Remember the teachers who made an impact on your journey? They may have been the ones to display belief in you and your dreams, while also inspiring action. For students interested in the military, teachers can be trusted mentors who shape many of the habits necessary for service and ASVAB prep. If you find your students frequently asking how to join the military, they may not realize that the preparation starts long before they step into a recruiter’s office. It begins in the classroom. Teachers helping students prepare can build academic aptitude for the ASVAB while fostering the character traits required for military life. Let’s dive into exactly how!
Fostering Character for the Military
Military service requires fortitude. Teachers can replicate this rigor in the classroom through fostering specific traits and mindsets that lead to military skills! Here are a few:
- Resilience: Difficult assignments and pushing forward teach grit. Rigorous coursework is the perfect training ground for student resilience, teaching them to bounce back from academic setbacks just as they will need to recover from physical challenges in boot camp or in their future roles within the military.
- Leadership: Group projects and classroom responsibilities provide opportunities to foster student leadership early on.
- Character: Try to model integrity, punctuality, and responsibility as a teacher and call on students to exhibit the same traits in how they interact with you and classmates. Character development of students is paramount; without integrity, technical skills fall by the wayside in the armed forces. Student character development is about creating citizens who are ready to serve with honor.
Demystifying the ASVAB for Educators
What does an ASVAB score for high schoolers determine?
Taking the ASVAB is one of the first steps to joining the military and helps to identify students’ abilities in different areas. If a student plans to join the military, they need to meet minimum score requirements that vary by branch and Military Occupational Specialty (MOS). Their enlistment scores identify their potential for military career areas.
Integrating ASVAB Prep into the Classroom
Weaving ASVAB test prep into standard lessons without disrupting the flow of lessons may be easier than you think! For example, teaching students to analyze complex texts for English class directly prepares them for the Paragraph Comprehension section of the ASVAB. Topics within the ASVAB may relate to your teaching subject; integrating them into your lesson planning can help students pick up ASVAB concepts without even realizing it.
As a teacher, you need a reference point for the ASVAB, so that you can find the areas of overlap in lessons with relative ease. Peterson’s Test Prep is here to help you with an ASVAB course. If students need a comprehensive solution to track their progress toward ASVAB mastery when classroom instruction might not suffice, a dedicated ASVAB prep course can be the difference between qualifying for nuclear engineering or general infantry.
Resources for the Teacher’s Toolkit
Where Can Teachers Find Military Career Resources?
- Find out more about specific branches: https://www.usa.gov/us-military
- See requirements for joining: https://www.usa.gov/military-requirements
- Discover more about the official ASVAB: https://www.officialasvab.com/
- Read more about military preparedness: Peterson’s Articles
Your Support Matters
Teachers helping students in their desired path after high school creates better recruits, better citizens, and more engaged students. If nothing else, show your support for their desired path! Your support matters and makes a difference in students’ lives. Equip your students with the best tools for their future. Explore Peterson’s comprehensive ASVAB prep course and practice tests today to help them achieve the ASVAB score they need to serve. Interested in prep for more than one student? Visit our Peterson’s Prep Advantage for more information on test prep for schools and districts!
