Why is it Needed
Proving that you have a certain competence can be difficult if there is not a tangible, physical outcome that can be assessed. When you want to analyse past performance or assess how successful an event or training session has been, you need a tool that will evaluate what are not obviously measurable qualities. You might need to talk fluently to others about something you’ve done or a project your National Scout Organization (NSO) has completed but you have trouble getting the story straight in your head.
What is it
The STARR method is a five-step reflection process which helps you to recognize your competences. By jumping between the five parts, you can tell the story you need to tell in a way that makes it easy to follow and interesting for your audience. The tool helps you confirm your competencies and recount events in which you played a significant role.
How is it Used
Think of a successful time in the near past and answer these questions:
- Situation: Describe the situation (location, other people, context, etc.)
- Task: Explain what your task or role was. What responsibility did you have? Who gave you the task? What was your relationship with this person?
- Activities: What did you do? What methods, techniques, or principles did you use? And most importantly, which competence did you rely on?
- Results: What was the result? Was it expected or unexpected? What feedback did you get? How were the results welcomed? Describe the before and after situation.
- Reflection: What did you learn from this experience? What would you repeat and what would you do differently next time?
The STARR Method takes a classic storytelling technique one step further by adding reflection.
The tool can also be used by you to assess the competence of another. Simply ask the questions to elicit the responses and then compare their story with the available evidence.
Example
| Situation | Organize a hike for a patrol of 10 people to an unknown area. | Renovate the scout den with the help of our Adult support group. |
| Task | Be safe and be back on time. | Get the finances for the materials. |
| Activities | We got lost. Someone else was doing the map reading. I used my orientation skills to find our way back. I was confident in my approach, so others stayed calm and felt safe. | I contacted friends from my network who could help us with spare materials and equipment we could borrow. I also convinced one sponsor to donate money to buy the roof parts we needed. |
| Results | After half an hour, we were back on track. | In less than a year, with the money and support I raised, the renovation was done. |
| Reflection | I did not panic. I could have involved the others more and showed them how to read the map correctly so they could learn from my experience. | I used my network and did some successful fundraising. On reflection, it would have been good to organise an event to celebrate the result and invite the people who had helped us. |