Memorandum / Memo

I have already discussed military reports on many occasions here. Some examples have been shown to you as well. So today, I decided to take into other forms of writing you may be required to write during exams or your everyday work. If you are a staff officer, most probably you deal with memoranda as often as with reports. A Memorandum, also called a memo, is a frequent piece of writing used in business communication too. Memos are used mainly to communicate some important issues to subordinate staff. They can also be used to persuade somebody to take actions, give feedback on something or react to previous concerns, documents or issues discussed.

Memorandum – structure

A memo will be usually addressed to your co-workers or people who you had worked with before. Anyway, do not assume that they have all the contact data and provide it in a clear, visible form. It’s good to follow an effective format of any memo which contains subsequent sections called “to,” “from,” subject,” “date.” Those text markers along with other talking headings will make your memorandum orderly and reader-friendly.

Since memoranda (watch the plural form – it’s from Latin!) may be distributed freely, you can receive a document which is not relevant for you. Likewise, your memos (this time regular plural form!) may reach the addressees who are not interested in it at all. Therefore it is a common practice to make a clear purpose statement at the beginning of our memo. This statement will clearly define the purpose of the paper; it should be concise and direct.

Depending on the staff or organization you work for, it may be required to write different forms of paper, instead of memo. Other forms of writing, frequently used for the same purpose and similar in format are letters, reports, or briefing notes.

Memorandum example

To help you visualize the proper outcome of your writing, you may look at the memo example I’m providing. This particular memo is a fictional one, I wrote for the purpose of my business communication classes. All personal details and links may resemble the actual ones, but do not regard them as valid addresses or contact data. There is nothing like the webinar I described in the file. Use the pdf file for reference only, considering the message layout and content as an example of nicely designed memo. You can download the file from the box below.

Today samples of my students’ writing are the answers to the task recently published here. It is the first task, part A of the 3^rd level exam. For your awareness, and additional educational effect I publish students’ work verbatim, with all errors

A soldier doing writing task in English. Image source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk

they’ve made. Hover the cursor over the highlighted part to see the comment on what is wrong with each part and then click the number to go to the footnotes with corrected version of the highlighted part.

First sample of writing (with errors!):

Second writing sample (with errors!):

Some real writing examples

Last time I provided you some writing samples prepared by native Polish using English as a second language. This time let’s have a look at English native speakers’ performance. All discussed fragments of military texts were taken from real ISAF documents. All of them were attributed to English native speakers, or at least a native speaker approved them. As you suspect, I found perfect, sophisticated language usage examples as well as  occurences of minor or even terrible misuse of a mother tongue.

 Right place for an apostrophe

Such a tiny element as an apostrophe may cause big troubles to English users. I have written about that when describing plural forms of abbreviations. And here again, I found the perfect example how not to use an apostrophe. The apostrophe which is normally used to denote possession in case of plural forms doesn’t serve anything except for misleading the readers. In the example below you can see two forms “Do’s” and “Don’ts.”

The first form was to be the plural form of “DO,” however, with this annotation the apostrophe still means only possession. The second form (“Don’ts“) would be perfectly fine if not the lack of consistency. If the first word had been OK (according to the author of the board), the second word should have followed the same rule of plural form creation. It should read “Don’t’s” which does not make any sense at all. Solution is simple: write DO and DON’T for a singular and make them plural by adding small “s” at the end. DOs and DON’Ts should be unambiguous.

If you are not convinced about the necessity of changing it, let’s consider better example. If we have CDR – an acronym for a Commander, we use it in plural form as CDRs. If we follow the rule from the bad example the plural form would look like “CDR’s” which normally precedes a word – “something which belongs to the CDR” but not “many commanders.”

The example below shows that the author’s concept of plural form created by adding apostrophe is wrong.

When we want to create plural form of a noun we add “-s,” or “-es.” Here, letter “s” found its place in “Afghan’s” but when preceded by apostrophe it’s so called genitive case, so the word “Afghan’s” surely is not what the author had in mind.

Hyphen – to use it or not to use it

Since ISAF mission is going to its end, all Troops Contributing Nations (TCNs) are developing (or have already developed) plans for their forces withdrawal. Because ‘withdrawal’ doesn’t sound politically correct, implying retreat and defeat, the word ‘retrograde’ is widely used instead. It’s a typically military expression for what we do when we pack our stuff and go home, being fed up with fighting :-). Despite it’s being excesively used in ISAF documents nowadays, I spotted different annotations of this term

“(…) for the general purpose forces (especially during their retro-grade).” (CG’s guidance for his subordinate CDRs)

Retrograde is ONE word. It doesn’t consist of two seperate portions of meaning, so no hyphen is needed there. I know that it may look as if prefix retro- or re- introduces a main verb but it’s not the case here. Even if the prefix is meaningful like in reinvent, redo, where it indicates some activities done again, in retrograde it doesn’t serve that purpose. Generally, we use hyphens when we have two or more words creating a new or more complex meaning. You may come across the following examples:

• well-off;
• post-blast analysis, post-2014 environment;
• ready-to-use;
• self-destruction;
• chocolate-covered, etc.

In each case, mentioned above, the hyphenated words had their own meaning – they brought something to the table. In case of retrograde, even when etymologically investigated, the word cannot be split into any two meaningful parts.

Another example comes from a biographical note of one ISAF general.

He is married, with [name] and their two children.

First of all, if the author meant that [name] is someone’s wife, he should say “married to [name].” When you say “married

Sometimes even a single letter matters.

with [name]” you are instantly classified as a non-native English user because such a collocation does not exist, in this meaning at least. You can say that “somebody was MARRIED WITH parental consent” but “WITH” is never followed by the spouse’s name. The sentence seems to be even more awkward when we realize that he was married to three persons: “his wife and their chidren”.

Marrried: possible correct forms:

==> He is married to [name] and has two chidren.

==>He is married to [name] with whom he has two children.

==>He is married to [name]; they have two children.

==>He is married, with two children.

 Instances of English worth remembering

I’ve found also some good examples which I liked really much. For different reasons – unusual contexts, advance grammar structure, hidden meaning or push-too-far military euphemisms. Thre is a short list of items I like in particular.

from COM ISAF’s Afghanistan update:

The ANSF have frustrated insurgents’ attempts to …

Afghan security institutions and fielded forces…

(…)conduct attacks aimed to garner media coverage.

They also continue to portray the Coalition as accupiers, although that message is losing traction with ANSF in the lead.

from a Proposed Discussion Items:

The criminals who perpetrated this crime are clearly unfit to govern.

(…)to hold accountable any personnel who violate these values even if accidental

(…)are deeply saddened by the senseless loss of Afghan lives and injuries to the good Afghan security personnel and innocent civilians(…) – a masterpiece of Information Operation!!! The carefully chosen adjectives immediately set the good and bad sides, appealing to the pathos of the audience. Find the basic of rhetoric here.

Below you will find possible answers to the writing tasks: L3/W/007.

These are real students’ papers, where I corrected some grammar errors and awkward phrasing. I preserved the original layout, work organization and student’s way of reasoning. Despite some flaws you still can find in these works, the given examples are good enough to pass the exam on level 3. Read it, use it and compare with your own papers.

LETTER:

Dear Mr Mayor,

In response to your e-mail with the general requirements regarding the emergency situations, I am pleased to inform you that our local unit will involve its manpower and resources in order to support the local community.

I would like to acquire more information about the circumstances regarding the mentioned 7 villages. Were the people warned and what is the number of the people to be evacuated? We are also ready to support you with the military food rations. Having the exact location of the emergency shelter, we can deliver rations there. We are also in touch with the UN food agency regarding food supply in the recovery phase of the operation.

Coming to the issue of river flood barriers, we are not the military engineers’ unit. Nevertheless, I have already contacted the US Army unit with proper capabilities. I am awaiting their response. I suggest that you appoint a civil coordinator and pass all the necessary details to me. Should you have any questions or information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours Faithfully

MEMO:

TO : COL. XYZ

FROM : Civ ABC

DATE: 24 October, 2014

SUBJECT: Current situation on the eve of the flood

• Recently some activities have been taken in order to prepare locals for the forthcoming flood. Not all of the issues have been addressed so far. Although emergency shelters were equipped with the military rations, with cold weather conditions outside, people will be suffering from the lack of warm clothes.
• I put under consideration the proposal concerning the organization of a medical care post in the shelter camp run by Polish paramedics. Additionally, I recommend that we approach the Red Cross delegation regarding organization of warm clothes distribution.

REPORT:

SUBJECT : Accommodation of Polish soldiers in an average military unit.

CASE STUDY : The housing situation in the XYZ military unit varies from case to case. Some of professional privates complain about the standard of barracks they are living in. The NCOs who are renting flats from MHA also claim that the rents are high and the agency does not invest in the renovation of the blocks of flats. Medium and high rank officers from the unit whose families live away from the military living quarters also complain. Their expenses connected with commuting from home to the living quarters near the base are not covered by the housing benefits they receive.

PROS and CONS: One of the biggest advantages over the other people is that the military personnel receive housing benefits. Another advantage is the possibility of obtaining a flat to rent from the Military Housing Agency. Among the biggest disadvantages worth mentioning is the fact that soldiers have to serve far away from their houses and sometimes they have to wait for months or years to be given military quarters.

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS: One of the best solutions would be an American approach to the issue which means that soldiers should be living in the bases equipped with shops, schools, kindergartens and medical centres. Otherwise, we will observe more accusations towards Military Housing Agency regarding their management and corruption. The abovementioned solution would also end up with some savings on housing benefits, currently paid to soldiers.

Below you will find possible answers to the writing tasks: L3/W/005.

These are real students’ papers, where I corrected some grammar errors and awkward phrasing. I preserved the original layout, work organization and student’s way of reasoning. The given examples are very good, and all tasks assigned were fulfilled. Read it, use it and compare with your own papers.

LETTER:

Dear Maj. Abdul,

I’m writing to you to thank you wholeheartedly for the outstanding participation of your soldiers during the landmines and C-IED training organized in the Sangin Training Centre. Amongst the other soldiers, Khan and Khanin deserve a special commendation. I can confirm that all of your 125 subordinates are ready to deal properly with encountered mines.

Having in mind well started cooperation, I would like to offer you and your troops another training in August. We plan field exercises at the training area and the participation of the Afghan allies is warmly expected.

At this stage of the planning process, we are quite flexible, therefore, we would like to ask you about the number of the Afghan soldiers and ideas regarding the content of the training.

Yours faithfully,

MEMO:

TO : COL. XYZ

FROM : Civ. ABC

SUBJECT : Outcomes of the meeting with MAJ. Abdul

• Together with the Afghan side, we decided that the next training event will take place between 15th and 22nd of August at the Bagram Training Area. The main topic of the exercise will be the medical evacuation procedures.
• Artificial wounds and blood lots should be ordered. Acquisition of additional 150 dressings is expected as well.
• I suggest that you appoint Lieutenant Kowalski as a coordinator of the preparations.

REPORT:

Report on Civil-Military Cooperation (CIMIC) during the recent flood in Poland.

• Description of the relief activities :

During the recent flood in Southern parts of Poland the 10th Brigade was involved in the management activities together with firefighters and some volunteers. Apart from being responsible for repairing the flood barriers, soldiers also constructed a pontoon bridge. Morover, thanks to the military all terrain vehicles, it was possible to evacuate hundreds of villagers. In the most difficult situations, military helicopters delivered food, water and warm blankets. Additional 5 tonnes of the supplies were delivered to crisis management depots.

• Cooperations with emergency services and local authorities :

Soldiers were involved on the basis of the governor’s request and the Ministry of Defense decision. The use of forces was allowed from the legal perspective. Generally, the cooperation with firefighters and veterinarians was smooth and well organized. Coming to the drawbacks and the gaps, there still is a place for improvement in the field of flood management, such as the communication, the supply chain, the deployment procedures.

• Issues to be addressed, things to be improved :

Although nearly all aims set for the military during the flood were fulfilled, a few things should be improved. First of all, local authorities should send a request for military assistance earlier. More attention should be given to the preparation phase. Civilians did not know the evacuation procedures at all. Finally, emergency warehouses were not prepared for proper supply distribution due to the scale of the flood.

Below you will find possible answers to the writing tasks: L3/W/006.

These are real students’ papers, where I corrected some grammar errors and awkward phrasing. I preserved the original layout, work organization and student’s way of reasoning. The given examples are good enough to pass the exam on level 3. Read it, use it and compare with your own papers.

LETTER:

Dear Sir,

I am writing to you in reply to your request on the new food rations you asked us to test in the field conditions. We accept the above given task but we are going to test the new food next month – during the exercise.

Please, elaborate more on the BMI idea. We are not familiar with it. How should we measure that indicator? Is it invasive anyhow or should it be done by the qualified personnel?

We went through the questionnaire provided by you that rates features of the new product and we found out that the 5^th page is missing. Please, fax it to us again together with Form 4, which was not attached either.

We have one final doubt regarding the necessity of the medical check-ups for soldiers after the tests. Please, clarify this issue as well.,

Yours faithfully,

MEMO:

TO: All platoon pleaders

FROM: Civ. ABC

SUBJECT: Upcoming food tests

• The experimental food rations will be tested during the forthcoming exercises.
• All the soldiers will be provided with questionnaire measuring different characteristics of the new product.
• Your subordinates are obliged to follow the test and report on food rations in the attached questionnaire sheets.
• Soldiers should be informed by you about the necessity of the proper engagement in the test and the penalties in case of any violation of the tests rules. In some circumstances soldiers may be subject to MP investigation and/or dishonourable discharge.

REPORT:

Report on a shooting incident during a patrol

DESCRIPTION: During a patrolling service in an Afghan village, three local people were killed and two others were seriously wounded. According to the patrol commander’s report, his troopes heard suspicious sounds, similar to small arms fire (SAF). The local people started to approach the patrol crew and did not react to the warning shots. From the perspective of the patrol personnel, it looked like an ambush and they responded with fire. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a local celebration.

ANALYSIS OF THE CONSEQUENCES: The above mentioned incident has significant consequences. The accident will be used by terrorists to incite local citizens to standing against our forces. The Afghans have already started perceiving the peacekeeping troops as occupants. Soldiers feel less and less safe. Cumulative stress my lead to other accidents. One of the key factors is a lack of trust between soldiers and local population. The villagers keep asking us why we shoot instead of building new schools and roads.

WAYS OF IMPROVEMENT: Re-establishing of the dialogue with local authorities is crucial for enhancement of the relationships. Cultural awareness experts should be also employed in that process. Other factors are the procedures which should be revised and implemented again. This means that soldiers should undergo new trainings. Inclusion of the local soldiers into patrols should be also considered. Finally, additional resources should be allocated in an information campaign combined with the humanitarian aid distribution.

Below you will find example answers to the writing tasks included in the exam set: L3/W/008.

Use these papers (a report, a memorandum and a letter) as a reference for your own writing. The examples provided are raw students’ papers with all grammar and lexical errors corrected.

LETTER:

Dear Mr. Director,

I am pleased to inform you that the request regarding your visit has been approved by the commander. Can you, please, provide me with the exact date of your arrival and the number of the people who are going to participate? Regarding your accommodation I can guarantee only tents on the territory of the base. Will it be sufficient for the incoming team?

We will be more than happy to give the spectators an overview of our peacekeeping activities. We would like to bring your journalists’ attention to the trainings with local soldiers and service at the checkpoints. We can also arrange for you an interview with our commander or his deputy.

Please, let us know if it is fine to you or if you have any suggestions regarding your visit.

Yours faithfully,

MEMO:

TO: COL. XYZ

FROM: Civ. ABC

DATE: 21^st November, 2014

SUBJECT: Additional information on the TV team visit

• The response we received from the TV team includes an additional request. The journalists want to visit also the field hospital. I suggest that a consent to this expectation should be given.
• I suggest undertaking additional security measures during the visit of the journalists. The TV team have to wear their badges at all times and the liaison officer should assist them during the whole stay in our camp.

REPORT:

Report on the security and safety on the training areas in Poland

Accident description: Recently another fatal accident has happened at the Drawsko military training area. According to the Military Police report, Private Kowalski was accidentally shot by another soldier. The accident happened early in the morning in poor weather conditions. Acting in the fog and the heavy rain, Private Kowalski was fatally wounded in the chest. Judging from the preliminary MP investigation reports it seems to have been an unintentional gunshot.

ANALYSIS: Having in mind the official explanation from the MP report, the soldiers’ opinions reinforce the investigation findings. Some soldiers’ testimonies underline the fact that the weapon used by them is old, unreliable and hazardous. The others claimed that their equipment is too complicated and many hours should be spent on special trainings to operate it properly. Some more also said that the situation was caused by the wrong orders given by the unit commander. Last but not least, weapon safety rules were not followed by the soldier who caused the accident.

REMEDY:

A set of actions should be undertaken to stop the accidents death toll from rising; within 15 years it doubled. The crucial point is to improve the exercises organization and supervision. More frequent inspections will help keep the safety on steady level. Additional controls should start from the highest level to the units downrange. Finally, additional money should be allocated for the new equipment and specialized trainings.

Below you will find example answers to the writing tasks included in the exam set: L3/W/009.

Use these papers (a report, a memorandum and a letter) as a reference for your own writing. The examples provided are raw students’ papers with all grammar and lexical errors corrected.

LETTER:

Dear Mr. Mayor,

I would like to thank you and the whole council for the trust and confidence. I am glad to inform you that we will help protect the polling stations. To prepare ourselves better for this task, please let us know the exact date and time of the elections. Moreover, we need to know the exact number of the polling stations in order to tailor up our resources to your needs. We will be also able to detach more soldiers to additional patrols on the election day. Do you have any expectations regarding the location and the frequency of the patrols?

Please, also be advised that along with the local police we may use the crowd control equipment and procedures. To enhance the cooperation and coordination, please assign a liaison officer to our headquarters.

Yours faithfully,

MEMO:

TO: COL. XYZ

FROM: MAJ. ABC

DATE: 23^rd November, 2014

SUBJECT: Upcoming local elections

• At the meeting with the US Army unit located next to us, it was concluded that the number of polling stations exceeds our capability to provide secure environment during elections. The host nation authorities were advised to decrease the number of polling stations.
• The Americans offered that they would provide security to the stations in the city and the Polish troops will help to protect the election commissions in the countryside.
• We agreed that during the voting day, a joint operation centre will be established to synchronize our actions.

REPORT:

Report on the military health service in Poland

BACKGROUND: More than 1/3 of the medical positions in the Polish Armed Forces are vacant. The worst situation is in the Navy, where the number of vacant positions is almost equal to the number of occupied positions. On the other hand, the number of soldiers with the need of post-mission trauma therapy raised four times between 2004 and 2010. Additionally, due to sending military field hospital crews to Afghanistan, the number of available medical personnel in Poland decreased even more.

ANALYSIS: There are many factors influencing the current situation. One of the most serious ones was the closure of the Military Medical University. Apart from the number of vacancies there are other problems, like the lack of medical equipment, insufficient financing and trainings. Moreover, according to the Chief of Military Health Inspectorate, the medical staff is underpaid. It looks as if there was a lack of consistent policy regarding the military health services. On the one hand, a new military training centre for paramedics has opened, but on the other hand, there are opinions that we keep too many military hospitals.

PROPOSED SOLUTIONS: To stop the military health system from deteriorating, restoration of the Military Medicine University is a must. In the short run, acquisition of the personnel from the civilian health services should be considered as a temporary solution. Troops withdrawal from the mission in Afghanistan would also make up for the vacancies and shortage of equipment in the military health system in Poland.

Below, you will find my student’s answer to the test previously published under the sequence number L3/W/012.

This is the student’s version with his errors correction already done. I did NOT interfere with the student’s way of reasoning and the work organization. The piece of writing presented was good enough to pass level 3 exam. Use it as a reference point for your own writing attempts. Enjoy.

LETTER:

Dear Sir,

I am writing in reply to your query about the food and medicine convoy security. Of course, we are able to support you in this mission but we need to obtain more information from you.

First of all, If I am to organize a convoy from the airport I need to know the exact time of the cargo plane arrival and the number of trucks in the convoy. These details are very important to organize proper security.

Here are a few things that we could not accept. We should move the distribution place further from the city centre. It will help us to secure it. Finally, we can secure the centre for one day only due to other tasks. I recommend that you finish distribution in one day.

I am looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours faithfully

XYZ

 MEMORANDUM:

TO: CO

FROM: XYZ

Date: 20th October 2014

Subject: Food distribution incident

• I am pleased to inform you that my soldiers secured the convoy from the airport to the city centre. However, during the food distribution, some local police officers tried to illegally take a large pile of food and medicine. After my intervention, they withdrew but they still observed us.
• Although we secured distribution this time, I recommend that we involve high rank authorities to this type of missions in the future.

 REPORT:

TO: International military agency

FROM: Lt. XYZ

DATE: 20^th October 2014

Subject: Opinion about international military missions

Introduction

The purpose of this report is to inform your agency how the armed forces’ participation in international military missions is perceived in Poland. This report is based on the Polish MOD statistics, the survey conducted among soldiers as well as information gathered from the press and Internet sources.

Polish army for the last 15 years have been participating in 7 missions abroad. The Polish missions in Syria, Lebanon, Chad have already been finished; four more are ongoing in  Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Iraq. The biggest  mission is the Afghan one, with 2,600 Polish soldiers deployed there and 16 killed so far. The fewest soldiers serve In Iraq (c. 20 officers).

Generally, the public opinion in Poland has negative attitude to military missions. About 71% of people do not want to send our soldiers abroad, only 17% accept it. The cost of missions and threat level there are the major reasons for the lack of support. Most soldiers have positive attitude to the missions. which help them improve their skills.

Most soldiers think that to make our missions more effective and more safe, the government should modernize our army. Soldiers should be equipped with better equipment, for example special uniforms and weapons.

All things considered, I believe that our soldiers served well in missions abroad but some things need to be changed, mainly in our equipment.

Below you will find a student’s work you can regard as a reference when doing the test yourself. These are the possible answers to the examination set published under the sequence number L3/W/011. The three writing forms are good enough. All tasks were fulfilled, however, the report did not reach the words limit assigned. Surely, more hints could have been exploited in this report. I preserved the student’s actual wording and writing organization, correcting only some grammar errors and awkward expressions. The rest remained untouched.

LETTER:

Dear Mr…

Replying to your letter I am pleased to inform you that we are grateful for Poland’s decision to support European logistic projects.

Currently we are facing the lack of engineers for servicing Sensors for Anti Sniper System. Nevertheless, Poland can also support us in other projects, such as sending tanker aircrafts to Air-to-Air Refuelling missions. Depending on your preference, other projects can also be supported. I propose to discuss your involvement during the next Project Board meeting which is scheduled on the next week. Usually we meet quarterly and one week before a meeting I’m sending a remainder.

If you have any suggestions or additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me on email or phone.

Yours faithfully,

XYZ

MEMO:

To:  Col XYZ

From: Lt. ABC

Date: 5 February, 2015

Subject: Polish troops project involvement

Recently some actions have been taken to outline Polish troops involvement in the next Project Board meeting.

It has been agreed that Polish representation will consist of 3 high rank officers and 10 junior enlisted ranks.

Regarding their accommodation, a liaison officer has been assigned who will support them during their stay.  For security clearance reasons the copies of ID cards have to be provided. This will be clarified during the next teleconference.

REPORT:

Polish industry engagement in European projects

BACKGROUND:

Recent statistics show that Polish arms industry has significantly increased their support in European projects. Polish industry is mainly focused on providing military technology, which Allies work together on, which may consequently lead to their own brands to be more recognizable.

CHALLENGES:

By  developing the military technology, Polish government will probably need to cut the funds for other branches. Additionally, they need to enhance production efficiency, since it takes them two months to build only one new fifth generation fighter aircraft.

POSSIBLE SOLUTION:

One of the best solutions to bring their own market to be more effective is to launch the cooperation between them and other European military industrial companies. By sending experienced specialists to their factories, we can strengthen the Polish military industry and in consequence enhance the European safety. This effect could be also achieved by creating multinational Engineers Project Board to work together on a new strike fighter.

The new model of the English exam on level 3 was adopted in Poland as early as September, 2015. However, this is the first examination set complying with that model. Thanks to PAFSL in Łódź, you fill find below two tasks from the written part of the exam. You can also find a possible answer which is based on our students’ attempts, i.e. their own ideas with necessary corrections and editing. The differences between the old model and the new one were already wrapped up in my article here:
http://www.stanag6001.com/level-3-new-exam-model/

English examination set #L3/W/013

Level 3

Writing

Time: 80 minutes

Task One

Write a minimum of 120 words on the topic below.

During an international field exercise, a soldier was injured at a shooting range. You have been asked to write a memo to your CO in which you 1) describe the incident and its reasons, 2) present action taken and say how the incident affected the exercise, 3) suggest what measures should be taken in order to avoid similar incidents in the future.

Task Two

Write a minimum of 200 words on one of the topics below.

1. The proposal to legalize soft drugs is raising a lot of controversy. You have been asked to write a report about the situation in Poland. Include the following points:

• describe the situation in Poland
• assess the positive and negative sides of the proposal
• suggest an alternative solution to the problem of soft drugs

2. Communications technology is developing at a very fast pace. You have been asked to write a report on its influence on people’s lives. Include the following points:

• describe communication technology advances in recent years
• assess their negative and positive impact on people’s lives
• suggest how this technology will influence everyday life in the future

Writing samples (memo and report)

Task 1

From: Lt Wilk

To: Col Piotrowicz

Subject: Incident during BALTOPS

• During current exercise BALTOPS 15 one soldier from the 7th infantry platoon was badly injured. His rifle fired and a bullet shrank his leg while he was preparing to shoot on a shooting range. We assume the incident took place because he installed a wrong cartridge clip to the rifle.
• The soldier received first aid and was transported to a surgery ward. The shooting part of the exercise had been suspended until a prosecutor arrived. On a following day I decided to conduct shooting as usual, after examining if after examining if the rounds were installed in appropriate cartridges.
• I strongly recommend two safety measures to avoid similar accidents in the future. Firstly, soldiers should not be allowed to load rounds without supervising. Secondly, some additional training focusing on ammunition issues should be organized.

Task 2

Introduction

The aim of this report is to assess communications technology influence on people’s lives. It presents brief description of communication technology recent advancement, threats and opportunities it creates, and prediction of future outcomes. The report is based on my personal experience in this subject and research on failing sight.

Communications technology advancement

.Communications market sector has grown significantly since 2010. Concerning a total amount of sold devices (like mobiles, tablets, notebooks, etc.) it almost doubled. The key reason is that a single device became affordable almost for everyone – the average price of a cutting-edge mobile decreased from $ 5,000  in 2010 to $ 3,000  in 2015.

Nevertheless, technology used in communications made a stepping stone during last years, so that next-gen devices perform better and better. Modern, digital, and quadrature modulations, frequency hopping techniques, powerful signal processors and so forth give a variety of possibilities like high speed video streaming or ultra-quality audio calls with ciphering performed online to ensure safety.

Advantages and disadvantages

All characteristics mentioned above allow people to stay in touch even if they are far apart. Instant access to the Internet make people smarter because they have one-click-access knowledge. However, there are a couple of drawbacks. For instance more and more people become addicted to their devices, especially the youth. It may deteriorate social bonds. Furthermore, excessive usage of mobile phones or notebooks is likely to weaken one’s ability to see from short distances, research says.

Future

I believe that a fast pace of the technological advances will continue to influence our communications during the following decades. We can expect more remotely controlled cars on our roads which will make everyday commuting more safe and easy. 3D video conferences will enhance our communication experience, making contacts with distant relatives and friends more frequent and enjoyable. At the same time, however, the modern technology will loosen our social bonds in direct contacts and our neighbours will become strangers, represented rather by social media profiles than the real persons we would like to talk to.

We have already announced on Facebook that a new book would appear on the market soon. The time has come. As I promised, this is a hot review of the pre-printed copy I got from the author.

A new textbook for those attempting Stanag6001 exams

If you prepare for any English exam, sooner or later, you must do some pre-exam tests. Not only to test your level of knowledge and your readiness in general. First of all, you must familiarize with the type of exercises you will be asked to do during the actual exam. The same concerns military English exams. Each country developed its own examination models and they are standard ones, that means you can have a look at the earlier exam editions and learn what to expect when your moment arrives. But where can you find the previous exams? The answer was here, on my website. From 2012 I have been trying to fill in the gap, providing English resources for both, students and teachers, but since February 2017 you can reach for another source of knowledge too.

speaking and writing expert – Stanag6001 level 3

This year a new book appeared on the market. It is “Speaking And Writing Expert. How to Pass STANAG 6001 English Exam LEVEL 3” by Małgorzata Mazurek – a Polish English teacher working for the military school of foreign languages in Warsaw. She devoted several years of her professional career to teach military students English. The book is the natural consequence of the scarcity of the resources on the market and her answer to the problem. Let’s have a look at what you can get once you decide to buy it.

The book content

The first striking thing you notice is the content dealing with two language skills only (out of four required at the exam). It is not a coincidence. The two skills are so called ‘productive skills’ that fully depend on your own inborn capabilities and effort you had put into studying. The remaining two, the passive skills (of reading and listening) are harder to practise and difficult to teach. That is why you will find a comprehensive summary of the speaking and writing tasks, but no clue about the rest of tasks required for the reading, or listening parts of the exam.

stanag6001 level 3 text book content

Theory pages and exercises

The second thing I liked in particular is the fact that the book is not only informative; it is actually a workbook containing multiple exercises you can do on book pages. That way you will enhance your theoretical knowledge and improve your practical skills too. The problem with the productive skills is that pure knowledge on the topic is not enough. Any oral or written utterance should be delivered in a logical way, served in a formal language. That book will teach you, step-by-step, what is the required, proper way of composing your report, memo, letter, briefing, etc.

Stanag6001 English exam useful phrases and tips

For those, who lack occasions for practising English in military environment it might be indispensable. If your knowledge was based on the movies (however, great thing to do), yet you can fail at the exam where different speaking or writing style is required. So forget “Blackhawk Down” or any other theatrical classics, and reach for the book to learn how to get your message through in an official, usually high ranking officers’ environment.

Exam tips

Few people know that during exam not only your level of English is assessed. Actually, at the exam, they evaluate your communicative skills expressed in English. And that book will teach you that! You will realize that it takes something more to pass than a simple grammatically correct sentence. You will learn how to conduct discussions, how to support your arguments, how to convince your interlocutors, etc. Generally speaking, how to become a successful speaker and writer.

The book does not limit to proper composition of your utterance. It offers you also some tips and guidance on how to prepare and successfully, efficiently learn new ideas in English. As an English teacher I immediately recognized some of them as a core message I was sending to my students too. So you will receive all the wisdom of some practitioners and tutors comprised in the price of the book.

The book facts

number of pages: 316

price: PLN 39.90 (= ap. EUR 9.00)

shipping costs: PLN 15.00 (= ap. EUR 4.00)

payment methods: wire transfer, Tpay (wire transfer intermediary) or Paypal

available at: http://www.stanagexpert.com – the author’s website. So far no other medium of selling was announced. No e-book available either.

Cons

If you counted on a complete course book, this book is not for you. It was not the author’s intention to provide a complete course in English. Instead, you receive a complete guide in the preparation process for the exam. I believe that the basic assumption was that you already mastered a certain level of English and you need only some tuning, polishing, and switching into the exam mode. That is why you will not find any grammar pages, but you will find extensive lexical tables with useful phrases and ready-to-use scripts.

Example dialog from military English exam on level 3333 according to Stanag6001

Unfortunately, no CD/DVD is attached to this text book so no audio is available. Even though you still have sample briefings and discussions required at the exam.

If you prefer to read something on a computer screen, this time you must stick to a paper book and rely on the pages provided. You cannot print out specific pages, but making a photocopy is still an option. The whole book is copying friendly, unlike modern course books saturated with skilfully arranged colours to blur the content on a copy. Yes, the big publishers do that on purpose!

Summary

To sum up, I believe that book is absolutely indispensable for any military student, unless something new, more elaborated appears on the market! With such a scarcity of specialised resources on the market, this book has gone far beyond the readers’ expectations. It will familiarize you with STANAG6001 requirements, scoring criteria, and help you develop your productive skills: speaking and writing. It is the first such a comprehensive book preparing for the military language exams. The skills are presented in an easy and step-by-step way. Multiple examples, ready-to-use samples, cheat sheets and comments – all that you need if you are serious about taking the STANAG 6001 English exam. Armed with that book, you are really “combat ready,” at least when it comes to linguistic battles.

I have already included this position in my list of recommended books. Enjoy reading.

Stanag6001 test level 3 new topics

Another examination set on level 3 with our student’s answers, good enough to pass the exam. This time we provide four topics. A pdf version of tasks is available below the article.

English examination set #L3/W/015

Level 3

Writing

Time: 80 minutes

TASK 1

Write a minimum of 120 words on one of the topics below.

(In the examination candidates are to write either a letter or a memorandum – never both)

1. Letter / email

While surfing on the Internet, you noticed some sensitive information concerning the Polish troops stationed in Afghanistan. Write an email to Google 1) asking to remove this site from their search engine, 2) writing what information it is, 3) explaining why it is important to remove it.

2. Memo

In the area where your unit is located, there was an abortive terrorist attack. You have just returned from a meeting in the Eurocorps headquarters, where this incident was discussed. Write a memo to your CO informing him about the details discussed during the meeting: 1) the exact description of the incident; 2) possible reasons; 3) measures to avoid such situations in the future.

TASK 2

Write a minimum of 200 words on one of the topics below.

1. Write a report for a NATO commission about juvenile delinquency in Poland. Include the points below:

• the most common crimes among the youth
• punishments and methods of rehabilitation used so far
• what can be done to lower the rate of recidivism

2. Write a report for a NATO commission about limiting privacy of individuals in Poland. Include the points below:

• information held by government institutions and employers
• ways of identifying people in public institutions and at work
• the use of CCTV in public places.

Possible answers:

Task 1

(1. letter)

Dear Sirs,

I am writing in order to complain about some search results I have found in your browser.

I am the senior spokesman of Polish Ministry of National Defence. Yesterday, when I was conducting standard press research via Google, I noticed some search results concerning Polish troops with completely uncorroborated information (links in enclosure). These results lead to sites of fake and non-existing news agencies.  Coverage available on these websites inform the readers that the Polish army has committed a series of cruel rapes finished with manslaughter, during our involvement in Afghanistan. None of these incidents with Polish troops have ever taken place.

Polish MOD asks you to remove the mentioned results from your search engine. They blemish our soldiers, who serve with the greatest commitment. Furthermore, the fake websites were probably created by ISIS related entities, so they can promote terrorism, fundamentalism, and radicalization. That is why we insist on taking appropriate steps as soon as possible.

Sincerely yours,

Col XYZ

(2. memo)

From: XYZ

To: ABC

Subject: Conclusions from the meeting at Eurocorps HQ

• According to our partners from Eurocorps HQ, the recent attack was conducted by two Pakistani men who deceived our gate sentry with fake ID cards. After that they trespassed to operation centre building and they climbed it with climbing gear. Finally, after they had reached the top floor, they committed suicide bombing with home-made explosive belts.
• First of all, the incident would have not taken place if we had introduced additional form of authenticating visitors. Furthermore, Eurocorps believes that our sentry was not trained sufficiently.
• It is highly anticipated to introduce three precautionary measures to avoid similar incidents in the future. Firstly, fingerprint verification at the entrance should be implemented to sort out individuals from a red watch list. Secondly, we should install bars on windows. Last, but not least, series of comprehensive trainings for our security personnel is needed.

Taks 2

(first topic)

Introduction

The intention of this report is to discuss the problem of juvenile delinquency in Poland. The report shows types of crimes, popular among the youth. It also gives the list of available punishments and author’s recommendations how to lower the rate of recidivism. The report is based on reliable sources, such as official, governmental statistics, surveys, and police reports.

Common crimes

According to the police statistics, the most common type of crime which is being committed by the Polish youth, is theft (a term ”the youth” used in the following report stands for people between 16 and 22 years old). There have been 3096 such incidents in recent years. The second most popular violation, by number of incidents revealed, was robbery. 2031 instances of this crime were registered in 2016. The third most common crime was raping, with number of 851 incidents observed.

Punishments and rehabilitation

At present, the most popular form of penalty employed in Polish justice system is a fine. Imposed charges vary from $ 200 to $ 500,000 and depends on kind of misbehaviour. However, perpetrators of more severe crimes are usually punished with jail sentence.

The young offenders prefer to pay back their debts with additional work for the society. It is also the most appreciated method of rehabilitation by the local communities for being costs-free and generating added value.

Recommendations

In order to decrease the rate of recidivism, young criminals should be compelled to do some charity work, like caring elder people or sweeping streets. Community works could help the perpetrators to regain the face and trust of the others. It is also crucial to analyse other circumstances which could force young person to commit a crime. These circumstances are e.g. poverty, family problems, lack of friends and so forth. To solve it, help of psychologists and social workers may be indispensable.

(second topic)

Introduction

The following report tries to describe the problem of privacy in Poland. It presents current state of affairs and the ways of identifying people in public. It also gives information about CCTV usage in Poland. The report is based on the Internet sources, such as official websites of Main Bureau of Statistics, the Police Headquarters, and Polish Press Agency.

Information being gathered

Nowadays, in order to be employed, a statistical Pole needs to pass some minimum set of data to an employer. These data are: name and surname, date and place of birth, parents’ names, personal identification number (PESEL), and ID card number. However, some employers, especially big companies, force their workers to reveal some extra information, e.g. about financial situation, owned properties, age of children, etc. Fortunately, the Polish law imposes substantial penalties for those employers who do not register sets of additional data in appropriate government-held entity.

Identification methods

The vast majority of Polish firms do not use any means to identify its workers. Nevertheless, bigger companies have implemented a system of personal ID cards with the unique tag. We should bear in mind that these cards usually do not comprise any specific personal information, e.g. biometrical one. For this reason, data associated with the card holder are relatively safe, even when the card is lost.

The situation is quite different in public institutions, where a person is usually verified by one’s own signature and additional document, like passport or ID.

CCTV issue

In recent years, the number of CCTV cameras employed in Polish cities has grown astoundingly. The exact amount of cameras in our country is not known, but there were 151 814 such devices in Warsaw in 2016. These cameras are mainly maintained by the Police.

Summary

Year by year, eavesdropping on citizens becomes easier for the Polish government. On the other hand, we should not be worried. Gathering personal data of any person by law enforcement agencies must be preceded by a prosecutor’s eavesdrop order justified by serious suspicions. Finally, limiting privacy might be disturbing for us, nevertheless, it substantially helps the Police to reveal most severe crimes.

Remark: Even though it is a common practice in English to start each word in headings with capital letters, we do not consider that as obligatory. However, we encourage you do so to make your writing super-correct.