Professional Military Education and Problem-Based Learning

Military Review | Col. Celestino Perez Jr.

Professional military education institutions face critical shortcomings in preparing senior officers to execute strategic work and military planning. A 2025 exploratory study at a senior-level military war college revealed that graduating students routinely failed to apply curricular concepts, construct detailed causal theories of success, or organize themselves effectively to craft strategic options during real-world crisis exercises.

To address these systemic deficiencies, integrating systematic, problem-based learning models offers a pathway to cultivate practical competence through repeated application. Utilising contemporary conflicts like the Ukraine-Russia war or the Israel-Hamas clash allows students to build essential research skills rather than relying on artificial, fictional scenarios. This methodology incorporates established theoretical frameworks, such as Stephen Biddle’s Military Power, to help practitioners interrogate causal logics and assess the advantages of specific military interventions. Ultimately, this iterative curriculum design ensures that theoretical knowledge directly informs tactical and strategic decision-making in future operational environments.

Comment

The inability of senior officers to construct rigorous causal pathways during planning exercises reveals a systemic vulnerability in the US Army's application of operational design under Joint Publication 5-0. By failing to translate theoretical concepts into actionable campaign plans, command structures trained at Fort Leavenworth risk executing operations detached from realistic political objectives. This doctrinal disconnect directly impairs the synchronisation of the US Army's Multi-Domain Task Forces in high-intensity theatre campaigns.

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