Photo Credit: © Can Stock Photo Inc. / HighwayStarz
When it comes to selecting staff and volunteers, more often than not the list of ideal skills and traits is supplanted by the reality of who we determine has enough of what we’re looking for to be “trainable,” and who will accept the job for what we’re able to offer. This is a less-than-ideal situation, and I personally have experienced both pleasant surprises and significant disappointments, resulting in someone quitting or being terminated, and the cycle starting again. As much as we would like to believe the reason for individuals not working out is a “them” problem (i.e., not enough skill, commitment, or passion), the reality is that all too frequently staffing decisions are based on one set of skills and traits, and we forget another set that is essential for anyone teaching or coaching young people.
Let’s look at the “typical” selection criteria for someone who will be instructing, coaching, or supervising a youth program. First, we all want someone who has had experience working with kids. Basically, we want an individual who can manage challenging behavior and not do any physical or emotional harm to the children. After that, we want staff members who are knowledgeable in the focus area of the program. Want someone to coach softball? Find someone with softball or baseball experience. Need an art instructor? Look for someone who is good at crafts or studies the arts. While at first blush this approach makes sense, it is based on a fundamentally flawed assumption that just because someone has a skill set and is good with kids that person can meaningfully impart knowledge.
Back To School
Rarely do I encourage out-of-school youth programs to look at their classroom counterparts for guidance, but in this case traditional schools are hip to a concept that many of us fail to recognize. What are we missing, you ask? What we so often forget to consider during the hiring process, or in staff training, is what Lee Shulman coined (http://www.leeshulman.net/biography) and educators refer to as pedagogical content knowledge (PCK).