Junior Leader Training

[tagguy]

I am concerned about the districts lack of organized JLT program. No wonder these kids have no clue as to running a troop meeting. Do they not care,or can't see past the office walls?

[Bob White]

There is no district level Junior Leader training course. The vast majority of Junior leader training is at the unit level. The Scoutmasters #1 responsibility is to train junior leaders. The purpose of most Scoutmaster training courses as well as supplementary and advanced leadership training is to help support the adult leaders in training junior leader at the unit level.

 

If junior leaders do not know their job then it is primarily the Scoutmasters in that unit who are responsible.

[Beavah]

Yah, Hi tagguy!

 

Hopefully your district or council has somethin' called NYLT (National Youth Leader Trainin', IIRC), which replaced the old district/council JLT course. Most of da folks I know who have had experience with it report that it's a great experience for a troop's youth leaders to go through. You should ask about it. If not in your district/council, then yeh might ask in a neighboring district or council.

 

Da BSA also publishes an outline called TLT ("Troop Leader Trainin'") which is really just an outline, eh? Can't say I can recommend it much, but it might give yeh some ideas on setting up your own in-troop training for your PLC members. I'd encourage yeh to think of that more as an account you make a deposit to every month, rather than a one-shot investment. Each month, set aside a day or an activity for PLC training. If you've got your calendar done for da year, yeh can stay a month or two ahead and train/refresh your Patrol Leaders' skills ahead of that month's activities.

 

Another option is to team up with another local troop that has some TLT already in place. That can be a great way to get a jump on it, so to speak. Plus make some good contacts for you to talk to for ideas, and for your SPL to talk to for ideas, eh?

 

I'm sure some other folks here have other great ideas, too!

 

Beavah

 

[Bob White]

The Troop Level- Troop Leadership Training is really quite good and is designed to be done within the troop where the scouts serve. It is lead by the Scoutmaster and assisted by other adult leaders and previously trained youth leaders.

 

It has Three Modules. The first is the Introduction to Leadership Conference. Here the Scout learns about the Youth Lead concept of Troop and Patrol operations, The Troop organiization chart and the National Honor Patrol Award program, as well as a brief overview of his role as a leader.

 

 

The Second module deals with 'How to BE a leader'. In it the Scout learns about the vision of the troop's success, how to teach using the EDGE model. The junior leaders join in an evaulation of where the troop is and what the leadership teams needs to do to move closer to the vision. And then learns about the people he will lead and how best to serve them as a leader.

 

In the third module the scout learns what is expected of him as a leader. meets with the adult who will be guiding him to discuss that scout's specific office and responsibilities and what resources are available to help him in his duties.

 

The scouts recieve training in the Servant leadership attitude of scouting. And they take pre-printed job descriptions card and on the back write what their goals are for their term in office. These can be use to help track and evaluate the requirement to actively serve in their position. To close the training there is a Scoutmasters Conference with the SM and Patrol Leaders to help them set goals for their Patrol.

 

So I guess the question is before you ask what is the Distruict or even the council doing, you have to ask ...What has the troop doing to train leaders?

 

At this point in time does your Scoutmaster use the current Troop Leadership Training program provided by BSA and supported by the Scoutmaster Handbook, The Patrol Leaders Handbook, The Senior Patrol Leaders Handbook and the Commitee Guide??

 

How's that workin for ya?

 

Does the troop send Scouts to NYLT at the council level??

 

 

(This message has been edited by Bob White)

[Eagledad]

Hi Tagguy

 

Robert is right that there isn't a BSA issued district JLT. Many do provide them, some are good and some are just opportunities for adults to be busy.

 

You are at that place where you want to see change in your youth leadership. Robert is also right that the responsibilities of the leadership development is the Scoutmaster's. I'm not trying to Mr. Know-it-all or condescending, it has always been the scoutmaster's job. The problem is their was a trend a few years back to push some of the responsibility from the Scoutmaster to District and councils. Nothing wrong with that except that many scoutmaster misunderstood that to mean it was nolonger their job. Things went downhill from there.

 

Anyway, there are lots of ways to get your unit training going. What I like to teach troops looking to do their own JLT is first go out and get the SPL Handbook and PL Handbook for both the SM and SPL. Then sit down with the SPL and PLC if you want and identify things in those books that your troop isn't doing now. Then prioritize those items and pick a few to work on. I like to suggest doing a half day course on saturday to get use to doing a JLT. Half day is long enough to get a few things done and measure your performance to how well it went, but not so long that the scouts get bored and loose focus.As you get better, you can do full days, overnights and weekends if you like.

 

A few hints are that boys gasp about 10 to 20 percent of what they hear, but 80 percent of what they see and do. So the more you yak, the less the learn. The more they act, the more they will gain.

 

This might seem a pain at first, but you will find that its fun for both the adults and the youth leaders who help you plan and run it. For many troops, JLT is their older scout program.

 

There are several of us who have done a lot of this, so when you're ready to do this, ask some questions and we will be glad to help. It seems lately in fact that some of us are tripping over ourselves to help. Still, this is a pretty good group.

 

Good luck and have fun.

 

I love this scouting stuff.

 

Barry

[LongHaul]

The scouts recieve training in the Servant leadership attitude of scouting

       Can someone point me to the page in the new TLT where this concept is explained or defined? Wasn't brought up or discussed at any of the WB courses in my area cuz I've been asking participants from two different councils ever since this new TLT packet came out. Who teaches the SM these things? It's not in the Scoutmaster specific syllabus either.

LongHaul

[Bob White]

There is a description of servant leadership in the Troop Leadership Training syllabus. After you read that read the "What is expected of me" sections of the Patrol Leader Handbook and the Senior Patrol Leader Handbook. Then recal the points of the Scout Law and the part of the Scout Oath when we promise to "Help other People at all times"

 

You should be able to understand and to share a discussion with the scouts on the relationship and similarities of these elements.

 

Compare the characteristics of helping the people you lead to be successful using the characteristics of servant leadership compared to ordering people around simply to accomplish your personal goals.

[LongHaul]

I find where the SM is told to discuss this with the boys but can not find where the term is defined or explained. In the Patrol Leaders Handbook and SPL handbook I find examples of this type of leadership but they are not identified as being this type of leadership. Giving me all the characteristics and descriptions of poison ivy but never actually telling me it is poisonous should not lead one to believe that I could identify it as being poisonous. What I am finding is training which relies on the participant to already be trained.

Should the Scoutmaster be replaced or the training altered? Id have to say that the training has to take into account those being trained. We no longer have the pool to draw from that we once had. Since the acceptance by society that both parents must work to provide for the same family unit that one person provided for 40 years ago our pool has changed. Volunteerism has changed because free time has diminished and the scope of interests and opportunities of youth has increased. We just dont have the amount of adults willing to dedicate the amount of time required that we once had. Qualified candidates for SM are not as thick on the ground as they once were. Training for those that are willing is not; 1) as effective as it once was because everyone is looking for bullet point and catch phrase rather than concentration, and 2) as sought out due to the lack of free time or the perception that training is not needed.

LongHaul

 

[Bob White]

Page 11 of the training syllabus.

BW

[T164Scoutmaster]

"Should the Scoutmaster be replaced or the training altered? Id have to say that the training has to take into account those being trained. We no longer have the pool to draw from that we once had. Since the acceptance by society that both parents must work to provide for the same family unit that one person provided for 40 years ago our pool has changed. Volunteerism has changed because free time has diminished and the scope of interests and opportunities of youth has increased. We just dont have the amount of adults willing to dedicate the amount of time required that we once had. Qualified candidates for SM are not as thick on the ground as they once were. Training for those that are willing is not; 1) as effective as it once was because everyone is looking for bullet point and catch phrase rather than concentration, and 2) as sought out due to the lack of free time or the perception that training is not needed.

LongHaul "

 

 

This is a very timely post! Yesterday I attended our council Trainier development conference. Not because I needed to or required to, but to better enhance my skills. While there I was taekn aback a little. I am a woodbadge graduate and also have served on staff for Woodbadge. The Current Scoutmaster for the upcoming course wb21st is one of the members thate was in the Patrol I was the advisor for whilst on staff. I asked how his staff development was going! He state he had one more posiosition to fill. I never said anything nor am interested in being on wood badge staff again at this time, but his next statement is what floored me.

 

He Said "If you are interested in being on woodbadge 21st steaff you need to do the course again"

 

I am somewhat discouraged that if this is the norm of the Scouting mentality then we are clearly in state of turmoil and degradation to the program. Training is beneficial and I promote it whenever I can. I am a certified fire instructor and have taught more then I can remember both scouting and fire service. The statements made lead me to believe that I am no longer qualified to be on any training staff because I have yet to go through wb21st. I could really care less if the program has changed so drastically (I doubt it has) that I am not knowing of the currrent curriculum. Curriculum is just that, the information that needs to be disemenated. The curriculum is the tool help deliver the message. I am sure that if this is the case across the scouting movement then there are a lot more out there then me that are not being utilized to the fullest potential. I will continue to concentrate my efforts on training the volunteers in my district that need the basics. By teaching the basics I am truely doing it for the kids. Those that come to my sessions are going to get teh best that I can give. they will get my name, number and E-mail, and if needed I will graciously give what I can or find someone that has the info.

 

What are you doing in your district to help the new leaders get to a level where we would have a copetent pool of trainied qualified leaders?

 

 

[Bob White]

Hi T164Scoutmaster

 

When you took Wood Badge the first time, did you have an expectation that you would be able to be a staff member BEFORE you took the course as a participant? Of course not.

 

Why then would you expect to be able to staff Wood Badge for the 21st Century BEFORE you took the course as a participant. It is no different a situation.

 

The reason your previous staffing exerience does not count toward this one is that they are not the same course...AT ALL. The materials and some concepts are totally different or repacked. Many new elemmnets have been added and many old ones dropped. It is simply not the same program.

 

The only reason that in the first one or two courses your council did they probably used Staff from the previous Wood Badge programs, was that there were no Scouters who had participated in the new course yet to draw from fir staff. But its been almost 8 years now and most councils have a lot of WB21 staff and participants to recruit from who, unlike you with the old course, have a knowledge and experience with the content and methods of the current course.

 

I am glad to hear you support training, perhaps you would consider attending the new Wood Badge course as a participant so that you can be a better trainin resource for the scouters you train, whether you serve on staff for WB again or not.

 

BW

[RememberSchiff]

I would wager that T164Scouter has forgotten more about scouting than the WB21 staff knows and that T164Scouter has not forgotten much.

 

 

 

 

[Bob White]

Perhaps, but that has no relevance to the situation. What he knows is from a course that is no longer taught. It's not that he does not have good skills, it's just that this is not the same course. To teach it he would need to ge trained in it. The training is to attend the course as a participant.

[LongHaul]

Why then would you expect to be able to staff Wood Badge for the 21st Century BEFORE you took the course as a participant.

Gee BW it was good enough for the first three sets of course staff. What changed? Oh yeah we had enough WB21 grads to staff a course too bad they were trained by staff that were not WB21 grads themselves. National can make what ever rules they want just don't try and justify the BS ones with cookie cutter responses dreamed up by people with little or no direct contact experience.

 LongHaul

[Bob White]

What changed was the depth of available staffers who were trained in WB21. To think these rules were made by pros is incorrect. These rules were determined largely by the volunteers who served on the committees that developed WB21.

 

Scouters need to remember back to their NLE training. The national council like our own local councils is made primarily made of volunteers currently in unit positions or with a background in unit scouting. Even youth members sit on these committees. To think that the BSA program is developed by suits with no unit experience is really just an emotional and ill-informed rant. The role of the professional staff at National is to implement the decisions made by these committees.

 

BW(This message has been edited by Bob White)