BMT: Training Flaws? Feedback to Who? How?
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It has been a couple of months since I got enlisted, I realized there are several flaws in the training for our soldiers, even during BMT. I'm just sharing what I realized, no flaming please, discuss this as peaceful as possible. 1) Recruit detest their sgt/lower rank soldier detest their superior whose rank is higher. During BMT, we always see recruits saying "this sgt kns, that knn sgt" or complaining how bad their platoon commander are. I know even our sgt and platoon commander are NSF too and all of us went through the stage of being order here and there. I realized the reason of this is because most sgt and PC are acting like some as*****. I work as a teacher for 3 years before I got enlisted. I know sometimes when students(in this case, recruits) behavior weirdly and may not listen to you, from my experience, the sgt/PC should start doing things that the recruits will like them. For a successful educator/commander(sgt/lt/whatever higher rank) to command his men, his men must be able to respect him and like him first, if they don't, they can turn around and disobey order disregard DB or whatever punishments and that, the commanders don't want to see in war time. Btw, my sgt and pc are good person and I kinda like them, just some other sgt I saw who act big because of rank. 2) Flaws in the training schedule. During BMT, it's the time for the commanders to prepare the new recruits for the basic stuff as a soldier, some go through ptp and some go straight to BMT as enhance batch. No matter it's the ptp or enhance batch, the training schedule is fatally flawed. Strength training and running are done almost everyday and it can cause serious damaged to the body rather than building muscles and strength. A few platoon mates and myself are experienced in building strength/muscles and martial artists&instructors, all of us agree that the training that we are doing are more damaging that benefiting to our muscles. Several recruits in my company suffer serious injury and that include myself. I once reflected this to my sgt, the PTI and even our OC, I forgot what my sgt and oc said, but the PTI who handle our strength training and the running agrees that the training are seriously flawed and totally wrong from building strength. Instead of everyday train, which allows zero time for the muscle to repair it's tissues, the schedule should do like alternate day training. One day train, one day lecture. It can be a bit slow for some people, but it would be inefficient if recruits kept suffering injuries because of the training. 3) No gun=useless? This is a weird thing, this even somehow happens in SPF. During all the BMT, BCCT(basic close combat training) are introduced to the recruits. ICCT and ACCT are then introduced to soldiers depends on which unit you go to. The problem is, it's crappy. BCCT won't work if a recruits were to met someone for close quarter combat. During one of the BCCT, I asked my platoon mate to use the same technique that the instructor taught the combat of how to disarm a knife from enemy. The instructor took about 5 seconds, doing things that don't make sense, I took one second which my platoon mate said he could have died several times if that's for real. I also once witness my OC demo something out of ACCT or something and that's what I was taught in my martial art class when I first started couple of years back. So the advance close combat technique are the basic of martial arts? So if during close combat situation, rifle, knife and pistol are not with him, does that mean that soldier is as good as dead? I think the training should include more realistic close combat training beside the handling of rifle and other forms of weapon. Again, I'm just sharing what I noticed in the training, especially during BMT. No flaming please and please discuss this peacefully. P.S I'm still serving NS.
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That's why whenever you booked out the commanders always tell the recruits to go back and have a rest....but the recruits go cheong.....how to recover like that. Also if they were to plan with enough time for recruits to recover how long you want your BMT to be.
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It's been awhile since I was in camp but maybe I can share the perspective from my peers (may or may not be the same as the current batch).
I think "detest" may be a strong word. We used to complain about our officers & WOSE (we still when we get together :D) but I don't think we ever really detested them (except for a few bad apples like you say, who "act big"). It's part and parcel of the process and makes for fun memories later when we compare whose training was more siong :D -
NS = poor excuse for cheap labour.
Also recruits hate their superiors, normal thing. Just like working world, people hate their boss, same thing. It's life.
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For 1) Some people sucks irregardless of their rank (this includes me). These people may be alright initially, but their character and personality changes when they are given power in hand. For 2) For strength training, one have to alternate and rest. However, BMT trains on stamina and endurance, which can be trained everyday. The problem is some people are naturally "weak". Their running techniques are flawed, spine is not straight, etc so they will ended up destroying their joints. The more they run, the worse they become. Tekong BMT actually dont train on running everyday. In fact, I used to run 10 km everyday during JC times, and I actually became weaker and fatter during BMT. LOL. For 3) If you learn martial combat, then you should know that martial combat is something that needs to be trained often. My Aikido and Muay Thai skills drop to level zero after I did not practise it for a while. So what is the point about teaching proper close combat.
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Well the thing about Tekong's Specs and Officers is that they take care of you for 2-4 months and off you go. Even if they, the commanders, got the respect of you, it will only be for 2-4 months. While once posted to the units or vocation, you will realise that those unit commanders are better in general where they have to go on excercise with you and work with you at least for a year.
On the micro aspect, in Tekong there are like 20 in a section, about 70 men in a platoon. Do the math, and how do you expect a sect com to know all 20 in a section in 4 months? He might not even remember your name as he has many as 4 batches of BMT coming in a year. Even section mates do not bond well over 2-4 months. What more for a PC?
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TS, I will read your post again tonight.
Just for a quick respond.
In the army, it is big fish eat small fish.
Big dog bite small dog.
If you are a small fish or a small dog, keep your mouth shut and obey orders. You LL? You will suffer in the camp. How true? Maybe we can ask those in sbmt to tell us their stories.
That is why, govt should reduce the ns to 1 yr.
And not the boys in the camp get tekan by sadists pple in the camp.
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Am I dreaming? How come the title has changed again and the meaning of TS's post is twisted again?
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Flaws!?!?! How can there be flaws?!?! Everything goes through scholars leh!?!?! Every farking policy, rule, GOM, whatever you can think of came from them.
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Originally posted by Leorinde:
2) With regards to the training schedule, I think the main focus is on endurance rather than strength. In a real war-time scenario, soldiers walk long distances and survive on little food. Endurance and stamina would be the key here. Of course, good core body strength helps in survival too.
Having gone through the PTP phase of BMT myself (about 5 years ago), I would say the commanders do try to schedule less strenous activities such as lectures and briefings after strength training sessions, so as to allow the body to recover. They face the problem of having to plan and properly fit gym training, runs, lectures, field camp, route marches and more into a time-span of just 9 weeks (circa 2005).
3) ICCT and ACCT lessons will be taught after BMT, depending on vocation/unit. That is all I can say.
That's why soldiers these days are seen pulling trolley bags just like SIA air stewardesses.
I sincerely hope they don't do this when they go for overseas training.
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Originally posted by charlize:
That's why soldiers these days are seen pulling trolley bags just like SIA air stewardesses.
I sincerely hope they don't do this when they go for overseas training.
Some scholar came up with that thing they called a replacement to the duffel bag. Then another scholar came up with another design for something to replace the fieldpack, and if you put too many things into it (its meant to, because it huge) you'll actually fall over trying to put it on.
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Originally posted by charlize:
That's why soldiers these days are seen pulling trolley bags just like SIA air stewardesses.
Don't know which idiot came up with that idea.
Now look like a bunch of sissies.
Too much time and money, this SAF, invent all these rubbish.
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Originally posted by Vote PAP OUT to Save SG:
Don't know which idiot came up with that idea.
Now look like a bunch of sissies.
Too much time and money, this SAF, invent all these rubbish.
Dont say that. I think it is a good idea and innovation. These ideas are aimed to improve life. -
At least that's what I realised in the BMT phase and they like to taichi alot, push here and push there, all the responsibilities are gone.
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ahh, what happened to the original text?
eac or the forum owner removed it?
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Originally posted by charlize:
That's why soldiers these days are seen pulling trolley bags just like SIA air stewardesses.
I sincerely hope they don't do this when they go for overseas training.
They do. But usually we carry our personal luggage into the aircraft and all military equipment are pre loaded into the aircraft cargo compartment. I agree the new duffel bag looks very sissy-ish. That is why i still use my ali baba bag to carry all my kit.
I was trained in BCCT/ACCT towards the tail end of my NSF stint. I did bayonet fighting during BMT. The best advice we got from the close combat instructor was that if a soldier needs to use his limbs to defend himself from the enemy, it meant that he is fucked or going to get fucked.
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It's a matter of image and perception.
Example, would you like to see an SIA stewardess in uniform carry a big rough duffel bag when she alights from the plane? Or carry a backpack?
Who will take the soldier seriously when he drags the trolley bag around?
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dragging the trolley duffel bag sibei "niang" leh LOLX
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Basically, BMT is a programme of putting civic education into practice amongst all rank & files and their supervisors. Probably, they could implement class lesson on civic mindedness and esprit de corps on peace & harmony. This physical training is a form of exercise that is based on individual capacity and ability. The individual should understand their limitation and carried them out based on their limitation rather than strictly follow training direction, to avoid injury and untowards accidents. Please be reminded that once you got injure, you suffer pain instead of the officer, so take good care bro!. Whether it is BCCT, ICCT or ACCT, once a big bomb is landed on Singapore because of diplomatic flaw due to uncivic mindedness, your body either distorted or brain dead. These training is like lego helping your to exercise your mind through self discipline.
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Originally posted by charlize:
That's why soldiers these days are seen pulling trolley bags just like SIA air stewardesses.
I sincerely hope they don't do this when they go for overseas training.
People like you don't appreciate the sacrifices of a soldier.
You think you are garang? More like wayang. If your ns was siong and stupid, must everybody else's be too?
Don't lecture me and call me a gu niang. I can put up with all kinds of siong but I cannot put up with people like you.
I was issued the old duffel bag. But next ICT I will be carrying the new one specially for you.
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henshin ... all i can tell you is in ns we are not treated as mere human we are just slave ... who can u feed back to ? u look for a mp to feed back they will come find u ... u tell ur superior they will tell u i will look into it but what they do they just sit on it and forget ... so why bother ? the only time when they will take actions is something really went wrong and something happens till they cant really cover it any more .... than they will only change ... it is not the first that that happen ...
If ns was a pleasant thing ... do you think the government have to make NS compulsory ? facts are infront of you ... so why bother ? let put this way ... in SAF there is no equility ... when u are sick and u are a junior ranking man and u tell the MO u are sick (e.g flu ,soar throat ) ... they will say " you still can talk, still can complain and still can move, you are not that sick la light duties will do" ... when u see a senior ranking officer see a MO .. you see lo ... even Soar throat got MC ... what kinda fair treatment you wan ?
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lol jus call saf hotline only. call until your unit tu lan. cause each time you call the unit are suppose to do a unit investigation.
alize seems like you damn garang eh lols.