Adventure skills (Scouting Ireland)

Adventure Skills

Introduction

There are nine defined Adventure Skills; Camping, Backwoods, Pioneering, Hillwalking, Emergencies, Air Activities, Paddling, Rowing, Sailing. This range of skill areas has been chosen to provide a framework for an active and adventurous outdoor programme providing fun, friendship and challenge. Competency in specific Adventure Skills allows our youth members to carry out a great variety of Scouting adventures and activities in a safe and competent manner. Approached correctly they will provide our Scouts with a sense of pride and confidence that comes though developing a knowledge and level of competency in the skill areas they choose. They also provide ample opportunity for young people to develop instructing and coaching skills while passing on their skills to others. Adventure Skills encourage young people to progressively increase their skills level. They should be undertaken alongside the Personal Progression Scheme, so that they support their personal development as well as their outdoor skills development. Scouters should support youth members, using the appropriate youth participation model for each Section, in planning, tracking and reviewing their competence with their chosen Adventure Skills, this will help to ensure that each Scout achieves the Adventure Skills Stage Awards they decide to pursue.

Stages

Each Adventure Skill is organised into nine stages. Each stage builds on the previous and leads on to the next. Stages are not aligned to any Section. While a Beaver may naturally start at stage 1 and move through the stages in their time in Scouting, a new Scout joining at 13 years of age would be expected to start at stage 1 and move up. So Adventure Skills present a progressive standard for all youth members. The Adventure Skills Award for each stage indicates that the young person has achieved a specific level of knowledge and ability in relation to that Stage of that Adventure Skill. Therefore, the young person must be able to carry out the skill safely and competently to that level and have the knowledge required at that level. The number of Adventure Skill stages each Scout pursues will probably decrease as they move through the Sections. The Stages are progressively challenging. It is more than likely that each young person will favour a few of the Adventure Skills as they progress and will narrow their focus to become truly competent in those. When it comes to assessing progress in an Adventure Skill, as in every other aspect of the ONE Programme, the Scout Method should be used. In keeping with the “Learning by Doing” aspect of the Scout Method, Adventure Skills should be pursued and assessed in a practical manner as an active part of the Programme.

Requirements

Each of the skill requirements are presented as a statement of competency - I know how, I can do, etc. These Competency Statements outline the knowledge, abilities and experience that the young person must display. Each Competency Statement is further broken down into a set of Skills Requirements. The Skills requirement section outlines the details of knowledge and experience a Scout is expected to display to fulfil the Competency Statement.

Safety

Throughout the skill requirements it is possible to observe the key safety competency expected. Scouters and Scouts should be aware that these Competency Statements need to be fully implemented. Every Adventure Skill will contain within its skill stages activities that will, by their nature be adventurous and involve some risk. Therefore an awareness of safety, carefulness and assessment of risk should always be present in the mind of those participating in these activities. It is everyone’s responsibility and not solely the responsibility of the leader of the activity whether they are a Scouters or a Scout assuming a leadership role.

Risk Management

Safety is one of the cornerstones of programme delivery. ‘Be Prepared’, the Scout Motto, in effect sums up our approach to scouter any activity, by that we mean all the elements which make up a successful and safe activity or adventure. Risk is an everyday occurrence in our lives, given the natural survival instinct in each of us, coupled with the awareness taught to us by our parents and others as we grew up, managing risk is something each of us do without thinking or as second nature. Within the Adventure Skill stages Scouts will encounter many situations, while undertaking adventure in the programme that will challenge their mental and physical skills. Risks will be present at certain times as local weather conditions and terrain impact on a journey or activity. What is expected of Scouts is that they are first and foremost prepared and trained and secondly have confidence. They need to constantly assess a situation and employ measures to ensure the safety of themselves, and that of their team. Risk management is the process whereby situations, activities, etc. are evaluated; firstly identifying hazards (those which can cause/lead to accidents or incidents) and secondly putting in place procedures/training whereby the hazards identified are removed or reduced, in order to prevent the hazard causing an accident/incident. Scouts undertaking Adventure Skill stages should display an understanding of this process.

Assessing Competencies

Competencies need to be assessed. This can be done by the Scouters, a mentor, external expert/specialist, or a Scout that has a competency that is two stages above that being sought by the Scout. If a Scout is assessing a Competency Stage, it should be agreed and signed off with the Section Scouter before the Stage Badge is awarded. When assessing the skills of a Scout seeking a Stage Badge it is important to understand that the competency statements are specific. It is not about ‘doing their best effort’.’. So, if a Scout is required to complete and manage the construction of a pioneering project….then that is what they need to do. Helping someone else or undertaking perhaps 60% of the work is not sufficient to fulfil the Competency requirement. Some of the adventure skills are paired to external qualifications and some competency statements will be linked directly to statements made by the external organisation. Other people, expert/specialists, coaches, teachers can help a Scout complete competency statements, it is not expected that a Scouter is an expert in all Adventure skill competencies. Such personnel should be suitable and approved to do so under the Governmental Child Protection Guidelines. Scouters should ensure the bona fide of outside experts before a Scout attempts to undertake a stage Badge using outside expertise.

Awarding of badges

Scouters are encouraged to present badges immediately they are gained and in a timely manner so that achievements are fully recognised. scouter