Eagle SM Conference questions

[CA_Scouter]

I'm getting ready to do a Scoutmaster conference for an Eagle Scout candidate. I'd like to get a sampling of questions that you would consider or have actually used in an Eagle SM Conference.

 

 

Thanks in advance.

 

[ScoutNut]

BSA Scoutmaster Conference Training -

 

http://www.scouting.org/boyscouts/trainingmodules/scoutmaster%20conference%20training.aspx

 

Check out the section for Eagle SM Conferences.

 

Sample SMC questions from BSA -

 

http://old.scouting.org/boyscouts/supplemental/18-629/questions.pdf

 

Again, there is an area for the Eagle Conference.

 

[CA_Scouter]

I should clarify. I've been SM for over 4 years now and have done many SM conferences. I've done the training, read the books, hit the websites, etc.

 

My goal here is to solicit real-life examples from THIS user community. I've come to appreciate the input from many of the contributors to the forums and would like to hear from your first hand experience(s)!

 

Thanks

 

 

[SctDad]

First off, I am no SM. Nor did I make it to the Rank of Eagle (Unfortunatly)

 

I would think that with Eagle Scout being held as highly as it is, I would ask some thing like this.

 

"I know that you have completed all of the requirements, but do you think you are ready to hold the highest rank, and honor, of the Boy Scouts of America, the Eagle Scout. If so tell me why."

 

I would listen for sincerity and honesty. That is my $0.01 worth. Take what you like and leave the rest.

 

YiS

SctDad

[Beavah]

Yah, go somewhere nice, eh? Dinner, fun spot, whatever.

 

Eagle SM conferences to my mind are primarily opportunities for a boy to tell yeh his stories in the troop and what he actually learned from 'em. To let yeh know what really is goin' on in your program. And just to enjoy each other's company as men, eh?

 

Secondarily, an Eagle conference can also help a lad prepare for an EBOR. Types of questions the board will ask, etc. That's gonna vary depending on your local conditions. A good thing to do is to write down questions at previous EBORs to bring out as SM conference questions/examples.

 

I'd be careful not to let da latter overrun the former though, eh? If your program is runnin' right, by the time a lad is comin' up for his EBOR, yeh already know he's an Eagle Scout through-and-through, and capable of handlin' the EBOR without much prep. Yeh should be welcoming the lad as an adult peer and settin' the tone for how Eagles take their Scoutin' experiences and continue to live the Oath and Law as men.

 

Beavah

 

[kb6jra]

I typically invite the boy over to my house for desert and a talk. It's informal, no uniforms, no salutes, no practicing the Oath and Law. There's time to do all of that later. We talk about his future aspirations, college plans, job opportunities, career paths... The conversation winds around the Scouting program and his take on it, it's relevance to him and his friends, and what he sees happening to the program in the future. We talk about his favorite times, outings, summer camps... We talk about his future in Scouting and the Troop and how he's intending to give scouting to others.

 

When we're done, I ask for his book and sign it. The boy ususally looks up and says "That's it, that was my confrence?" I'm the type of person that doesn't like canned questions, because you mostly get canned answers. I'd rather know what the kid feels and knows and share the memories that have enriched his life (and mine for that matter). IMO it's more genuine than a script.

[Bob White]

When I was a scoutmaster, by the time a scout was approaching his Eagle Rank I already knew him pretty well. My goal in the scoutmaster conference was to help him reflect on what he has meant to the troop and what scouting has helped him accomplish to this poiint. I wanted him to discover how special this accomplish was and allow him time to really appreciate the trail that got him to this point.

 

I rarely asked can questions, each boy was different and so my approach was unique to each scout. It was a conversation and not a question and answer atmosphere.

(This message has been edited by Bob White)

[gwd-scouter]

Just had an Eagle SM Conference last week. As BobWhite posted, by the time a Scout in our Troop is ready for Eagle Conference, I know the Scout very well and the things he has done along the way. I do ask questions, but ours is more of a friendly conversation. A lot depends on the Scout on how the direction of the conversation goes. Some have been more focused on the Scout's future plans. Some have reflected heavily on his Scouting years.

 

During last week's conference, the Scout talked a lot about his time as SPL during a time that I was a relatively new SM and so we were both learning how to help our Troop move toward boy-led. He was SPL for a full year and had a lot to say about both the good and bad experiences.

 

A few specific questions:

I asked him about his early years in Scouting and about the middle years when he seemed to lose interest. That led him to talk about his school and sports activities in High School and how Scouts had become boring - doing the same thing all the time.

 

So, then I asked him what it was that made him come back and run for SPL. That led to a discussion about the changes that were happening at that time in our Troop and the new crop of young Scouts. He said he felt a little uncomfortable being the oldest Scout in our Troop and was sorry that his friends didn't stick with it. He said he thought it was cool that we "let" them plan what they wanted to do and "let" them add more adventurous activities that Scouts became fun again.

 

At the end of the conversation, I always ask our Eagle Scout candidates: if an 11-year-old boy knocked on your door and said he was thinking about joining Scouts, what would you tell him? The answers that have followed have very closely reflected the Scout's own experience in his journey to Eagle.

 

Edit to add: I've yet to do a SM conference for a Scout that is not about to turn 18, so my experience is probably different than others.(This message has been edited by gwd-scouter)

[cjlaird]

Desert & talk? Is it a dry conversation then? (hehe)

Personally, the boys in our troop always liked "dessert" - and I usually tried to remember to bring home-made cookies to BoR nights to celebrate the efforts of everyone who was "on the line of fire" that evening.

 

Seriously - I agree that a good basic question to ask the Eagle candidate is, "aside from the work (he) has done on projects and merit badges, whether or not (he) feels sufficiently qualified, or thinks he possesses the necessary qualities, to justify being promoted to the next rank", and describe why he thinks so.

 

Another couple of questions I like to see asked are:

"What two or three things have you participated in, or worked on, as a member of this troop (or in the community) that made you feel that you truly understood what it is to be a ranking Scout in the troop (and a responsible citizen in the community)?"

"What leadership responsibilities have you taken on, or been asked to assume, that made you feel as if you had really accomplished something important when completed?"

[Stosh]

A conference implies a discussion, not question and answer session. Maybe a question or two ice-breakers to get the discussion going might be appropriate, but a series of interview questions doesn't fit my style much.

 

Most of my SM conferences, either Eagle or otherwise are nothing more than "chats" that I have with the boys over the course of my time with them. Sitting at campfires, planning a menu, riding to an event, whatever. I don't think many of my boys actually know the real time or date of their SM conferences, it doesn't say it has to be the last thing before the BOR. It can happen any time during the time the boy is working on rank, and it doesn't have to happen just once.

 

Stosh