Our next door neighbor wanted me to teach her 16 year old son how to shoot a rifle. I explained that I felt he ought to learn first on an open sighted rifle, and the only .22 I have here has a scope and no open sights. As the kid is 6'2" he looked like he could handle a military rifle. He had a choice of an M1A and an '03 Springfield because I think the peep sights on both are instructive. After an hour and a half of safety instruction and familiarization, we headed for the range.
His verdict:He prefers the 1903 to the semi-auto. He much prefers it. He did shoot better with it. He put 20 through the M1a and 24 through the '03. Both work fine for me, but for him, it's the (real) Springfield. Maybe he'll get one someday. At least he knows what an '03 is.