Most of Our Youth Don't Qualify For Military

I think most Americans believe it is easy to qualify and join the military -- that all a recruiter needs to do is convince a young man or woman to sign up and it's pretty much a done deal.   That's the way it should be.   But the statistics of how many young people actually qualify should be a source of concern for Americans, because the number is pathetically small.

In 2009 a Pentagon official testified before Congress and his testimony was shocking.   This official said that 75% of young people had a problem that would prevent them from applying for or being accepted into the United States Military.   They either lacked specific physical abilities, had a criminal record, or did not have the required high school diploma.   But it gets even worse.

It turns out that not everyone in the remaining 25% would qualify for admission into the military either.   According to Education Trust, about 23% of that quarter cannot score high enough on the entrance test to enter the Army.   To be accepted into the Army a youth must be able to score at least a 31 on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery [and even higher for other branches of the military -- Marines (32), Navy (35), Air Force (40), Coast Guard (45)].   The highest score possible on the test is a 99.

That should worry the hell out of all of us.   Let me repeat those numbers.   Only 25% meet the general requirements, and 23% of those can't pass the entrance test (and that's for the Army which accepts a lower score than other military branches).  

The first 75% shows this country has some serious social problems -- crime, obesity, too many drop-outs, and other problems.   But the 23% of those who can't pass the entrance exam, but have a high school diploma (and no criminal record or physical affirmity), shows that our educational system is failing to educate a lot of young people.   Here's how the Education Trust puts it:

In every state in America, the military turns away remark-ably high percentages of applicants who, despite their high school diplomas, lack the reading, math, science, and problem-solving skills needed to serve in the armed forces.

In addition, because the ASVAB specifically assesses readiness in a wide range of vocational pathways, it’s equally likely that the men and women who don’t pass the test are unprepared for the civilian workforce.

The military recommends that examinees take a solid core of courses in mathematics, English, and science to do well on the exam. But, clearly, the K-12 system has not responded with a sufficiently rigorous course of study, depriving many applicants of the knowledge and skills they need to serve.

And sadly, it's about to get worse in most states.   As the recession continues and state budget deficits grow, education funding is taking a hit.   Teachers are being laid off and class sizes are growing, among other school problems.   Many of our politicians seem to have the attitude that the educating of our youth -- our future -- is secondary to tax cuts for the rich and other silly things like that.

The fact is that in this modern world nothing is more important than educating our youth.   The day is long gone when education was a luxury -- it is now a necessity.   We are failing our young people, and the recession (with its budget deficits) is no excuse.   And the future of America is put in jeopardy by this failure.