 The latest weapons, coupled with the fighting skill of the American soldier, stand ready on the alert all over the world to defend this country. View the American people against aggression. This is the Big Picture, an official television report to the nation from the United States Army. Now to show you part of the Big Picture, here is Sergeant Stuart Queen. From its very birth, the United States Army has stressed in its training those qualities which make a man a good soldier. Courage, perseverance, discipline. But in a broadening era of science and discovery, when increasing demands are made on the citizen's ability simply to understand the facts which dominate his life, the bearing of arms also becomes a more complex work. And the modern soldier today needs more than his courage, his perseverance, and his willingness to obey orders. He needs those qualities which education gives him. For that reason, the Army today considers the education of its men to be of great importance. This is the story of education in the Army, which we bring you today. There are many classrooms in the Army, many levels of instruction, many courses of study. But here is one that stands in a group by itself. It is an Army class on an Army post. The students are soldiers. And the curriculum? Well, the curriculum is the three Rs. Reading, writing, and arithmetic. The basic stuff of education, the fundamental tools of literacy. Why does this classroom exist? Why is it necessary for the Army, whose primary job is seeing to the nation's defense to provide these soldiers with the educational rudiments which properly occupy the attentions of a schoolboy of 10? The answer to this is sobering, not only to the Army, but to the nation as a whole. Approximately 500,000 young Americans come into the Army each year. On the basis of an Armed Forces qualification test, which they all take, one out of every three of these men falls into Mental Group 4, a classification which means that their understanding is dangerously low, so low as to handicap their performance as soldiers. There are varying reasons for this. One reason is that many of these men have had little schooling, for there is a relationship between a man's capacity to understand and the education he has had. These tests show that 19 out of every 20 men coming into the Army have sufficient education to be good soldiers. But one out of every 20 has not achieved the level of a fourth-grade grammar school education. Regardless of the factors which may have brought about this situation, it is a problem and a responsibility which the Army cannot escape if it is to develop the type of soldier required in these days of modern warfare. To the Army, charged with the responsibility of converting these men into effective units of a complicated fighting machine, these grim facts represent immediate and urgent problems. The transformation from civilian into soldier is expensive, both in time and money. It costs some $3,200 to provide a basic soldier with 16 weeks of infantry-type training. For each such investment, the Army, in order to operate at maximum efficiency, should be able to count on an effective soldier who can fight if the need arises. The Korean conflict proved what Army leaders have known for a long time. The training alone, no matter how conscientiously given, can never do the job completely. For in the end, the individual's performance as a combat soldier depends heavily on his own basic intelligence, supplemented by his educational background. Casualty rates grimly bear this out. Although enemy fire is no respecter of persons in battle, there is nonetheless a real relationship between intelligence and battle casualties. Not only because men with less intelligence suffer disproportionately high casualties, but also, tragically, because they can cause them. Of an infantry squad of nine men, the basic Army unit, four positions require varying degrees of leadership and technical ability. Qualities which demand both intelligence and the tools education must supply if basic intelligence is to function. If these men do not have the ability to handle their jobs, the entire squad will suffer. Four men out of nine. But three men out of every nine coming into the Army have never been able to develop their intellectual abilities because of substandard education. And behind the fighting lines, there is always a vital need for soldiers with sufficient education to handle all the demanding technical jobs necessary to keep a complex modern Army operating. So the problem becomes serious. Deadly serious. This is the fundamental problem that educational deficiency poses for the Army. Behind it, there are many others which add up to exorbitant costs in time and in money, and in those intangibles which drain part of an Army's strength. From the least intelligent and the most poorly educated of the Army soldiers, comes the greater part of the Army's disciplinary problems, most of the crimes and the infractions of regulations. Again, these soldiers are less stable emotionally and they suffer most of the chronic psychosomatic ailments. The simple execution of day-to-day duties demands that every soldier be able to read and understand. And finally, there is the morale problem which illiteracy brings. The soldier who never receives mail from home because he can't read or write. The soldier who is embarrassed because he can't count well enough to carry on simple commerce. These are unhappy men and because their unhappiness may lead them into trouble, the Army must recognize them as potential problems. These are some of the reasons why this classroom exists. To provide men who need it with the basic educational tools which transform a man from an illiterate into one who can read and write and reckon and thus develop whatever basic intellectual ability he possesses. Without this training, which is the equivalent of a fourth grade education, the Army cannot use these men effectively. Since World War II, the Army has worked at the problem of its poorly educated men. Now, using civilian teachers in schools like this one at all reception centers in the country, it handles the problem as soon as the men come into the Army before they are ever assigned to a unit for basic training. Although the primary purpose of this training is to benefit the Army, the benefit to the men themselves is incalculable. Some of these are men who, in spite of the millions of dollars spent for public education and the devotion of many thousands of school teachers, had no opportunity to learn before they came into the Army. Others didn't take the opportunity. But now, most all of them are eager to learn and they respond enthusiastically to this chance to develop themselves. For many, the first chance of their lives. Manning Menace will continue reading about the Declaration of Independence, which we started yesterday. Private Cameron, will you read please? We hold those to be self-truths. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life and liberty and pursuit of happiness, that too secure the rights of men are instituted among men, driving these just powers. They're just powers from the consent. All right, class, that'll be all for today. Be caught outside to your sergeant. With basic educational subjects, these students are instructed in military subjects, which will make their adaptation to Army life easier. During the four-week period of training, the Army has an opportunity to observe these men well. Those who are judged to be incapable of learning can be processed out of the Army quickly, thus saving serious problems and much useless expense later. But with the greater part of them, the training pays off for themselves and for the Army. They are the ones who show promise that now, with the advantages of this instruction, they will be able to train as soldiers and do their Army jobs well. An investment is yielding returns for the individual soldier, for the Army, and for the nation. Each time one of these men successfully completes his course of study and receives a certificate of fourth-grade equivalency, a certificate which is both an identification of the literacy he must have and a promising indication that he has the fundamental equipment to become a good soldier. Although training in the very elementary educational areas is a most important part of its educational program, the Army's interest in schooling does not by any means stop there. Its next step, in fact, is to provide an eighth-grade education for those soldiers who do not have one. Some installations like Fort George G. Mead, Maryland, make this training compulsory for soldiers who have not completed grade school. Even where it is not compulsory, however, all soldiers have the privilege of receiving this kind of education. The Army provides the teachers, the classrooms, and even in some instances, duty-training time. Group study classes, not only in the elementary grades, but at high school and college level too, are conducted at Army installations all over the world. Wherever there are enough students with an interest in a certain course, the Army sees to it that that course is made available to them. The soldier devotes his own time for most of these group study courses are taken off-duty, usually at night. But the Army supplies the teachers and the facilities. The Army encourages instruction on every level for the same reason that it makes education on the lower level compulsory. The greater a man's education, the greater his value to the Army. And the better a soldier he is, the better a citizen. These group study classes are conducted in various ways and serve various purposes. Some are for the primary purpose of developing the soldier's Army job specialty so he can progress quickly in the service by meeting specific job requirements. Some are taken for high school or college credit and some are taken by soldiers who simply want to learn something new. These students who are learning to speak German will be prepared to use their German language when their military job calls for it. Part 7, Statement 61. Eine Zigarre ist eine Pfeife. Eine Zigarre ist eine Pfeife. Group study courses built around the time tested close relationship between student and teacher are the most successful. But they are not the only method of study in the Army. For the specific educational need of every soldier, there is a specific educational method designed to help him most. To aid the individual soldier in learning exactly what his own educational needs are and exactly what opportunities are available for him to fulfill them, the Army provides an expert counseling service by civilian educators qualified by long training and experience. Have a seat, won't you? Since your last visit here, you have written to your high school principal, haven't you? Perhaps, sir. Well, that's fine. We have received a high school transcript of your schoolwork completed, which I have right here. In the transcript, you will need several additional courses in order to meet the requirements for high school graduation. Now, one of these courses in history, you may be able to take through enrolling in our evening classes here at the Army Education Center two or three nights a week. The other course, the literature course, which may not be available here in evening classes, you may take through the United States Armed Forces Institute or USOPI, as it is called. Have you heard anything about the USOPI program? No, sir. The USOPI is a civilian type correspondence service school available to men and women in the armed forces wherever they may be stationed. I have their catalog here. Its headquarters are in Madison, Wisconsin, but it serves military personnel all over the world, providing them with the materials for self-study and correspondence courses in a variety of fields, from the elementary grades on through the first two years of college. All in all, USOPI offers some 300 courses, ranging from business law to merchandising, from biology to agriculture. There are local USOPIs in a number of the overseas areas where troops are stationed, and there are mobile units to serve troops in the field. Any soldier anywhere can enroll by paying a $2 enrollment fee, and then he can take as many courses as he wishes at no extra charge. USOPI sends you the books, the study materials, and the lessons, the best available on the subject you want. When you receive them, school starts. Your plan of study is all cut out for you. You study on your own time as fast as you wish. As you finish a lesson, you send it in. Your lesson gets to USOPI in the company of thousands of others. This is the largest correspondent school in the world. But your lesson gets full personal attention. The instructors at USOPI are all experts in their fields. They grade your lessons, but more than that, they give you personal guidance and help. If you follow this plan, Corporal, I'm sure that you'll be able to get that diploma from your high school. Of course, your next step would be to write to the high school principal and see if these courses will meet the requirements for graduation. Most schools are happy to accept our educational program, so I'm sure that there will be no difficulty. Now, how does that sound to you? Sounds fine to me, sir. Well, that's good. The next step would be to write to your principal and then I'll get in touch with you. By the way, I have an appointment, and I'm going out, so let me show you through the door. Well, goodbye now, Corporal. I'm glad you could come down. Feel free to come back any time. Thank you very much, Mr. Silly. Goodbye now. Goodbye. Good morning, Lieutenant. Good morning. Lieutenant Kilby, isn't it? Right, sir. See you right on time for our appointment. Right, sir. What can I do for you? I find out how I can go about starting my college education. Fine. Won't you come into the office? Thank you. Have a seat, Lieutenant. Thank you. By the way, what organization are you with? I'm with the Third Army Calvary Regiment. Tell me, have you had any college at all? No, sir. I was drafted in the Army three years ago right after I got out of high school and I've since decided to stay in the Army. I just got out of OCS before coming here. I see. I think your first step would be to take the Yusofi College-level general educational development test, which we give right here. The test is going on now. It's a test to tell whether you've actually picked up enough knowledge to qualify you for first-year college equivalency. It will determine whether you should be considered for college credit. After that, there are several ways in which you may begin your college work. One is to take Yusofi courses, which generally go up through the first two years of college, and which are generally accepted by most colleges and universities for credit. But there is another and better way if you're going to be settled here for a while, and that's to attend the University of Maryland. I don't believe I follow you, sir. Well, the University of Maryland offers courses right here on the post. Oh, I see. The classes are held at night, three nights a week, and they will give you just about everything you need to start your college work. This is part of a cooperative plan between the Army and American universities. Here at Fort Meade, it's the University of Maryland. But if you were at some other camp, you'd probably be able to enroll in some other university the same way. For almost all Army camps in this country are located near some college or university, and almost all those institutions cooperate with the Army by offering college courses to the soldiers right on the post. Another important point, Lieutenant, this isn't even going to cost you very much. The Army feels that it's so important for you to get a college education in order that you may do your job better that it will pay a part of your tuition fees. Now, let's look at the catalog and see what you should take. The University of Maryland conducts college courses for Army personnel not only at Fort Meade, but also at Army posts throughout Europe. So, even overseas, American soldiers may attend courses given by American universities. The American college campus today reaches as far as the lines of the American Army reach. Economics and a college survey of American literature have an authentic campus flavor wherever they are taught, whether in the famed and hallowed old halls of Heidelberg, a building in the canal zone where Louisiana State University is the cooperating university, or an educational center in Tokyo. Throughout the Far East, soldiers are enrolled and studying through the University of California. The schoolhouse in the Army may be any shape and any size, but it's always right around the corner. Enrollment is easy, and wherever there is the will to learn, there are the tools for study. The Army educates not only its own, but also the children of its personnel overseas in both the elementary grades and high school, in classrooms, on playgrounds, in Japan, in Germany, and wherever else the Army is stationed, American youngsters carry on their education. Their teachers meet regular American educational standards. The system of classroom instruction and even the habit of homework are the same as those in schools back home. But in addition to the basic educational standards, these students abroad are acquiring an invaluable background in human relations through the opportunity provided them to absorb new cultures. The desire for knowledge is one of the marks of man's nobility. If it is strength which keeps our nation free today, it is enlightenment which gives that freedom meaning. The Army, whose stock in trade is strength, puts faith in that quality of its men, which makes good citizens and good soldiers alike. The desire to learn and to improve. To do its best by its citizen soldiers, the Army encourages their educational development on every level. Another soldier masters the fundamental tools of learning and is salvaged from illiteracy. Another soldier receives from his high school the diploma he has earned by taking Yusofi courses. And overseas, a group of soldiers receive their college diplomas after years of serious study in the Army. And each time a prize of value is won. The Army wins a more valuable soldier and the nation wins a more valuable citizen. From the most elementary level of grammar school to a college education, along this path of education, thousands of soldiers in your Army are traveling today toward a better future for themselves and for us all. This is Sergeant Stuart Queen inviting you to be with us again next week for another look at the big picture, the United States Army in action. The big picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the Army at home and overseas. Produced by the Signal Corps Pictorial Center. Presented by the U.S. Army in cooperation with this station. You can be an important part of the big picture. You can proudly serve with the best equipped, the best trained, the best fighting team in the world today, the United States Army.