 From Korea to Germany, from Alaska to Puerto Rico, all over the world, the United States Army is on the alert to defend our country, you, 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 Captain Carl Zimmerman. How can we make it possible for the soldiers we send overseas to have a part of America with them? Well, surely a vital part of living in this country is the chance to read and hear about the issues confronting us. Equally important is the opportunity to raise our mental standards through education so that we can help solve today's problems. These opportunities the Army brings the soldier overseas. It's making better soldiers, better Americans. We take you now to Korea, Japan and Europe for a report on what the Army considers one of its primary responsibilities, information and education. Homework outside of Foxhole in Korea. A medieval castle in Germany. It is an American radio station. A printing press in Busan. And news of the world at the fighting front. A classroom in Europe. Another in Korea. A classroom on wheels. The T-I-N-E train. T-I-N-E, troop information and education. A worldwide program designed to help the serviceman to better understand the problems of our times. I'm an armed forces radio announcer, and I can tell you that radio is one of the big ways of doing the job. I'm with FEN, Far East Network, with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. On the air with the news of the world as soon as it happens. Sports roundups. Current events. The local news that lets you keep up with your buddies around the theater of operations. And special last minute releases from the wires of news services. All designed for one thing. To keep the serviceman informed. However, civilians find the programs of interest too, and often listen in. There's music. Lots of it. Both popular and classic. To fit the taste of every soldier from Okinawa to the pinch bowl. News, music and feature programs. But up here at the front, you're mostly interested in information. You want to know what is happening in the rest of the world, and you want it straight. The Army believes that a soldier has a right to know what is going on. They know he is a better soldier for it. Here at the FEN orderly room, the fan mail is just arriving. Looks like quite a sack full. Both soldiers and civilian write in to say that they like the show, more to request a song. These shows are pretty popular. Tokyo Trolley and Honshu Hayride. And they're a lot of fun too. Now here's a place that also gets a pile of fan mail. Located in a medieval castle near Frankfurt, Germany, it is headquarters of AFN. American Forces Network. They're on the air with a weekly TINV conference. That's Sergeant Bob Harlan from Gainesville, Florida at the mic. Staff announcer for AFN. Troop commanders all through Europe use this program for a part of their own unit conferences, at which there is a guided discussion period. The Army believes that a soldier has the right to know not only what is going on, but why and how it affects him as an individual. Highlights are re-emphasized by the discussion leader with the help of visual training aids. In the field or in the classroom, the command conference keeps the American soldier informed. It may be a lecture on the valuable advantages offered every serviceman through the Army's troop information and education programs. Or it might be a guided discussion on the NATO nations. Sometimes it's a group discussion period and everyone gets into the act. It gives you a chance to say what you believe about something and at the same time learn how others are thinking. It's fun too. Sometimes the guys and gals get a workout with some I and E athletics. A new sort of current events quiz. The group is divided into two teams. Questions are weighted. Hard ones score the highest. It's a good morale builder and a good way of keeping up with the world around you. It gives you the answers to some of the questions in your mind as to where you fit in the big picture. But there are other ways of informing the soldier. I'm a correspondent for Pacific Stars and Stripes Special Edition Korea. And I know newspapers play a big part in I and E. The newsroom here in Tokyo, Japan is a constant picture of activity. Stars and Stripes is the authorized overseas publication of the Army. Unbiased and nonpartisan. We give our soldier readers all the world news. It's a big operation doing a big job. Most of the staff are newspaper men. They're experienced and they have the know-how to get out of big city paper. For that is really what Stars and Stripes is. It is the big city daily to our servicemen. But know-how alone is not enough. To do the job we use big city equipment. Local civilian employees operate the machines wherever feasible. In Stars and Stripes there is no advertising. The paper is financed entirely by non-appropriated funds. Doesn't cost the taxpayer a cent. It is completely self-sufficient with profits going to the Central Welfare Fund. Here a column proof is run and set aside for the compositors to make up into a page. Here we find servicemen from every branch working together to get the paper out fast. Page by page it goes together. Stars and Stripes is a soldier's newspaper. And we do our best to give him what he wants. The fact that we distribute free over 90,000 copies daily in Korea to men on the fighting front and sell over 45,000 copies to both servicemen and civilians in Japan is proof of the paper's popularity. One of the oldest and still most effective media of news dissemination the newspaper plays a big role in providing troop information. When the sergeant is finished he has a galley proof of page one. Latest edition of Stars and Stripes. Editions are printed both in Korea and in Japan the same day. Since the newspaper is actually made up in Japan a special mat must be pressed from the made-up type and air expressed to Pusan where the Stars and Stripes Korean edition is published. Here the most modern equipment is used. Semi-circular lead plates which have been cast from the mat are fitted to this rotary press. Skilled civilians are utilized wherever possible. And so with the presses rolling another edition of Stars and Stripes is on its way to our servicemen throughout the Far East Theater keeping them up to date on all the world news. The papers are counted, bundled and made ready for distribution. Soon trucks and planes will speed the paper forward to its soldier readers. Among its pages fighting men find a few minutes relaxation. Perhaps a laugh, a story about home, or news of friends in service. Sometimes you even get a chance to read about yourself and your unit. The European edition of Stars and Stripes is a pretty big operation too. Besides getting out the paper with a circulation of about 100,000 copies daily they handle the distribution of magazines, paper bound and hard cover books. These are distributed through Armed Forces newsstands, PX's and even railroad waiting rooms. It's good to pick up a copy of your favorite book halfway around the world from home. They figure that they handle around 2,600 tons of reading material a year outside of the Stars and Stripes. And that's a lot of literature. Stars and Stripes make their facilities available for all sorts of printing jobs. Unit anniversary booklets. Price tags and even telephone directories. But there are other papers too. Unit newspapers, over 450 different ones. Sort of hometown weeklies overseas. Everything from elaborate letterpress and photo offset work to a one page mimeograph cheat all bringing local news to the soldier. Aiding in this program of keeping our troops informed our troop information displays found in every unit in the Army down to and including the company level. Clippings from various newspapers and magazines tied in with a world map keep the soldier informed on both international and local news. A few minutes spent here and everybody can get a quick summary of current world events. These American soldiers are in Germany. And this is in Korea. Here it is, the I and E train a Mobile Information and Education Center but it's also much more. Jointly operated by I and E and Special Services it gives the soldier a chance to relax and get away for a minute from the immediate problems of the Korean battle. Here there's a chance to read a bit. To see a movie. To play a snappy game of checkers. Or just take a welcome shower. Education is the second half of I and E. A soldier can get advice on how to finish high school or take advanced college courses. He can receive this instruction in one of three programs. First there's the residence course. This is the same as any school and civilian life. In his off-duty hours the soldier attends a nearby institution of learning. The Army pays a portion of his tuition and fees. In Europe the resident course gives servicemen a chance to attend one of the 36 centers operated by the University of Maryland. 18 centers similar to these are run by the University of California in the Far East and in the Caribbean 6 are operated by Louisiana State University. Then there are the group study courses given on any subject, anywhere, any time there are enough soldiers interested to form a class. The instructors may be military or civilian. Ability is the only prerequisite. The course may be given during duty or off-duty hours depending upon the military application. Part or all of the cost comes from not appropriated funds, depending again on the military necessity of the course. But no matter what course you take there's always self-study. Whether in a well-equipped library back in the communication zone or a foxhole up at the front United States soldiers are studying harder and learning more than ever before. They are taking courses in a wide variety of subjects from television to foreign languages from animal husbandry to psychology. The servicing branch of the Army Education Program is the United States Armed Forces Institute, USAPI. It supplies books and accredited curricula for the group study and residence type of course. It handles the complete administration and supply of teaching materials for the third type of course the self-study correspondence course. Over 30,000 soldiers in Korea are taking this type of course right now. You get a textbook, study guide, and answer forms. These you mail back to USAPI headquarters for grading and comment. You never see the teachers that work with you but you get to know them from their critique of your answer form. They sure help a lot. For a registration fee of only $2 a soldier can take all the courses in the catalog. Another service of USAPI is the administration and scoring of the GED General Educational Development Test. These tests rate the serviceman on his educational standing. By passing this exam a soldier may qualify for a high school diploma, a diploma from his own hometown school. You may wonder how a guy at the front can get something out of Army education. It's okay back at Seoul where there are buildings and classrooms and regular facilities but up here it's a different story. It is the story of the TI and EVAN a Mobile USAPI unit which brings the classroom right up to us at the front. I guess it was a couple of weeks ago that Sergeant Bergata drove out to the battalion CP in the TI and E truck. Most of the guys were glad to see the Sergeant because we knew the material he had stowed away in the back of his truck would sure help to break up the monotony. He started to set up shop right by our bunker. That's PFC Ralph Horge from Nashville, Montana one of my buddies. We all knew the van was packed full of all kinds of courses but we didn't expect an office and advertising. Worked with the fighting pretty quiet along our sector right now Ralph thought he might make good use of his spare time. Ralph had taken some other USAPI courses in auto mechanics and was looking forward to continuing his course in automotive electricity. He and the Sergeant talked it over for a while. They looked through the catalog and found the course all right and seeing as how Sergeant Bergata had the materials right on hand Ralph signed up. You don't miss out on an education while in the Army. In fact, a lot of guys wouldn't get an education at all if it weren't for the Army Education Program. Private Hoggy is typical of the thousands of servicemen making advantage of these worldwide truth information and education programs. They're designed to give American soldiers a better grasp of world events and the higher education. From the foxholes in Korea to the barricades in Berlin they're paying off in better fighting men today and better citizens tomorrow. The Army supplies educational opportunities too for the children of officers and men stationed overseas. In cooperation with the other services the Adjutant General Department maintains both elementary and high schools in Europe and the Far East. This is a familiar sight. It occurs in almost every family five days a week about 32 weeks out of the year. American kids are going to school. They could be going to school in Richmond, Virginia or Soda Springs, Idaho. This could be Arkansas or Maine. It could be any town, anywhere in the United States. It could be your town, but it isn't. It's Japan. On the early morning streets of Tokyo the school bus is as common a sight as it is on Main Street back home. The scenery is different, the buildings are strange but inside the bus American kids are pretty much like American kids anywhere. This is the story of the modern system that is provided for their education. It is the story of the dependent school section of the Army's Adjutant General's Office. These are the sons and daughters of American service people stationed in Japan. As often as possible the schools are conveniently located near dependent housing projects. A few of the school buildings and facilities are new having been built after the war. Many are former Japanese buildings now utilized by the American school system. Plaid shirts, blue jeans and bobby socks. American clothes and an American course of study. In grade school the perennial problem of the three Rs is tackled once again. Learning how to calculate on the abacus is an added local extra. Soon its mystery will be solved and the kids will be one up on most of their parents. Recreation is important. Facilities and equipment are the best. Not only is this an outlet for young horse power but it helps build strong healthy bodies. On the high school level we incorporated the best features of eight curricula from the top school districts in the United States. Qualified young teachers conduct the classes. The basic course consists of English, mathematics, social studies, modern languages, science, music and art. Here a high school class is painting a shrine in Maguro, a section of Tokyo. Form and composition are important but there's more taught here than just the technique of painting. There's a new awareness of the achievements and beliefs that are important to the Japanese people. In this sort of opportunity for learning the American youngster overseas has it all over his stateside cousin. However the academic work is no cinch and there is that ever present homework problem with perhaps an assist from dad. Periodic accreditations ensure high standards throughout the system. Sports too are an important part of school life overseas just as they are anywhere back home. A stand full of coeds is a big boost to any team for there's keen competition between the American schools here in Japan. This is another track meet at another American school in another part of the world, Germany. A stand full of students from the American high school in Heidelberg get excited over a meet with the local German team. Gets a close race all the way and they really go crazy as the runners pour it on coming into the finish. Here comes the winner, a lad from Heidelberg High. Sculling on the river necker is a popular sport and competition with German teams tests the skill of these young Americans. This crew gets their craft in the river to practice for next week's meet. In these sporting events, the youngsters, both German and American, get a real taste of that combination of individual and community achievement that is the essence of a sound democracy. Here the whole individual is developed. In Germany, as in Japan, or wherever there are American schools overseas, the youngsters also enjoy a rare chance to absorb some of the culture of the people with whom they live. They see history with a new perspective. On their way to the American high school in Heidelberg, they stroll over the ancient Carl Theodore Bridge. At one end stands the beautiful statue of Pallas Athena. No textbook picture here. It's the real thing that captures the imagination of these young Americans. This is the city where the famous old University of Heidelberg was founded in 1385. Another historic spot is the ancient arsenal of the princes of the Palatinate. It was these sturdy walls that defied destruction and saved the town during the Orleans War. At the Heidelberg Museum, a class in anthropology studies the beginnings of a human race. Where else in the world could you actually see the real jawbone of the ancient Heidelberg man except in Heidelberg? To their German schoolmates, the American kids are living examples of democracy and the American way of life. As the traffic sign indicates, this is an international undertaking. There's a two-way exchange of ideas and traditions and both parties benefit. Back in the classroom, this new appreciation finds expression in courses from languages and history to mathematics and science. To these American teenage students, high school German has real significance. But again, this greater comprehension is an added feature to schooling overseas. For as in Japan, the curriculum is basically that of the American school system. Perhaps after school, there's time for a coke at the Sidewall Cafe, opposite the Heidelberg Bonhoeff. And maybe a chance to talk about the track meet, a date for Saturday night. Or perhaps something mom and dad are going to bring up at the PTA meeting tonight. Parents overseas take just as much interest in their children's schooling as parents back home. Perhaps more because they are overseas and community problems seem much more important. Graduation, of course, is the biggest event of all. It's the culmination of everything that has been done to make sure that these young men and women, the children of American service people stationed in Germany, have obtained the best education possible. For them, high school overseas has been an unforgettable experience. With the speechmaking over, another class is launched into the adult world. This girl who graduates today from Heidelberg High has had an opportunity for learning not offered to many young Americans. This young man may well stand here on the heights overlooking Old Heidelberg and Reminis. But whether in Germany or here in Japan, American children overseas are assured a good, solid foundation in life. They receive an education comparable to that given at home. But in addition, they get a background in human relations, and an understanding of other people's and other ways of life that enables them to be more perceptive adults and more valuable citizens to the United States and the world. Just as in any town, anywhere in America, there is the big dance that he made. As you watch the graduation party, you can't help but wonder if you are really very far away from home. For there is something solidly American here in this school system that embraces the whole world. There is still much work to be done in making adequate education facilities available for all children of overseas personnel. More buildings, more teachers are needed. But you can be sure that all efforts are being made to bring these children the important schooling they need, no matter where they may be. Next week, the story on the big picture is captioned, We Never Stop, and it refers to the Army's training program. It tells why training for the recruit and the veteran is a continual operation. This is Captain Carl Zimmerman inviting you to be with us then. 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 Photographic 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.