"Train Them, Trust Them, Let Them Lead"

[perdidochas]

On 12/22/2018 at 6:56 PM, davemetrano said:

Does anybody have any suggestions on starting a leadership course for SPL's, ASPL and PL's. I'm not talking about Brownsea or NYLT. My council has both of these

fine courses;but, many troops do not take advantage of them.  I would like to offer basic scout leadership training on a troop level, at the troops meeting location, etc.

 

I would appreciate any information that is out there.

That's what ILST is for.  It's for Troops to conduct their own leadership training.

 

Our troop did that for a while (not sure they still do).  It seemed to work.

 

https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/training/pdf/ILST FINALS 2011 - Item Number 511-016.pdf

 

https://i9peu1ikn3a16vg4e45rqi17-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/721-07218-ILST-Facil-Training_WEB.pdf

Edited December 24, 2018 by perdidochas

[Gilwell_1919]

Quote

@LeCastor "My biggest difficulty as Scoutmaster was convincing the parents that the Scouts were the true leaders of the Troop. It was a constant battle."

Spot on sir! 

My triplets and I recently bridged over from Cub Scouts this year, and the former Scoutmaster was grooming me to take over the Troop shortly after he found out I was an Eagle Scout and had 10-years of teaching/applying survival and combat triage skills in the military (*BTW teaching scouts is waaaaay different than teaching soldiers... thank you Wood Badge for pointing that out!). 

To your point, you are absolutely correct. A lot of the parents tend to "helicopter hover" over their boys and some of the new scout dads don't really know that their sons can't learn to do for themselves if they are not given an opportunity to make mistakes (little life lessons - if you will). "Wow, you're cold and wet because you didn't put the rainfly on correctly? I bet you won't do that again... go grab some wood and make a fire to warm up." "There was a raccoon in your tent last night? Yep, you probably shouldn't have been eating food in your tent and leaving crumbs/trash everywhere." (true story too).

As a new Scoutmaster, I've been really emphasizing on the Patrol Method... and I use "esprit de corps" to introduce that little bit of friendly competition between the patrols. Quite honestly, teaching the boys the patrol method and having the troop be "boy run" is the easy part. But... teaching the parents to sit back and watch the boys operate as a cohesive unit... that is definitely much harder to accomplish. Obviously, this is my first year as a Scoutmaster, but I am definitely looking forward to this challenge!

Thanks for the post! 

 

[RememberSchiff]

@Gilwell_1919  welcome to scouter.com 

[TAHAWK]

On 12/22/2018 at 7:56 PM, davemetrano said:

Does anybody have any suggestions on starting a leadership course for SPL's, ASPL and PL's. I'm not talking about Brownsea or NYLT. My council has both of these

fine courses;but, many troops do not take advantage of them.  I would like to offer basic scout leadership training on a troop level, at the troops meeting location, etc.

 

I would appreciate any information that is out there.

Until BSA largely killed it off as inconsistent with WB 21st Cent, there was a good district-level Saturday or 1.5 day basic course ("JLOW") that lent itself to troop presentation.  Weaker/newer units could partner with other units to put it on.   Some iconoclastic Scouting councils keep putting it on., recognizing that week-long revenue-producers are beyond the reach of most Scouts.  https://scoutingevent.com/441-JLOW2018   http://www.trcbsa.org/Event.aspx?id=915

This useful training is also out of step with BSA since based on the Patrol Method and Leadership Development, whereas BSA now requires that at least two registered Scouters supervise every single Scout activity.  I suppose all the material about the Patrol Method, Scouts leading and all that,  could be edited out to get in step with the latest changes. 😐

Edited December 30, 2018 by TAHAWK

[fred8033]

14 hours ago, Gilwell_1919 said:

As a new Scoutmaster, I've been really emphasizing on the Patrol Method... and I use "esprit de corps" to introduce that little bit of friendly competition between the patrols. Quite honestly, teaching the boys the patrol method and having the troop be "boy run" is the easy part. But... teaching the parents to sit back and watch the boys operate as a cohesive unit... that is definitely much harder to accomplish. 

I absolutely agree.  I'd extend it even more to scouting leaders having such strong opinions on how to run a troop that they often step on each others toes to the detriment of the scouts.  

[Gilwell_1919]

@fred8033 I think we are lucky in that regard. We have a senior leader that has been doing this for quite a few years and sometimes he'll step on toes, but he is aware when he does it and then corrects it very fast. Again, I think I am lucky with the amount of support I get from the committee and the other assistant scoutmasters. But, I think a lot of that has to do with confidence. I've seen a lot of parents that took leadership positions in Cub Scouts to be with their kid(s), but really didn't have outdoorsmanship skills when they bridged over. They bring energy to the troop for sure, but I think they feel kind of awkward because they don't have much camping experience. I target them and really encourage them to come camping with us. Generally, by the end of the weekend, they have a much better idea of what the "boy run" program looks like when it is applied in the outdoors. Other parents, unfortunately... as you are probably well aware... don't seem to get the concept. They hover and interject so much that their kid looks like a pinball bouncing around. This is why I encourage all of the new parents to take some of the online training BSA offers to at least get them familiar with what the program is supposed to look like in order to help influence their expectations. For the new leaders... I encourage Wood Badge!