A Metaphor For Writing Questions For Moderator’s Guides

By: Naomi Henderson

The number of US military personnel on active duty around the world, in the present day:

The majority of those serving in the Army, Navy and Air Force typically serve 1-3 “tours of duty’ – each lasting 2-3 years.  About 15% go on to serve 20 or 30 years before retiring.

However, Marines typically serve 3-5 “tours of duty” – usually in active war zones – each tour last about 3 years.  That means some Marines are in active war zones up to 7 -10 years in a row.

Their overall numbers [182,000] compared to the other branches is low, but the same people are serving “tours” over and over – giving proof to their motto:  “A few good Marines.”

Another motto:   “If you want to get the job done, give it to a Marine.”

Thinking of Q’s in QLMR studies – the ones that appear on moderator guides – we could take a lesson from the Marines:

A few good questions is what makes a good guide – not a lot of questions.

The best Q’s use these stems:

Sources:

http://www.ibtimes.com/us-army-size-2016-fewest-active-soldiers-world-war-ii-pentagon-reduces-troops-2366224

http://www.navy.mil/navydata/nav_legacy.asp?id=146

http://www.afpc.af.mil/Air-Force-Demographics

http://index.heritage.org/military/2016/assessments/us-military-power/us-marine-corps/