dewASM Posted September 3, 2009 Share Posted September 3, 2009 The only portion of Scoutmaster required training that I have not completed is outdoor skills. My biggest issue with this training is that in our council it is only offered once a year in June. A weekend away in the beginning of June is difficult. Between the end of school year activities (last year is conflicted with my son's induction into National Junior Honor Society) and my busiest weeks of the year at work, I find it hard to manage. While searching for information on what is included in the course, I found several out of state councils that offer it as part of the spring camporee. Scoutmasters may either camp with their attending troop or with the training group and sessions are held throughout the day while scouts are busy in other areas. Seemed like a good idea. One less weekend away and a good example for the Scouts to see the Scoutmaster getting trained. So before I opened my big mouth and suggested this to our council, I wondered if anyone has done this or seen it done? Did it work well? Problems? I think mandated training is most successful, if it is easy to access thanks again dew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Skipper Posted September 3, 2009 Share Posted September 3, 2009 We have gone to the Camporee/OLS format in our district, and we are in our 4th year of it. I like it and I don't. (I am on the training committee but I am not a trainer for this course). There are many troops in our distict which do NOT participate in camporees, and this has done little, if anything, to draw these troops to the camporees, nor is it appealing to attend for those SM/ASMs whose troops do not attend. Likewise, for those leaders who are at camporee, some do not feel it is "responsible" to be away from the troop. On the other hand, attendance has been fairly good, especially at the camporee prior to the start of the next Wood Badge course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GernBlansten Posted September 3, 2009 Share Posted September 3, 2009 To me, it seems like it would dilute an already diluted training schedule. The SM returning to his unit at night to do his SM duties would take him away from what we did in the evenings at ITOLS. Our ITOLS ran from Friday afternoon till Sunday afternoon, no time to do other things with your unit. Now if your ASMs fill in for you at the camporee, then fine, but at that point why tie ITOLS to the camporee? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eisely Posted September 3, 2009 Share Posted September 3, 2009 Doing OLS in conjunction with a camporee is an interesting idea. However I agree that trying to jam too much into one weekend is probably a mistake and lessens the benefit of the training. Our council is one of several in the San Francisco bay area. Various districts in our council offer this at different times during the year so just within our own council one has numerous dates to choose from. I don't know how offering it once a year for the entire council would be sufficient. We regularly get trainees from neighboring councils showing up for our training sessions. Record keeping across council boundaries can become a hassle so such people are well advised to obtain and maintain their own hard copies of their documentation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ntrog8r Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 I remember oyur frustrations trying to get traning. And then they went made me a trainer! How many trainers does your Council have? How many SMs are there that need the training? Try to get a session scheduled based on what works for these SMs. I have seen the training done at Camporees in other districts and it seemed to work fine. I haven't done it as a trainer or a leader so can't say much more than that. I have participated in the training (as a trainer) being given at Summer Camp. This worked out really well for us. The major complaint was from SMs who were not able to attend Sumemr Camp during the two sessions it was offered; no one complained they were not able to recruit an extra adult to attend camp while the trainees were away. Alas, the schedules of volunteers will not always line up, but it probably can line up more than once a year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle92 Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 I tried to do the SM Specs at a camporee and only two people showed up. No one wanted to do it then as they wanted to watch their scouts compete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikecummings157 Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 The summer camp our troop attends offers the SM Specific and OLS during the week. We just need to make sure we have enough other adults staying with the troop while the trainees are in attendance. This has worked out very well for some of the ASM's who have a hard time getting away during the year. The camp also offers various other training opportunities, Youth Protection, Safe Swim, Climbing Safely, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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