|
Your Training Journey
The journey from Fast Start to Wood Badge is a seamless
progression for adults and an unending benefit for BSA
youth. Fast Start Orientation and New Leader
Essentials—the first two steps in new-leader
training—introduce new leaders to the Boy Scouting
program. Leader Specific Training, as the name implies,
focuses on specific leader roles and will require
several days to complete, depending on an individual's
previous outdoor skills experience. Wood Badge has
evolved into the premier leadership course of the BSA,
strengthening a leader's ability to effectively work
with groups of youth and adults.
Welcome to Scouting! As a new Scout leader, you are
joining our Scouting family, and we want you to
understand how the program works. The Fast Start
Orientation video and guide will help explain it. These
materials present a quick introduction to get new
leaders ready for your first Boy Scout meeting.
You will learn in Fast Start Orientation that Scouting
employs eight fundamental methods to deliver its three
aims of character development, citizenship training, and
personal fitness. The eight methods are the ideals, the
patrol method, the outdoors, advancement, association
with adults, personal growth, leadership development,
and the uniform. A troop functions best when all eight
methods are employed. As a leader progresses through the
levels of training, the eight methods are continually
emphasized.
As the first section of Basic Leader Training, New
Leader Essentials is a 90-minute introductory session
that highlights the values, aims, history, funding, and
methods of Scouting and provides new leaders with a look
at the resources available to them. New Leader
Essentials often is offered as the first part of Leader
Specific Training.
Leader Specific Training
is divided into four parts. The first three parts are
designed to teach troop operations and can be completed
in one full day or three evenings. The fourth part is
completing "Introduction to Outdoor Leadership Skills,"
which are the skills required for the Tenderfoot, Second
Class, and First Class ranks. Because emphasis is placed
on a leader's previous knowledge of the skill rather
than course attendance, a new leader can complete this
course at an accelerated pace.
Varsity Coaches and
assistant Coaches have similar training requirements to
Scoutmasters and assistant Scoutmasters. Requirements
for trained Varsity leaders are Varsity Fast Start
Orientation, New Leader Essentials, Varsity Coach Leader
Specific Training, and troduction to Outdoor Leadership
Skills.
For troop committee
members, Leader Specific Training includes Troop
Committee Challenge. Upon completion of the three-hour
challenge, a troop committee member is considered
trained.
Upon completion of
Leader Specific Training, an adult is eligible to attend
Wood Badge for the 21st Century. As the core leadership
skills training course for the BSA, Wood Badge focuses
on strengthening every volunteer's ability to work with
groups of youth and adults and is less focused on
outdoor skills, which are more effectively addressed in
other training courses.
The task force that
developed Wood Badge for the 21st Century was charged
with developing an adult training course that was on the
cutting edge of training for the 21st century. They
created a highly user-friendly course that would
encourage BSA local councils to offer more courses and,
ultimately, train more Scouters. The Wood Badge course
has made significant accomplishments in both areas.
Incorporating leadership
concepts that are used in corporate America, the course
teaches participants the basics of listening,
communicating, valuing people, team development,
situational leadership, problem solving, and managing
conflict. Once the skill is learned, each member is
given the opportunity to use the skill as a member of a
successful working team. At the conclusion of the
course, each participant develops a set of personal
goals related to his or her Scouting role. Working
toward these goals allows each participant to practice
and demonstrate new skills.
Nationwide over the past
two years, Wood Badge courses have increased more than
30 percent. The course is for all Scouters—Boy Scout
leaders, Cub Scout leaders, Venturing leaders, and
district and council leaders. This has increased
communication to allow for a more seamless connection
among all BSA programs.
There is always
something new to learn and experience in BSA training. A
number of
supplemental training modules are available on the
BSA Web site. They are designed to be downloaded for
one-hour course outlines or viewed as self-study
courses.
Most BSA local councils
offer additional training for Scout leaders, focusing on
outdoor skills, Youth Protection, and youth leadership
development. At the national level, a number of training
courses are conducted each summer at the Philmont
Training Center in northern New Mexico. Courses focus on
everything from teaching outdoor skills to working with
the troop committee.
Another supplemental
training opportunity is the monthly district
roundtable—meetings that bring together Scout leaders
from a number of troops to share ideas and teach skills.
Each meeting is an opportunity for enjoying fellowship
and fun with others who are committed to Scouting's aims
and ideals.
Whether you have been in
Scouting for many years or are just starting out, the
Boy Scout Leader Assessment Tool is for you. The online
assessment will help Scouters of all experience levels
discover opportunities to refresh their understanding of
Scouting and determine how to update their skills.
Specifically, the Boy Scout Leader Assessment Tool will
- Identify which BSA
training courses would be most beneficial to the
individual Scouter.
- Allow local council
trainer chairpersons to know and understand which
courses should be offered.
- Remind long-term
Scouters that there are new and interesting skills
for them to learn.
- Allow adult leaders
to determine their strengths and weaknesses
regarding Boy Scout training.
- Help our adult
leaders to have the latest and greatest skills to
support and mentor our Scouts.
This assessment tool is
available at
www.scouting.org/boyscouts/training/start.jsp
|
Calling All Scoutmasters and
Assistants- There will Scoutmaster training on 22
March in Yongsan. If you haven't attend or you
know you will be taking over this summer in one of these
key positions then this training is for you. Let's
give the youth the best leaders we can! Contact
Donald for more information.