The impact of military training on secondary school students of one southern Ontario public school board enrolled in the Canadian Forces Reserve Co-Operative Education Program.

摘要

An experiential learning partnership between the local Canadian Brigade Group (CBG) and a southern Ontario public school board offers a unique opportunity for students to earn Canadian Forces (CF) qualifications, secondary school credits, and a paycheck all at the same time. The present study reports on a series of phenomenological interviews with program participants conducted between January 2009 and June 2009. Findings relate to self-reported benefits of program, implications for the development of personal qualities and transferable career skills, and the potential future impact of the program. Directions for further research include the development of a resilience-building module to be incorporated into future Basic Military Qualification (BMQ) courses, the creation of a stand-alone curriculum document to provide more meaningful assessment and evaluation of the CF Reserve Co-operative Education program, the establishment of a partnership agreement between the Ontario Ministry of Education and Land Force Central Area Headquarters, and the need to improve coordination between CFRC representatives and school guidance teachers.