? In what ways must operational plans be adjusted to account for the different work, roles, and spaces assigned to men and women? What roles do women play in local militaries and insurgencies? Do they engage in armed combat? If women are not visibly observable, what roles and tasks do they undertake ‘behind the scenes’? How can operational plans and assignment of manpower include gender to maximize effectiveness of the unit? Kinship and Tribal MembershipHow are land, water, or access to certain goods and resources concentrated in the hands of specific kin groups or tribes? How will our operations in the region support certain kin groups and enhance their power; or conversely undermine these groups? What are the possible outcomes of an operation that will chal-lenge the power or control of resources by certain kin groups in the region (war, insurgency, increased stability, greater/lesser access to important goods and services)? How does a Marine’s choice of local points of contact interact with or disturb local kin relationships, thus influencing the degree of success of Marine initiatives?ClassHow is class defined in the AO: on the basis of wealth, education, region of origin, inheritance, or other factors? What are the privileges (economic, political, social, religious) of members of the upper class? How is access to essential resources for survival (food, shelter, clothing, water) determined by class? How does the concentration of wealth (through corruption, graft, or legitimate means) in the hands of an elite upper class relate to resource or power access? In creating a plan to support lower class groups, will funds and resources have to pass through the hands of the upper class first (and consequently disappear)? What is the reality of upward mobility in the AO’s class system, and what do local people consider to be their potential for in-system upward mobility? How will Marine measures that influence different groups’ social mobility be viewed by those groups, or by other, competing groups? EthnicityWhat is the relationship between particular ethnic groups and control of professions or positions of formal or informal power? How do groups that are barred from these positions of power challenge the system (breeding grounds for insurgents, theft and bribery, civil war)? What are local assumptions about U.S. and western biases and partisanship with respect to ethnic group struggles?How will a Marine alliance or dealings with a particular ethnic group affect those in power? What are the possible reactions of those groups that are ignored? Religious MembershipHow do people define and express their religious membership in the region? What roles and status do the various religious groups or sects hold in the larger society? What is the meaning of geography for religious groups in an AO? What effects would a planned Marine operation in the region have upon the power, status and access to critical resources of the various religious groups or sects? How will the Marine operations influence indigenous peoples’ views of Marine or U.S. biases towards different religious groups of the social structure? Dimension 4: Political Structure Training PhilosophyOperationally Relevant Components the Marines should be trained to assess and evaluateQuestionsPolitical structure refers to how cultures determine who leads the group and how decisions are made for the basic welfare of a group.We define political structure as: “The way that power and leadership are apportioned to people, and exercised, according to the social structure of the society.” This suggests that for the culture operator, “politics” is not the study of presidents and political groups, it focuses on something more nuanced: - The way that a culture group determines who has power and control (who is a leader and what admired traits of a leader are). - How that power is legitimized and exerted over whom.- How and why conflicts over power and control emerge within and between groups. A central term of reference in this chapter is “power,” which should be distinguished from “authority.” - Power is the ability to control or influence the behavior of individuals or groups of people. - Authority is the legal or popularly granted per mission to exercise power. It is legitimacy in the exercise of power. For the Marine, two things must be distinguished here. First, one needs to remember that authority does not always equal power—just because a person holds authority does not mean they always have the means to exercise power. Second, “in mapping the dynamics of power and authority in a society, it is important to distinguish between formal political structures—often created by an outside force, such as an occupying military—and local political organizations developed from within the cultural group. Externally-imposed power structures are often viewed as illegitimate by local peoples and can result in a “weak state” with little effective power or authority over local communities. Likewise, in such situations, formal, or “modern” political structures can be animated by informal, “traditional” practices and norms reflecting existing social structures.” AgeAt to their age and stage in the life cycle? And if so, what rights, roles and duties do people have at each stage? Genderassignment of manpower include gender to maximize effectiveness of the unit? Kinship and Tribal MembershipHow are with or disturb local kin relationships, thus influencing the degree of success of Marine initiatives?Classdifferent groups’ social mobility be viewed by those groups, or by other, competing groups? EthnicityWhat is the Religious Membershipinfluence indigenous peoples’ views of Marine or U.S. biases towards different religious groups of the social structure? Dimension 5. Belief Systems and Icons Training PhilosophyOperationally Relevant Components the Marines should be trained to assess and evaluateQuestions A belief is a certainty, “learned through inherited group experiences and practices, about the substance and meaning of phenomena and human activity. An individual’s beliefs are relatively immune to influence by personal experiences and the environment.” There are two things that should be noted when it comes to belief systems:First, beliefs influence people in the way in which they perceive their world, resulting in a specific world view that structures and affects the way that people in the group interact with each other. A second point is equally significant, though perhaps less clear. While it is easily accepted that a group’s beliefs cause behavior, the reverse is also true: behavior causes group beliefs. “People create relationships with each other, among groups, and with the environment. These relationships emerge and evolve in the form of structures— social and mental. Subsequently, in a group of people these relationships and structures need to be explained or justified as normal and proper. Cultural beliefs perform this function. Finally, these beliefs condition the way later generations of the group understand the substance and meaning of phenomena and human activity as related to their particular relationships and structures.” Icons are prominent in both folktales and remembered histories. Icons are individuals who become larger than life and symbolize many of the positive (or negative) values of a society. “Historically, icons were physical objects felt to represent a deity or holy person. Today, icons are often heroes with almost superhuman abilities—the mere mention of their name can evoke a shared memory and inspire certain kinds of actions or attitudes among a group of people. The icons thus become role models, helping members of a cultural group to learn—often without being aware of it—the values of that group.” History, Imagined Memory, and Folklore What are the pivotal historical stories that all people in the community share?How do different groups in the AO give different significance to the same historical stories? What are the daily sayings and folktales that everyone refers to in common conversation? How are these remembered histories, folktales and sayings used to emphasize or teach important values and ideals? How are these histories, folktales and sayings used to support propaganda for or against Marine and U.S. activities in the region? IconsWho are the local heroes? What important qualities do these heroes embody? Who are the local villains? Why are they villainous (what makes them evil)? Are the heroes or villains compared to Marines or Americans? What do the comparisons illustrate about local attitudes towards the U.S. and the military? Symbols and CommunicationWhat physical symbols (clothing, headdress, scarification, insignia) indicate membership or status in the ethnic, religious and social groups of the region? What physical and written symbols (signs, graffiti, fences, spiritual markers) are important to be able to recognize in order to navigate and understand what is happening in the region? What words or phrases are essential for basic communication with local people?What non-verbal behaviors may be misinterpreted by local people? Which non-verbal behaviors (such as seating patterns) are important to understand in meetings and negotiations? RitualsWhat behaviors and actions are important in the ritual or ceremony and what does this reveal about cultural ideals and values? Who participates in the ritual, and what roles do the participants play? What does presence of participants, or the nature of their participation, say about their membership and status in the group? What does the public performance of the ritual communicate to outsiders? How is this performance potentially a politically charged statement about the group’s status and rights within the larger society? What activities, not related to the ritual or ceremony itself, occur at ceremonial gatherings, due to the social status of the participants?Norms, Mores, and Taboos What food and behavioral taboos exist in the region? What norms should Marines, even though they are foreign to the AO, observe? What underlying allegiances or codes of honor could influence the success of an operation? What activities in the area are considered serious violations of social mores and could carry serious punishments including death?What beliefs or assumptions exist locally about American practices as regards local norms, mores, and taboos? What might the local people think (or have been propagandized to think) Marines are likely to disregard in terms of local norms, mores, and taboos? Religious BeliefsWho is the actual leader of the local religious community? How do religious leaders relate to the educated elite vs. popular groups, etc.? What is the basis of authority for a “religious” leader in the AO: book learning, lineage, charisma, etc.? What are the actual (versus theoretical/textual) religious practices in the specific AO where the Marine operates? How do local practices of a religion the Marine has encountered elsewhere differ from what that Marine thinks the religion is “supposed” to look like? What power and role, if any, does the formal religious system play in local peoples’ daily lives? What conflicts or disagreements exist between the formal religious system and the local religious practices of the AO? How prominent is “religion” as an explanatory factor for people in current events, and in reference to history, or historical trajectories? What is “the way the world is supposed to be” according to locally-held religious beliefs, and how does the Marine presence impact that? Dimension IV. Political Structure Operationally Relevant Components of the Political Structure consist of the following: Political Organization Cultural Forms of Leadership Challenges to Political Structures Below are Cultural Operators Questions for Political Structure: Leadership How is decision-making organized, and who gets to make make decisions? What are the principles and processes governing policy deliberations and decision-making? Who do leaders have to consult, and to whom must they answer? How is leadership obtained and passed on (by election, inheritance, demonstration of skill, membership in a certain age or social group, by force)? Who are formal leaders and what symbols indicate status? If one needs to get something done, to whom do people turn? What is relationship between the formal and informal leader? Conflicts over Power What are the most important cultural characteristics that determine one’s position and power in the community (age, class, gender, tribal identity, ethnicity, religion)? What is the degree of polarization in the region with respect to religious/ethnic/tribal identities? What is the amount of flexibility and interaction between religious/ethnic/tribal groups? Which groups hold power, to what degree of concentration? Which groups are excluded, and along which axes? What is their degree of consciousness of exclusion? How possible do group leaders think it is to challenge the system? How do marginalized and losing groups gain access to valued goods and resources and opportunities? How will alliance with one group affect Marine relationships with the other groups? Marines must use the aforementioned dimensions and principles of culture in a flexible and creative manner. It is stressed in the Marines Corps that incorporating culture into operations is as much an “art as it is a “science”. One formula does not fit all cultures and only an intellectually-informed Marine performs to achieve operational success. Foundation of Current Day Cultural Training of the Center for Advanced Operational Cultural Learning (CAOCL) The first tour of commissioned and noncommissioned officers who returned from the OEF Theater started a grassroots cultural renaissance within the Marine Corps. These officers had taken it upon themselves to provide local unit-level cultural and language classes with little guidance from above. Lt. General James N. Mattis took this grassroots effort and became the main driving force behind institutionalizing the Corps cultural charge. Upon returning from Iraq in 2004 and dissatisfied with the cultural training his marines had received, Lt. Gen. Mattis spearheaded training changes for the Corps. He established the Center for Advanced Operational Cultural Learning (CAOCL) in Quantico, VA, within a year of returning from theater. CAOCL was created under the Marine Corps Training and Education Command (TECOM). The Center has been fully operational since May 2005. Evolution of Training The Marine Corps evolution of cultural training in contemporary history has gone through three phases. The first of these phases initiated in 2003 and was given the name quot;
Cultural Sensitivity Trainingquot;
. This first phase was a rudimentary culture crash course in the history of the region and a cultural taboos course. The main aim of the course was to provide marines with a list of do's and don'ts while in theater. In 2004 this training evolved into quot;
Cultural Awareness Classesquot;
. Now Marines were being taught contemporary history, political legacies in the region and lessons on the visible religion of Afghanistan. The class was taught by troops and personnel who had just returned from theater and that had identified the loops and gaps in previous cultural training. Therefore first hand observations and recent experiences became a foundation for the course. In 2005 the course evolved once more into quot;
Tactical Culture Trainingquot;
or quot;
Operational Culture Trainingquot;
. This course embedded all the tenants that quot;
Cultural Awareness Classquot;
had instated and added one important aspect to the Marines cultural training: human dynamics training. Cultural teaching moved away from quot;
how not to offend othersquot;
to quot;
how to work with othersquot;
. CAOCL The CAOCL is the central tenant in the Marine Corps which provides cultural terrain training. The CAOCL has a four-part strategy to increase language proficiency and cultural awareness: provide pre-deployment training for Marines departing for Iraq and other locations; enable the formal service schoolhouses to provide officers and enlisted personnel with a permanent, continuous language and cultural education capability; establish Language Learning Resource Centers (LLRC) throughout the U.S. to provide basic and advanced training; and create a Career-Marine Regional Studies Program which will provide a higher level of educational programs on language and culture in a variety of regions of the world. The CAOCL also sponsors Mobile Training Teams (MTT) to supply pre-deployment training for units at their home base. The training is tailored to each units specific needs and to the Marines rank and function within the unit. A junior Marine will receive about seven hours of tailored CAOCL- provided pre-deployment training, whereas a senior Marine will receive between 10 to 15 hours of training. Aside from teaching daily aspects of life on the street in the operational area, a second follow on MTT teaches low-level training skills which include ‘150 phrases that pay’ in Iraqi-dialect Arabic, broken down by functions. Examples of phrases include teaching junior Marines 10 phrases in the language that are most useful when conducting a vehicle checkpoint and teaching battalion commanders the 12 phrases needed when meeting a local sheik. For career Marines, second-tour sergeants and company grade officers above second Lieutenant the CAOCL will provide additional training to “near expert” status in a specific country of region based upon threat forecasts by the Marine corps Intelligence Activity. Beginning at the Sergeant’s Course all enlisted Marines will receive cultural awareness training which will continue through a series of distance learning classes as the marine moves up in the officer ranks. Through this initiative, with aid from the DLI as well as local experts like university Ph.D. holders, these Marines will also receive 160 hours of training in an assigned language. In this way the Marines Corps is creating an officer class in which all officers Sergeant level and above will be near regional level experts. The CAOCL website is currently a work in progress therefore much information is not available to the public. Other Sources of Cultural/Language Training The Marines Corps also has other ways, other than the CAOCL, to provide its personnel cultural and language training. Cultural intelligence is also now being taught at the Marine intelligence schools and the Marine Corps Intelligence Activity develops a range of detailed ethnographic studies to support expeditionary operations. The Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Institute (DLI FLC) provides training in language for those individuals that need high-order foreign language proficiency for their duty assignments. DLI teaches 23 languages plus several dialects and is regarded as one of the finest schools for foreign language instruction in the world. An emphasis is placed on communicative competence on real-life situations. Through fiscal years 2007-2008 the Corps is establishing Language Learning Resource Centers (LLRC’s) which provide computer-aided training in DLI-level language labs where language instruction can be tailored to the unit’s mission. Evaluation and Metrics The Marine Corps Center for Lessons Learned (MCCLL) is part of the Training and Education Command (TECOM) and is located in Quantico, VA. The MCCLL mission is to collect, analyze, manage and disseminate knowledge gained from operational experiences in order to enable the Marines to achieve higher levels of performance. The MCCLL has created an internet-based information vacuum to capture combat and cultural lessons for analysis and promulgation and provides an evaluations and metrics system for the training marines have received. The website also has extensive classified repositories on tactics, techniques and procedures for combat units supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. The new Marines Corps Order 3504.1 also calls for the submission of After Action Reports from Battalion levels down to the MCCLL. The Center also produces monthly newsletters that capture important lessons Marines have learned in the field and news about Marines Corps operations. Unfortunately only authorized viewers can access the MCCLL website therefore more information cannot be drawn from this source at this time. Analysis The Five Dimensions that the Marines Corps focuses on when teaching Cultural Studies should be evaluated and perhaps integrated into HTT training curriculum. These five dimensions are derived from three anthropological models which possess utility in military operations. The first model is the Ecological Model which focuses on the relationship between cultures and the physical environment; the second model is the Social Structure Model which examines the influence of social structure on peoples ranking in society; the third model is the Symbolic Model which studies a group’s beliefs, symbols and rituals (48). These models should be reviewed and perhaps integrated into Introduction to Anthropology and Research Methods courses. A Summary of the Five Dimensions and their Components At this time within HTS there is a broad focus on these dimensions in both Iraq and Afghanistan but perhaps delving into the subcomponents of these dimensions can provide HTTs a better grasp of the AO to which they are about to be deployed. A key point in Marines Corps Cultural training is to make everything taught Operationally Relevant to the mission. This is a point that HTS needs to embrace and work towards achieving. Another theme which can be applied to HTS from the Marines Corps is the concept of providing conceptual training before region specific training. Having the Research Methods course and Introduction to Anthropology before Iraq Regional Studies and Afghan Immersion may give trainees a good grasp on anthropological concepts before delving into area of operation specific knowledge. The Cultural Operator’s Questions that the Marines Corps uses for each dimension can be a great source HTT’s when planning and carrying out Rapid Ethnographic Assessment Protocol in the field. The questions are focused and formatted in a way that can be utilized with any culture to reap great knowledge and benefits. The HTT debriefing system may be able to benefit by looking in depth into the Marines Corps Center for Lessons Learned. It is necessary that After Action Reports be given by both HTT’s returning from field and the BCT’s using these HTT’s. The lessons learned from individuals and team HTT experiences can be invaluable in helping shape both training for HTT’s and future fieldwork and need to be captured and evaluated in an efficient manner. Peace Corps Service Training Program Requirements Organizational Needs Peace Corps is an agency of the United States government, officially established on March 1, 1961 by President John F. Kennedy. Over the past 47 years, 195,000 Peace Corps Volunteers have served in 139 countries around the world. Today, about 7,800 Volunteers serve in 76 countries. At its core, the Peace Corps is a goodwill program. Peace Corps Volunteers perform community development projects identified by the host country, with organizations that request to host a volunteer. The Peace Corps requires that the hosting organization assign a staff member as a counterpart to the Volunteer. Skills transfer to this counterpart is the main goal of a Volunteer’s service. Other bedrock components of the Peace Corps program, as outlined in the Peace Corps Volunteer Handbook: ,[object Object]

A Peace Corps Volunteer is “on duty” seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day. Public behavior, including internet communication, personal conflicts and news media coverage of work or social activities is subject to administrative scrutiny.

Peace Corps volunteers are not allowed to do business in the host country while in service. “Business” includes, but is not limited to: buying property, owning a car, and starting a business (some country directors even include marriage).A statement on the Peace Corps Romania website reflects the nonmilitary, apolitical, areligious strategy of the Peace Corps: “Peace Corps is not a political, religious or donor organization and Volunteers reflect America's ethnic, social, political, age and economic diversity. Volunteers are motivated by a desire to support others and to experience another culture by living and working in a host country. Their projects with schools and organizations include accomplishments in the diverse fields of education, environment, health, social services, business, culture, technology, and youth development.” The mission of the Peace Corps is simple: •To help the peoples of interested countries and areas in meeting their needs for trained men and women; •To help promote a better understanding of the American people on the part of the peoples served; •To help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of the American people. The training audience With an average age of 27, Peace Corps applicants tend to be physically and psychologically healthy and free of legal, financial, and social encumbrances that would interrupt their service commitment. Most are required to have an undergraduate degree, with some exceptions for highly unique programs and extraordinary individual applicants. The youth of many volunteers also creates a need to among Peace Corps training staff to manage sexually inappropriate behavior and substance misuse/abuse among trainees who may be unaware of the danger their behavior creates in the host country. Increasingly, Peace Corps recruiters are focusing on older volunteers (mid-career professionals and senior citizens), which may have differing medical needs, and greater potential for financial or legal complications. As a result, there is some softening of the entrance requirements. As of September 30, 2008, Peace Corps had a total of 7876 volunteers in the field. Most of these serve in language education (35%) and public health education (21%), with the remainder working in agriculture, business, or other more specialized unique projects. The most commonly reported skill and preparatory education among Peace Corps trainees is public health education. The skill least reported among trainees is construction/trade (although dozens of volunteers are placed in construction and trade host sites every year). Diversity remains low, with 17% of Volunteers self-identifying as “people of color”. 60% of volunteers are female. In 2001, there were three Volunteers over the age of 75- all of them serving in Romania. In 2008, the oldest Volunteer was 84. In terms of distributions from among the states, the state with the most volunteers currently serving in the Peace Corps is California, with 911. Nine states have seen an increase of 40% or more in the number of its residents serving in the Peace Corps. They are: Oregon, Washington, Illinois, Michigan, Georgia, Kansas, Indiana, Ohio and North Carolina. But Vermont, with 10 volunteers per 100,000 residents, has the highest per capita rate of participation. Pre-training Activities The application and screening process In general the application process, as stated on the Peace Corps website, is: A step-by-step overview of the application and how to complete it. This is your opportunity to tell us why you should be in the Peace Corps.Your recruiter contacts you to set up an interview. How to prepare for this important step.Your recruiter's recommendation. What it means, and what comes next.Health and background screening. What to expect and what you'll need to do during this time.Congratulations! Get ready for the adventure of a lifetime. Screening for psychological, financial, legal, and medical eligibility must be passed in order to be accepted in to the training program. See Appendix ++++++++ for more information on the application process. Information regarding the automatic disqualification on medical grounds can be found here: http://www.peacecorps.gov/multimedia/pdf/library/peacecorpsmedinfo.pdf. See appendix ++++for a copy There is no correct estimate for the average Peace Corps application process. Time from application to the first day of training could be a year or three months. Variables contributing to the Applicant-to-Trainee timeline are: ,[object Object]

the time needed for the applicant to clear medical, legal, or personal barriers to acceptance in to the program

the training cycle of the countriesAdministrative, Financial, Psychological Support Provided by the Peace Corps during Pre-training Activities It is important to note that all legal fees, medical payments (including the removal of wisdom teeth, the most common medical expense), and other costs incurred during the application process are covered by the volunteer, with no reimbursement upon acceptance in to the training program. Also, the trainee is given access to the online “Toolkit” offered by the Peace Corps website. This Toolkit guides the applicant throughout the application process, and upon acceptance in to the program, provides the trainee with information about the country where they will serve. There are a variety of ways applicants learn about the program. Official websites, such as www.peacecorps.gov, and host country sites like http://www.peacecorps.ro/index.htm are easily accessible. The Returned Peace Corps Volunteer network is also active through the National Returned Peace Volunteer Association, and provides guidance to applicants who attend formally hosted events. Intake Once the applicant receives an invitation to serve from the recruitment office, they are considered a Trainee. The trainee is told when their term of service will be, and when they will leave the country. A few weeks before training is to begin, the trainee receives a packet in the mail with material introducing them to in-country host country staff, general Peace Corps information, and a plane ticket to Washington, DC. The aforementioned Toolkit contains an extensive amount of country-specific information. MP3 language lessons, reading lists, and google groups are part of the trainees’ self-directed training as they wait on their day of departure. The first training event is called “staging”. All trainees for a particular host country are flown to a staging center, where they undergo further screening, an orientation to Peace Corps terminology and history if given, and tickets to the host country are distributed. In some cases, immunizations are begun at this time. Additional screening may include: a doctor requesting to see an injury reported by the trainee during the application process; a line-up where all volunteers prove they possess two pairs of glasses, three months of medications, and no wisdom teeth; and a psychological evaluation. Staging usually lasts two or three days, and includes several social activities. Some volunteers terminate the training process at this point, for various reasons. Training After staging, the Trainee enters the formal Peace Corps training program, called “Pre-Service Training” (PST). Trainees are not considered Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) until they complete training, nor are they eligible for any of the benefits designated for volunteers. The goal of Peace Corps training is to equip the trainee with the basic skills they need to work and live in the country of service at a basic level until they acquire the skills they need to be successful on their own. The average training lasts 12-15 weeks, and usually includes the following topics: ,[object Object]

Religion and Culture of the Host Country

Technical Training (subject relevant to the role of the volunteer)

Language Training (except in Latin America, unless the training director can accommodate indigenous languages)

Cross-Cultural SkillsTrainees are sent to the host country in a group, based on the sector they will serve. For instance, trainees in the TEFL sector will all train together. Three months later, volunteers in the Small Business Development sector will train. Returned and Current PCVs and current and former Peace Corps staff have contributed to the Peace Corps wiki group- a website, facebook page, blog, and RSS feed service that provides extensive information on the Peace Corps operating environment, training program, and living conditions for each country where the Peace Corps is/has been throughout its history. While the site is unofficial (and even contains a disclaimer box visible on all pages), it is widely used as a resource. Many handbooks and Peace Corps training materials are found there. The examples in Table TYPICAL PEACE CORPS TRAINING are drawn from the Peace Corps Wiki page, and Appendix +++ contains a screen shot of the home page. For every country, there is a strong component of in-service training. During these meetings, Volunteers debrief and discuss lessons learned. Often, in-service trainings are the only opportunity a trainee can have to meet volunteers outside their sector, who live in other towns. TABLE: HOW BASIC PEACE CORPS TRAINING ELEMENTS ARE APPLIED IN DIFFERENT OPERATING ENVIRONMENTS (for use as an example) Country: ArmeniaTraining Period: 11 weeks Training PhilosophyTechnical TrainingLanguage TrainingCross-Cultural TrainingHealth TrainingSafety Training“…we build upon the experiences and expertise you bring to the Peace Corps. … We anticipate that you will approach training with an open mind, a desire to learn, and a willingness to become involved…Upon arrival in Armenia, you will go to the Peace Corps training center a few hours outside of Yerevan. After a brief orientation period, you will move into a host village within an hour of the training center. In the host village, you and other trainees (about 15 to a village) will live with a[n] Armenian host family for the majority of your training period, allowing you to gain hands-on experience in some of the new skills you are expected to acquire. “ Training PhilosophyTechnical TrainingLanguage TrainingCross-Cultural TrainingHealth TrainingSafety TrainingThe training approach is best described as discovery-oriented and self-directed. Based on adult learning methods, it emphasizes individual responsibility for developing the competencies to function independently as a Volunteer. …The key to the training system is that training events are integrated and interrelated, from the pre-departure orientation (staging) through the end of your service, and are planned, implemented, and evaluated cooperatively by the Peace Corps staff, the training staff, and Volunteers. Technical training will prepare you to work in The Gambia by building on the skills you already have and helping you develop new skills in a manner appropriate to the needs of the country. Technical training will include sessions on the environment, economics, and politics in The Gambia and strategies for working within such a framework. You will review your project’s goals and will meet with the agencies and organizations that invited the Peace Corps to assist them. You will be supported and evaluated throughout the training to build the confidence and skills you need to undertake your project activities and be a productive member of your community. You will find that language skills are the key to personal and professional satisfaction during your service. These skills are critical to your job performance, they help you integrate into your community, and they can ease your personal adaptation to the new surroundings. Therefore, language training is the heart of the training program, and you must successfully meet minimum language requirements to complete training and become a Volunteer. Experienced Gambian language instructors teach formal language classes five days a week in small groups of four to five trainees. Your language training will incorporate a community-based approach. In addition to classroom time, you will be given assignments to work on outside of the classroom and with your host family. The goal is to get you to a point of basic social communication skills so that you can practice and continue to learn the language once you are at your site. Prior to being sworn in as a Volunteer, you will work on strategies to continue language studies during your two years of service.One of the most important aspects of the training program is the experience of living with a Gambian host family. There is no other way to learn as much about Gambian attitudes, customs, and day-to-day life. Your host family can be invaluable in helping you learn the language and in introducing you to other members of the community. Many Volunteers form strong and lasting friendships with their host families. Cross-cultural and community development training will help you improve your communication skills and understand your role as a facilitator of development. You will be exposed to topics such as community mobilization, conflict resolution, gender and development, nonformal and adult education strategies, and political structures. During pre-service training, you will be given basic medical training and information. You will be expected to take responsibility for your own health by adhering to all medical policies. Trainees are required to attend all medical sessions. The topics include preventive health measures and minor and major medical issues that you might encounter while in The Gambia. Nutrition, mental health, safety and security, setting up a safe living compound, and how to avoid HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are also covered.During the safety training sessions, you will learn how to adopt a lifestyle that reduces your risks at home, at work, and during your travels. You will also learn appropriate, effective strategies for coping with unwanted attention and about your individual responsibility for promoting safety throughout your service…. The Country: GambiaTraining Period: 10 weeksThe Country: KyrgyzstanTraining Period: n/a Training PhilosophyTechnical TrainingLanguage TrainingCross-Cultural TrainingHealth TrainingSafety TrainingTraining is an essential part of Peace Corps service. Our goal is to provide you with the information you need to live and work effectively in the Kyrgyz Republic. You will receive training and orientation in language, cross-cultural communication, area studies, health and personal safety and security, and technical skills relevant to your specific assignment. The skills you learn will serve as a foundation upon which you will build your experience as a Volunteer in the Kyrgyz Republic. You will study either Kyrgyz or Russian, based on the language used most at your future site. For your first two days in-country, you will stay at a training facility in Bishkek, after which you will move to the permanent training site located approximately half an hour outside of the capital. Once there, you will live with a host family in a rural village or small town with a few other trainees. While you and your fellow trainees will meet as a group, you will also have a chance to experience Kyrgyz customs on your own with your host family and on technical field trips. These experiences will help bring to life the topics covered in training and will give you the chance to practice your new language skills and directly observe and participate in Kyrgyz culture. At the beginning of training, the staff will outline the goals and competencies you will need to reach before becoming a Volunteer and the criteria that will be used to assess your progress. Evaluation of your performance during training is a continual process that is based on a dialogue between you and the programming and training staff. The training staff will assist you in achieving the goals by providing you with feedback throughout the training process. After successfully completing training, you will be sworn in as a Volunteer and make final preparations for departure to your assigned site. Technical training prepares you to work in the Kyrgyz Republic by building on the skills you already have and helping you develop new skills in a manner appropriate to the needs of the country. The Peace Corps staff, with the assistance of Kyrgyz experts and current Volunteers, will conduct the training program. Training places great emphasis on learning how to transfer the skills you have to the community in which you will serve as a Volunteer. Technical training will include sessions on the general economic and political environment in the Kyrgyz Republic and strategies for working within such a framework. You will review the goals and objectives of your project and meet with the Kyrgyz agencies and organizations that invited the Peace Corps to assist them. You will be supported and evaluated throughout the training to build the confidence and skills you need to undertake your project activities and be a productive member of your community. In addition to regular classroom sessions, you will be given assignments to work on with your community, school or organization… … The initial period of language study will incorporate a community-based approach. In addition to classroom time, you will be given assignments to work on outside of the classroom and with your host family. The goal is to get you to a point of basic social communication skills so that you can practice and develop language skills further on your own. Prior to your swearing in as a Volunteer, you will work on strategies to continue language studies during your two years of service. …Prior to leaving the United States, you will need to log onto My Toolkit on the Peace Corps website to download MP3s and corresponding language lesson manuals of both Kyrgyz and Russian to familiarize yourself with the sounds of the languages and give you a head start on some of the basics. Becoming familiar with the Cyrillic alphabet prior to your arrival can also help minimize some of the culture shock when you first step off the airplane. As part of pre-service training, you will live with a Kyrgyz host family. This experience is designed to give you firsthand experience with the local culture and an opportunity for regular language practice, easing your transition to life at your site. Families have gone through an orientation conducted by Peace Corps staff to explain the purpose of pre-service training and to assist them in helping you adapt to living in the Kyrgyz Republic. Many Volunteers form strong and lasting friendships with their initial host families. Cross-cultural and community development training will help you improve your communication skills and understand your role as a facilitator of development. You will be exposed to topics such as community mobilization, conflict resolution, gender and development, and non-formal and adult education strategies. You will also learn about Kyrgyz politics, history, and arts. The Kyrgyz people take great pride in their poets, writers, artists, and composers, so awareness of their cultural achievements is an important aspect of adapting to life in the Kyrgyz Republic. During pre-service training, you will be given basic medical training and information. You will be expected to practice preventive healthcare and to take responsibility for your own health by adhering to all medical policies. Trainees are required to attend all sessions. The topics include preventive healthcare measures and minor and major medical issues that you might encounter while in the Kyrgyz Republic. Nutrition, mental health, alcohol-related issues, safety and security, and how to avoid HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are also covered. Safety and security training will be provided throughout your Volunteer service and will be integrated into language, cross-cultural, health, and other training components. During safety training sessions, you will learn how to adopt a lifestyle that reduces your risks at home, at work, and during your travels. You will also learn appropriate, effective strategies for coping with unwanted attention and safety issues, and your individual responsibility for promoting safety throughout your service. You will be expected to follow Peace Corps policies as well as country-specific safety and security policies and procedures throughout your service, and to report any safety and security issues to the relevant Peace Corps staff. You also will be trained to fulfill certain responsibilities that are part of Peace Corps/Kyrgyz Republic’s emergency action plan. Administrative, Financial, Psychological Support Provided by the Peace Corps during Training All Peace Corps Trainees are issued the following publications during training: ,[object Object]

Peace Corps Life Skills Manual

Volunteer Handbook (with administrative forms, human resources information, etc.)

Language materials (flash cards, workbooks)

Medical information (in some countries, the ubiquitous Where There is No Doctor, but possibly also Our Bodies, Ourselves)Medical and program staff are available to Peace Corps trainees during the normal business day, but evenings are spent with the host family, or in informal group learning activities. At these times, there is an on-call staff member available. This staff member may be off site, but within an hour’s drive of the Training Center. Analysis Pre-training activities The Peace Corps, as part of its formal training program, has used technology to provide extensive training materials and guidance to applicants and trainees before formal training ever begins. There are several factors contributing to this: ,[object Object]

The age of volunteers drives the demand for online and electronic materials

The mandate from Congress to change the nature of administration for federal government programs to one where most business is conducted onlineBut Peace Corps also has a long tradition of Returned Volunteer activism and involvement in Peace Corps program administration both formally an informally, and this also contributes to the plethora of materials available for trainees. Indeed, it is the oft-cited “third goal” of the Peace Corps to share knowledge about their country of service when they return. The most common way for a RPCV to do that is to help prepare future volunteers. They do this through “Invitee” socials hosted by RPCV groups, forming open online communities (such as Peace Corps Wiki), and through directly recruiting trainees and guiding them through the process before the leave for the host country (this is not a formal program, and is actively discouraged by Peace Corps staff). It is from these people that Trainees learn what to pack, how to pack it, and what to bring to trade in the host country- the most pressing questions of every Trainee. Training Design and Supporting Materials In a survey of the training descriptions provided on the Wiki site, and based on the author’s own experience, the theme of self-directed training is a strong one throughout the discussion of training design. When a training need is expressed by trainees, it is often another trainee that meets that need by delivering a lecture or coordinating an activity to share their own education or skills developed in their pre-Peace Corps life. Phrases like “individual responsibility” and “the most important aspects of the training program is the experience of living” (both from the Gambia) are repeated, ad nauseum, throughout the written supporting materials of all Peace Corps countries. Hands-on learning is central to the Peace Corps training approach. Extended family stays (with families trained to create problems for the volunteers to solve), mini internships during PST, and role play learning are employed for every lesson. While in many classrooms these sorts of activities would augment a lecture, in Peace Corps training they replace them almost completely (During the author’s training in Romania, we derisively referred to this as the scavenger hunt approach to learning.). Peace Corps Trainees are trained as a sector group. That is, all community health trainees arrive in-country together, train together, and have in-service training together throughout their service. They are deployed to site, however, as part of a site team with several different sectors represented, or even individually. This is in contrast to the HTS method of training individuals who just happened to be hired around the same time. Administrative, Medical, Financial and Psychological Support Support provided by the Peace Corps administrative staff is highly variable and dependent on the conditions present in the host country, the number of volunteers hosted in the country, and the personalities of the staff. All Peace Corps posts have U.S.-certified doctors and medical assistants specific for their volunteers and trainees. Peace Corps also has access to the military and civilian network available to military and State Department staff in the country. The trainees have daily contact with medical staff, in addition to training modules personally delivered by medical staff. Occasionally, a financial or personal crisis at home may cause a trainee to have financial, emotional, or administrative difficulties. In that case, computer, phone, mail, and fax services are made available to the Trainee at no cost. Every attempt is made to accommodate the Trainee, including free round-trip plane tickets for 10-day home stays for Trainees mourning the death of a sibling, parent, or child. The Trainee is expected to stay with the program, however. Performance Evaluation A Peace Corps trainee is evaluated largely on their own training goals developed with their sector director. However, there are standard goals for all volunteers: The Peace Corps requires that all volunteers acquire a minimum of Intermediate-Low (one level above beginner) on the American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) interview test before they can be sworn in as Peace Corps volunteers. Some countries require this level before they can begin training, and others require a higher level at the end of training. Volunteers are given as many chances as they need to take the test to pass it. Volunteers who excel in other areas of their training may be sworn in without achieving that level of skill, but they often make an agreement with the country’s language Director for future performance goals. Trainee attendance for all health and safety training is mandatory and there are no acceptable excuses. Training sessions are given on a one-on-one basis for trainees who missed their group’s original training. Some training sessions require that the trainee pass a quiz to successfully complete the module. Note the standard language in the Table TYPICAL PEACE CORPS TRAINING, which reveals a heavy emphasis on a Volunteers’ personal responsibility for their own safety. The volunteer handbook, although it is not mentioned in the Peace Corps Wiki, is a major training topic, and all volunteers receive an entire day of training on it. Trainees sign for receiving the book, and can be referred to it often throughout training when they ask administrative questions. Administrative separation, a term used by Peace Corps, is analogous to “termination for cause”, and is used for Trainees/Volunteers who demonstrate an unwillingness to learn language skills, attend classes, take responsibility for their safety, or exhibit a possible substance abuse problem. Medical separation is possible for Trainees/Volunteers who develop a medical condition while training, or for whom emotional or psychological problems cannot be controlled reliably with medication. More information about administrative separation can be found in the Peace Corps Volunteer Manual. Department of State’s Provincial Reconstruction Teams Program Requirements Organizational Needs PRTs are civilian-military, interagency organizations that were formed to promote economic and political stability in areas disrupted by recent armed conflict. PRTs act as liaisons between the US Government (USG) and provincial leaders in Afghanistan and Iraq. PRTs and Provincial Leaders ideal collaborate on what the most effective techniques for reconstruction will be. The teams range from 60 to 100 people. The makeup of PRTs in Afghanistan and Iraq is very different. The Afghanistan teams were developed in 2002 as a joint effort between Operation Enduring Freedom and Coalition Forces. Of the 26 PRTs in Afghanistan, as of April 2008, 12 were lead by the U.S. These teams should ideal “consist of 50-100 personnel, of which only 3 or 4 members are USG civilians or contractors.” The three of four civilians usual consist of one member from the State Department (DOS), one from US Agency for International Development (USAID), and one from US Department of Agriculture (USDA). The other members of the team are military personal. The teams are lead by an Air Force Lieutenant Colonel or Navy Commander. The other military personal are composed of two Army civil affairs team, a military police unit, a psychological operations unit, an explosive ordinance/demining unit, an intelligence team, medics, a force protection unit, and administrative and support personnel. The Structure of teams in Iraq is very different. First of all, there are only US PRTs working in Iraq, currently 24. Of these 11 are traditional PRTs (similar in size to those in Afghanistan) and 13 are embedded PRTs (ePRTs) that consist of 4-12 civilian and military personnel embedded in a combat brigade. The Iraq PRTs are lead by a State Department senior Foreign Service Officer (FSO). The deputy team leader is an Army Lieutenant Colonel and Staff. The Iraq PRTs, unlike those in Afghanistan, are ideal meant to have a throng of USG civilians including: a rule of law coordinator from the Department of Justice (DOJ), a provincial action officer from DOS, a public diplomacy officer from DOS, an agricultural advisor from USDA, a development officer from USAID, a governance team from RTI International, Inc. (a USAID contractor), and a bilingual cultural advisor (usually an Iraqi foreign national or a civilian contractor). In addition to this much larger collection of civilian PRT members, there are several military members including: a multinational force Iraq liaison officer (a U.S. military officer), an engineer from the Gulf Region Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a U.S. Army Reconstruction Team made up of Army civil affairs soldiers, and a military movement team or protective security detail made up of U.S. military or contract security force. The makeup of the ePRT is very different from the PRTs in Iraq and Afghanistan. The embedded PRTs live and work with Regiments or Brigade Combat Teams. The core team is made up of 4-12 people including: a DOS leader (usually Senior FSO), a USAID deputy leader, an Army civil affairs officer, and an Iraqi bilingual, bicultural advisor (similar to a political Foreign Service national). The team could also include specialists in governance, business, budgeting, rule of law, and agriculture. Pre-Training Activities The interagency approach and size of PRTs makes the recruitment and formulation of teams difficult. The military component of the PRTs is made up a combination of Air Force, Navy, and Army personnel. These people serve a one year tour on PRTs. Members of the military are asked to volunteer for PRT service. If they do not volunteer, they are “forced” to join. The military skill set found to be the most useful on a PRT is a civil affairs (CA) background, but trained CA personnel are not always easy to find. Because of the coercive powers of the military, finding enough military personnel to staff the PRTs has not been as much of an issue as civilian staffing. The ideal candidates to man the civilian portion of PRTs are senior level FSOs and USAID field officers. DOS, USAID, and USDA have had trouble recruiting enough seasoned personnel to go into a dangerous combat zone. Most of the civilian personnel are taken from DOD or in some cases are civilian contractors. The skill set sought after for PRTs seems to be based on specialized experience in certain needs areas (such as budget analysts, industrial advisors, city management advisors, etc.). The ideal civilian candidate seems to be personnel with experience in stabilization and development and people who have worked in Iraq or Afghanistan. There is no available information at this time on the hiring process beyond the initial job announcement. It may be inferred, however, that the hiring process is more relaxed since the PRTs are having trouble finding enough civilian staff. To try to mitigate this problem in the future, DOS has developed the Civilian Response Corps. The mission statement of this new program is: “To lead, coordinate and institutionalize U.S. Government civilian capacity to prevent or prepare for post-conflict situations, and to help stabilize and reconstruct societies in transition from conflict or civil strife, so they can reach a sustainable path toward peace, democracy and a market economy.” This corps will be equivalent to an Army Reserve for civilians with the necessary skills and acquired training to aid in reconstruction efforts. The ability to have a quicker reaction time to post conflict stabilization should help, in the future, to staff PRTs and other civilian stabilization projects. Training Afghanistan Training for PRTs “evolved in an ad hoc manner over time.” As it stands now, there are two very distinct training programs. One for US PRTs headed to Afghanistan and one for PRTs headed to Iraq. As stated in the introduction, the Afghan PRT training is probably the most regimented and operationally relevant. This can probably be attributed to the fact that around 95% of the PRTs sent to Afghanistan are military personnel. The military members of Afghan PRTs receive training at Fort Bragg. This training consists of three weeks of PRT mission specific classroom training for senior team members. Then, the rest of the military members arrive for more general pre-deployment training (a combination of classroom and field training). The field training exercises is similar to pre-deployment field training for all military personnel. The 1st Army Division East runs a training simulation in Fort Bragg. This simulation consists of a “real” Afghan village, where deploying PRT members have to focus on economic development and stability as well as traditional military tactics. PRTs are not written into the exercises at the National Training Center (NTC) or the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC). Most of the military leaders of the Afghan PRTs, in addition to training at Fort Bragg, participate in ICT and site surveys with the commanders they will be replacing. Iraq In stark contrast to the mission specific training the Afghan PRTs receive, as of April 2008 there was no PRT-specific training for military personnel going to Iraq. DOS has developed PRT-related classroom training that is conducted at the Foreign Service Institute. This classroom training is available to USG employees, but is not a requirement for serving on a PRT. There is no military pre-deployment training for PRT civilians going to Iraq. They do receive some ICT on force protection. Military personnel and DOD civilians and contractors do receive non-PRT specific, pre-deployment training at the Combat Readiness Center in Fort Benning. The military personnel also receive force protection training in Kuwait or Iraq. Analysis This section will focus on the lessons from PRT training that HTS can potential use to help shape their own training program in the future. In analyzing the PRT training for the purpose of applying lessons learned to HTT training, it is import to note the differences between PRTs and HTTs. While it is obvious that the makeup of most PRTs is very different from HTTs, the other important difference is the difference in mission. The stated mission of the HTTs is “to provide commanders in the field with relevant socio-cultural understanding necessary to meet their operational requirements.” The stated mission of PRTs is “to improve stability in a given area by helping build the host nation’s legitimacy and effectiveness in providing security to its citizens and delivering essential government services.” These important differences in mission shape the training and structure of HTTs and PRTs. Despite these differences, there are some lessons to be learned from PRT. The applicability of PRT training to HTS will be discussed in the following section. Pre-training Activities A full analysis of the pre-training activities is difficult to make given the lack of complete information available in open source materials. The hiring of several civilian contractors and DOD employees to fill the slots that would ideally be filled by senior FSOs and USAID field officers leads to an assumption that the PRT program is having trouble recruiting enough qualified personal. As the HTS has found, finding these experienced personnel who are will to go on one year tours in Iraq or Afghanistan is very difficult, and the holes in hiring are being filled with civilian contractors. The infancy of the Civilian Response Corps (CRC) makes it difficult to analyze the effect this program has had on recruitment, but the concept of having in reserve a robust corps of trained men and women who can rapidly respond to a crisis situation does seem like a move in the right direction. A future evaluation will be needed to test if this program has decreased the use of civilian contractors and unqualified personnel. If the CRC is successful, this may be the only lesson that HTS can learn from PRT pre-training activities. Several preliminary reports show that the PRT recruitment has been as difficult as the initial HTS recruiting was, but having a corps of civilians pre-trained in reconstruction and stabilization may be the answer to solving both the hiring problems of the PRT as well as HTTs. While filling the military positions on PRTs has been easier (since military personnel can be forced to serve on PRTs), the rate of volunteerism has not been high. This is due to several factors which may also dissuade military personnel from volunteering to be on HTTs. The first, and seemingly most important, is that serving on a PRT is not viewed as an advantage or even on the same level as conventional military service. This means that PRTs are not given the same priorities for promotions as other military personnel. The second is that the tour for Air Force PRTs, one year, is longer than the standard tour for conventional Air Force personnel, seven months. This increase in tour length does not incentivize people to volunteer for service. Finally, military personnel who serve once on a PRT are more likely to be “asked” to serve again because they have acquired experience in stabilization and reconstruction activities. For many military personnel, this may increase the overall time they are required to serve in a combat zone. To mitigate these problems with recruitment, PRTs as well as HTS should establish an agreement with DOD or DOS, whereby special privileges or incentives are given to personnel who serve on PRTs or HTTs. Training The training for US PRTs headed to Afghanistan seems to be the most advanced and organized training for PRTs. This is especially true for military PRTs, who receive mission specific classroom and field training. Despite the disorganized nature of the FSI training, there may be some specific training programs that HTS can adopt and incorporate into their own training. The specific classes being taught at the FSI are very close to those needed by HTS. These training classes include: COIN, Iraq area studies, Islam in Iraq, and interagency cooperation. The only information available online for this training are the FSI schedule of courses and a brief description of the interagency PRT training from IDS International. Due to the overlap in training, contacting FSI and IDS and inquiring about more in depth material on their training programs may be beneficial to HTS curriculum development. Evaluation There is no formal evaluation material published for PRTs. According to an article published by American Forces Press Service, the PRTs training to go to Afghanistan are “evaluated not only by military training cadre, but also by members of the State Department and other government organizations,” throughout their training at Fort Bragg. This evaluation is not systematized, and it is difficult to determine if this evaluation is punitive or merely intended to improve performance during the training. There is also no information on if or how PRTs are evaluated in the field (at the individual or team level). Individual PRT members have lamented the fact that they were not given specific objectives or clear metrics for if their objectives were achieved. While some may feel measuring the success of stability or reconstruction operations is difficult, there seems to be a consensus that it is possible. There is also no publically available information on the administrative, medical, and psychological support provided to PRTs during training or in the field. The problems encountered by PRTs in program and individual evaluation are similar to the problems encountered by HTS. Because the PRT program is so much larger, however, there is more objective oversight being performed. While it is not evident that this oversight has lead to any institutional changes in the PRT program, there is hope that the continued publicity of the problems occurring will lead to some changes. Unfortunately, the PRT program is working from the same disadvantage as the HTS program. Both were begun after the war had started, and making changes to programs during war times seems to be very difficult to accomplish.

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