Philt

I make a few mental or written notes prior to a SM Conference, but have found the best conversation is generated in a very informal atmosphere. I want the Scout to look within, to set some goals for the next rank, to identify problems, etc. Leading, non-threatening questions work well. I'm curious about the following from acco40's earlier post: "As A SM, I prepare by having attendance, service, POR, etc. information handy and briefly scanned before I meet with the Scouts" How do you use attendance information during the conference? Many thanks.

By the time we were done, we were able to provide the commissioner staff with stats by unit. I know they talked to the units showing a small level of advancement. The number of Scouts reaching 1st Class was 101. Each of them was listed on the 2006 unit rosters after rechartering was completed.

Here are the conclusions we reached, and why: 1. There is a direct relationship between a Scout reaching First Class in his first year and his retention for a second year. This did not surprise us, of course, but the percentage re-registering did. 2. A unit's general program directly affects it's advancement program, as it should. (Very unscientific conclusion). 3. A unit's general program may have as much effect on retention as its advancement program. We were very surprised at the number of Scouts with no rank advancement, or Tend and 2nd, who re-registered. Lisabob, I fully agree that Scouts who are motivated are going to reach First Class and re-register. However, the emphasis of our study was to talk about the 74 out of 305 first year Scouts in 2005 who did NOT re-register, and to suggest that a well-organized, well-planned, well-presented and FUN advancement program will help reduce that loss. In our presentation we ask the question: "Which is easier--keeping an existing Scout or recruiting a new one?"

OK, here's some more data from our study in 2005: Remember I said that 100% of the 1st year Scouts reaching First Class maintained their membership for at least a second year. This group represented 33% of the population in the study (that is, 33% of the first year Scouts in our District that year. 38% of the study's population earned no rank advancement at all during that year. None, zip, nada. Of these Scouts, 50% re-registered at the end of the year. 15% or the population reached Tenderfoot; 76% re-registered. 13% reached 2nd Class; 90% re-registered. The study was designed to simply examine the relationship between FYFC and retention. We did not make any attempt to measure program quality, the tenure and training level of a unit's leaders, etc. The conclusion we naturally reached was that FYFC has a direct relationship to retention. I suppose it would be interesting to see if those Scouts reaching First Class re-registered for a THIRD year, but someone else can undertake that little chore. Regarding the methods of Scouting, I'm not sure how you choose which ones to use when. I thought we used all of them all of the time equally to achieve the aims of Scouting. From the SM Handbook: "Advancement is one of the eight methods used by Scout leaders to help boys fulfill the aims of the BSA. Properly used, a troop's advancement program can tie together and energize the other seven methods."

In the second post on this thread Gold Winger says: "BSA claims that boys who make first class in one year are more likely to stay in Scouting. I have a feeling that their data and analysis is horribly skewed." The data is certainly not skewed. We studied this for calendar year 2005 and found that 100% of the first year Scouts in our District who earned 1st Class retained their membership for a second year. That percentage, of course, is higher than those who reached Tenderfoot or 2nd Class. The study led to several other interesting discoveries, including the relationship between advancement, the rest of a unit's program, and retention. But the main purpose was to see if FYFC actually leads to retention, and it does.