Recent changes in rank requirements have added teaching a skill to a new scout using the "EDGE" method. However many scouts still do not know what the EDGE method is and how to use it. Here is a brief overview:
There are four very clear steps to the EDGE method:
- First, you explained how to do the skill.
- Second, you demonstrated how to do the skill.
- Third, you guided others to do the skill, providing ongoing feedback.
- Fourth, you enabled others to use the skill, providing them with the time, materials, and practice to succeed.
Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable… The first letters of those words spell EDGE. This teaching method is called The Teaching EDGE.
Explaining is important because…
It clarifies the subject for the learner AND for the instructor.
Demonstrating is important because…
It allows learners to see as well as hear how something is done. They can follow the process from beginning to end.
Guiding is important because…
It allows learners to learn by doing. It allows the instructor to see how well learners are grasping the skill.
Enabling is important because…
It allows learners to use the skills themselves. It also encourages repetition—an important part of mastering a skill. That’s why you let them do it while just watching and encouraging them and offering tips - but not doing it for them.
