Photo By Chuck Cannon | Command Sgt. Maj. David W. Bass, Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk command...... read more read more
FORT POLK, La. — Sgt. 1st Class Troy Williams is a team NCOIC for Alpha Company, 3rd Battalion, 353rd Training Regiment. His current position has him training the Army’s newest units, Security Force Assistant Brigades. He is also the first 353rd Soldier to earn the coveted instructor badge.
The program was initiated in 2014 to be earned by non-commissioned officers as a part of the Instructor Development and Recognition Program.
Williams explained how he earned the badge. “The first step was going to Army Basic Instructor Course (ABIC). The course gives you new approaches to instructing,” he said. “The Army is moving away from an instructor standing in front of a group of Soldiers presenting a block of instruction and putting emphasis on facilitating class discussion and creating an environment where students learn from each other.”
Williams has earned the basic instructor badge and is now able to train for the senior instructor and master instructor badges. To earn the senior level, he will need to complete 400 hours of instruction as the primary instructor and graduate the Small Group Instructor Training Course and the Foundation Training Developer Course.
To earn the master badge he will have to attend and graduate the Advanced Facilitator Skills Course or the Faculty Development Program and Evaluating Instructor’s Workshop, meet evaluation and board requirements outlined in Training and Doctrine Command regulation 600-21.
Williams said the Army is trying to limit the size of classes to 25 or 30 students. “Keeping that ratio down is important,” he said. “With fewer students, you can include more voices into the conversation and the students can learn from each other by sharing their experiences.”
Once an instructor completes ABIC, they have to complete 80 hours of instruction. In addition, instructors must be evaluated in a formal counseling session. They must also evaluate themselves and other instructors. Williams said he believes and hopes that others in the 353rd will follow in his footsteps and earn the badge themselves.
“It’s not like being presented a coin or certificate. It’s something that you can wear on your uniform for the rest of your career,” he said. “I’ve had many instructors ask me about getting the badge.” The unit even explains the process of earning the badge as a part of their Leadership Development Program.
What does it matter if Soldiers assigned to the 353rd earn the badge? Williams explained, “The process is making our unit better. If we have better instructors, it’s going to make the quality of instruction better for rotational Soldiers training for deployment.”
Williams said that will have a trickle-down effect that will allow Soldiers tasked with meeting the nation’s goals to do their jobs more effectively. “Better instruction leads to better Soldiers and that breeds excellence,” he said.
By earning the instructor badge, Williams is able to make an immediate impact on the efforts of Soldiers deployed to the Middle East. He helped train the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade and just got back from a follow up visit with the unit. “I went to Afghanistan and spoke with their Guardian Angels and security forces,” he said.
“We went over best practices and tactics, techniques and procedures. I brought that information back here and will incorporate the lessons learned into the training plan for the 2nd SFAB and other units we are assigned to train.” He said that knowledge, passed on to other Soldiers, will have an immediate impact on future missions.
While Williams is the first in the unit to earn the badge, other instructors are on a path to join him.
“They have gone through ABIC and are now working on getting their 80 hours of teaching time and completing their evaluations,” he said.
One Soldier on that path is Staff Sgt. David Fletcher, a Security Force instructor with the 353rd. Learning to be an instructor is done at the local level at Fort Polk.
There are no mobile training teams to come in and teach the courses, nor are there any distant schools to be sent to. Fletcher has been through ABIC and Common Faculty Development Instructor Course (CFDIC). He spent time as an assistant instructor but now teaches CFDIC. Once he completes CFDIC as the lead instructor, Fletcher will have met his 80 hour requirement and will move on to completing the evaluation requirement.
Earning the badge would mean a lot to Fletcher. “I’m glad the Army has introduced the badge and is allowing us to earn it,” he said. “Instructing is not something that just anyone can do. To be able to get up in front of classes full of students that often outrank me and instruct them effectively requires skills that must be honed and trained. Like earning other badges in the Army, you have to show up … you have to perform. There is a standard you have to meet.”
Fletcher said that Williams having the badge motivates him and other instructors to be better at their jobs. “Sergeant First Class Williams is one of the best instructors in the unit. He facilitates classes better than anyone else, in my opinion,” he said. “I look up to him and see him wearing the badge and I want to strive to get where he is at, to be a better instructor and to learn from him.”
Williams gives credit for his success to the efforts of the Security Force Assistance NCOIC, Sgt. 1st Class Michael Barrett. “None of this would be possible without him. He encouraged me along the way as I earned the badge and his leadership of the NCOs in our section has been outstanding,” he said. “He is the driving force behind our success.”
| Date Taken: | 12.14.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 12.14.2018 11:23 |
| Story ID: | 303605 |
| Location: | FORT POLK, LOUISIANA, US |
| Web Views: | 430 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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