MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- To ensure potential leaders of the Marine Corps are provided with the best education available, prospective faculty advisors of the Staff Noncommissioned Officer Academy, Camp Pendleton, have currently been required to complete a newly developed orientation course.
The Faculty Advisor Orientation course is a mandated course that seeks to modernize the academy’s approach of teaching by helping to preserve a genuine, career-long bond between teachers, known as faculty advisors, and students attending the academy.
“This idea must be the mindset of every advisor coming to the academy,” said Sgt. Maj. Robert A. Ledferd, director, Staff NCO Academy, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
During the orientation, faculty advisors learn about subjects such as habits of the adult learner, effective grading techniques, alternative teaching strategies and the Socratic-method style of teaching.
The Socratic Method, named after the Greek philosopher Socrates, is a form of education where students are involved in question and answer group discussions, designed to stimulate rational thinking.
The SNCO Academy wants to attract Marines who have a strong desire to teach and mold their fellow Marines, but also those who desire to learn and develop new ways of teaching, said Ledferd.
As part of the new curriculum, each prospective FA is required to attend and observe all classes for their assigned course.
“By making it a requirement for all future (faculty advisors) to attend the classes they soon will be teaching, ensures that they are familiar with the material and gives them a chance to see what is expected,” said Melisa Balcombe, academic director, SNCO Academy. “It’s important that all (faculty advisors) feel confident in teaching, coaching and mentoring their students in all aspects of the course, not just the material they are teaching.”
After FA candidates receive their certification, they have the opportunity to participate in a master instructor program to become a master instructor certified. A Master FA not only teaches students but also leads guided discussions with the faculty advisors.
The faculty advisor senior must complete six credit hours of college-level English class which enable the FAs to produce qualitative feedback to students on written assignments, said Balcombe.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has partnered with the Staff Academy to help FAs with this requirement by offering English classes at the academy.
Not only has the SNCO Academy raised the bar academically but also physically. Selected advisors throughout the enlisted professional military education, along with the Semper Fit staff, have collectively come together and designed a program called the combat conditioning program.
The program was developed in March 2009 and is designed to incorporate exercise routines used by professional athletes, as well as more in-depth circuit-course training.
The focus is not just to get the students into shape, rather give them the tools to better prepare their Marines for the rigors of battle, said Ledferd.
“Since starting the orientation course I have gained an amount of knowledge that is nothing less than amazing,” said Staff Sgt. Luis Acosta, faculty advisor, SNCO Academy, Camp Pendleton. “There is still a lot for me learn, but I am confident that the academy will help me reach my potential as a teacher, mentor and most importantly, a leader.”
For more information about becoming a faculty advisor at the SNCO Academy contact the deputy director, Master Gunnery Sgt. Theodore Loepp at (760) 725-4590.