16 July 2009
BSA Field Testing Mandatory Training
Posted by admin under: Training .
As you can probably see, I’ve been perusing the 3 new videos over at http://www.youtube.com/user/BSA100years which are speeches that were delivered at the annual national meeting. Terry Dunn, a national board member, said that there is a problem with training not being taken by unit leaders and that the BSA will allow selected councils to require training for those positions, including Den Leaders for the Cub Scouts. This didn’t trouble me since we’re all supposed to do our training anyhow, right? What stunned me was his statement that only 36% of unit leaders are currently trained. We always have a few leaders who aren’t trained for a while because of the timing of the classes or schedules, but we generally get them through the process within 4 or 5 months of signing up a new assistant Scoutmaster. Committee member training is more rare so that tends to get overlooked, but even they get their youth protection and hazardous weather training done, generally speaking. So, where are all of these untrained leaders?
- Your Training Reminder
- BSA: Online Rechartering
- With Leaders Like These Who Needs Enemies?
- Nice Training Page Summary
- Junior Assistant Scoutmaster
6 Comments so far...
JC Says:
16 July 2009 at 10:01 am.
Our pack had 100% trained direct-contact leaders for the first time last year. It’s not that people aren’t interested, but in a rural area anyway (our district is over 100 miles end to end) it’s not like we can just buzz down to the Council office after dinner. Each training event is a day-long commitment–half the year on icy roads, and that is if you can find trained trainers.
I know that online learning is not for everybody, but it sure does help.
LatterDay_Scout Says:
16 July 2009 at 10:32 am.
They’re everywhere.. I see them at many events. Mostly because some don’t even know what training is available or required. It’s so easy to do that there should be very little excuse, but there are many units that are not getting proper guidence from their DE, or are not making time for even basic training..
Larry G Says:
16 July 2009 at 1:24 pm.
I don’t disagree that there are many who have not completed all training. At the same time there are many, many reports of inaccurate training records. Part of the reason the stats are so low might just be as simple as inaccurate record keeping.
New York OA Trader | Shared Items From Around The Web – July 17, 2009 Says:
17 July 2009 at 9:03 am.
[...] BSA Field Testing Mandatory Training [...]
Walter Underwood Says:
17 July 2009 at 5:00 pm.
I can think of two things. First, the training scheme is confusing. It isn’t Scoutmaster 1, 2, and 3, it is Fast Start, Position-specific, and Introduction to Outdoor Leader Skills. Second, we have a medium-sized council and ItOLS is offered twice yearly, so it only takes a couple of weekend conflicts to delay the last course for 1.5 years.
For an entirely different approach, listen to Nick’s podcast on adult leader training in the UK. They have 36 modules, some required. Three are done the first evening when you are appointed. You can test out of modules if you already have the knowledge. To renew as a leader you need to do five hours of training each year.
Podcast is here (11 minutes): http://blog.nawbus.co.uk/?p=806
I do wish that the BSA would try to learn from Scouting in other countries.
John R Says:
25 July 2009 at 3:00 pm.
I think that one has to understand the statistics and who was counted. We have over 40+ adults registered for both ASM’s and Comittee Members. 100% of the ASM’s are trained. The committee’s on the other hand don’t have a high degree of training, nor are all of them fully involved in the program or interacting other than reviews. So when they say only 37% of leaders are trained, which ones are they talking about, what specific training are they talking about.
I’ve found that most District and Council level staff are pencil pushers, and it goes up the ladder. They need to understand what it really is and what it really means. Personally the original training sites and process to record who was trained was 100% a broken process. It’s getting better, but still not great. They need to track every registered individual and what they’ve taken, as we’ll as share stats at the Unit Level and District Level, so people can truely see.
