Getting a Taste of Soldiering

“We are getting them gradually involved in army life. They live under military circumstances in the camp in all respects. That is, they have a daily schedule including reveille and PT in the morning; they work each day in accordance with the drill manuals and the protocols of military service, and practice tactics and other fieldcraft skills.

Admission to the camp is for those students of secondary schools participating in the “Military School" (KatonaSuli) program who are doing “military basics". The teachers were asked to select students who have been studying the subject for at least one year, to make sure that they already have some understanding of soldiering and the Hungarian Defence Forces.

The Tata camp received four students from ten schools each.

The Tata troops tell the students stories about their missions in a realistic and informative style, while giving them a thorough demonstration of the proper techniques to be used to search persons arriving at a checkpoint. Apparently, the students are showing interest, attentively listening to the drill instructors and carefully watching the demonstration of those techniques.

Maj. Péter Apáti is of the opinion that the first day may have been a bit surprising for the students. “They arrived in the camp, we had them change into the uniform, then they were instructed to move in formations and underwent a physical fitness test", Maj. Apáti says. “But by now you can see them enjoying the programs very much. For example, yesterday, after they were given a tour of the barracks aboard a BTR armored personnel carrier, everyone dismounted with a smile on their faces. The questions they put to us also show their interest." The soldiers get the young men moving, but of course rude treatment has no place here.

The teachers present at the camp can also benefit from what they see and hear. “There are some methodological tricks of the trade that we used to perform differently in the school, but now we can see how they should be done properly", Tibor Horváth, a teacher from the Árpád Vocational Secondary School of Székesfehérvár tells us.

“Map reading serves as a good example", adds István Bögyös from the King Béla II Secondary School of Pécsvárad. “The students were actively involved in the tasks and got immediate feedback with adequate explanations covering all aspects."

According to the teachers, their students are enjoying the programs which range from route marches to paintball shooting to classroom instruction. “I have received only positive feedback, they liked the camouflaging practice very much, for instance. I should add that I liked it too", Tibor Horváth reveals. “The scenarios are very realistic – back in the school we taught our students the theory with the help of exercise books and blackboards, and now they can put it into practice in real-life situations, wearing uniforms and firing paintball weapons.

According to István Bögyös, the students have “gotten really tired" from the PT, but feel good nevertheless. Evelin Kaszás, a fourth-year student from the “Táncsics Mihály" Secondary School of Kisbér confirms what has just been said. “I am interested in the profession, I wanted to test my skills, and this camp has fulfilled my hopes", says the young girl who goes on telling us that she feels strongly inclined to choose the military career path.

With other participants but with a similar approach, the next camp will be hosted by the HDF 5th ‘Bocskai István" Infantry Brigade in Debrecen between July 11 and 16. The follow-up camp will certainly offer a wide range of enjoyable programs as well.

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Photos by the author