Variety in Scouting
Gino Lucrezi (lucrezi@DSIAQ1.ING.UNIVAQ.IT)
Fri, 26 Nov 1993 14:09:10 +0000
Some time ago, Janez asked some questions about international
scouting. Here are my answers for the benefit of the list (since
AGESCI cooperated much with ZKSS, Janez already knows this).
> 1. The name of your association.
AGESCI = Associazione Guide E Scout Cattolici Italiani = Italian
Catholic Scouts and Guides Association.
There are currently two WOSM- and WAGGS-affiliated associations in
Italy, the other being CNGEI, a pluri-confessional association.
AGESCI is also a member of the International Conference of Catholic
Scouting
> 2. How long exists your association?
ASCI (an all-male association) was founded in 1916, was dissolved by
the Fascist Party in 1928 despite conciliatory visits by BP (Mussolini
believed he had made scouting "better" in his Fascist Youth, and of
course he couldn't accept the existance of other youth organizations
independent from the Fascist Party), kept operating in clandestinity,
and then again openly after 1943.
AGI (a female association) was founded in 1943.
The two associations merged in 1974 to become AGESCI.
> 3. Total membership, males/females?
Here is 1992 census data.
There are 182,243 members, in 1737 groups.
Units Members
M F Mixed M F
Lupetti/Coccinelle 331 276 1382 30283 22138
Esploratori/Guide 810 713 1155 37487 30189
Rover/Scolte 137 69 1505 19079 15419
Leaders 14978* 10355
(*) this number doesn't include 2315 Chaplains
Membership increased 2.7% from 1991, rather homogeneously among the
three sections. The number of groups and of units increased at nearly
the same rate. The number of leaders increased 5%.
The average group has 105 members, of whom 16 are leaders.
An average unit is composed of 28 youths.
There are 5.6 youth for every leader (taking into account cadres too).
> 4. List of different age groups: name, age from: to:
*** Lupetti/Coccinelle
They cover the age range 8-11.
Lupetti (Wolf Cubs) are based on BP's "The Wolf Cub's Handbook".
They belong to a "Wolf Pack", where leaders have names taken from
Kipling's "Jungle Book", such as Akela, Bagheera, Kaa and Baloo. This
fantastic environment is the most important tool leaders in this
section have. Each of the four characters I just mentioned teaches
Mowgli (i.e. each of the cubs) something - and each character
corresponds to one of BP's Four Branches of Scout Training (as
described e.g. in _Aids to Scoutmastership_), which are Character,
Health and Strength, Handcraft and Skill, Service to Others.
Each Pack is divided into Sixes.
There are three moments in the Cub's Personal Progression:
1) Wolf of the Law -> moment of knowledge -> the Cub starts looking
around and discovering his needs, his abilities, who are the others,
what are the rules of his community. This moment starts with the boy's
Investiture, when he pronounces his Promise for the first time and he
is admitted in the pack as a full member. Before that, he is just a
whelp (like Mowgli when he was found by the wolves of the Seonee Pack).
2) Wolf of the Rock -> moment of engagement -> the Cub starts opening
to others, he takes more part in the life of the Pack, gets personal
duties.
3) Wolf or the Council -> moment of availability -> the Cub can now
find himself duties to take and means of accomplishing them. He can
make proposals for the entire pack, or outside of it. He is a kind of
a "leader" inside the pack.
After this, the child is ready for his ascent to the Troop.
A Cub progresses thru these steps by capturing "preys", i.e.
accomplishing various requirements given by the Elder Wolves (Leaders).
Each Cub can also earn some Merit Badges. There are 28 of them, plus
the "wildcards", i.e. "generic" Merit Badges which can be adapted to
specific intrests in the boy, outside the official list.
Most Packs are mixed, but there are some which are boys-only and even
fewer girls-only.
Coccinelle (Ladybugs) are exactly like Lupetti, except for the
different fantastic environment, which comes from "Seven Black Dots",
a story written on purpose.
Coccinelle are part of a "Cerchio" (Circle).
Most Cerchi are girls only (since this environment started in AGI
before unification), but there are many mixed ones. I have heard of
some boys-only ones, but I never saw any.
Both Lupetti and Coccinelle always camp indoors. They usually have a
camp in Spring (three or four days) and one in Summer (seven to ten,
usually), and other (mostly single-day) activities round the year.
The Promise is:
I Promise, with Jesus's help and exampleto do my best to improve
myself, to help others, to follow the Law of the Pack (Circle)
The Law is:
The Cub (Coccinella) cares for others as for himself (herself)
The Cub (Coccinella) lives in loyalty and joy in the Pack (Circle)
The motto is: "Our Best"
The patron saint is St. Francis (for his love of Nature, and Wolves in
particular)
The salute is done with the right hand, bringing the forefinger and
middle finger wide apart at the height of the temple, with the
ring-finger and little finger folded under the thumb.
*** Esploratori/Guide
They cover the age range 12-15.
They belong to a Troop, which can be mixed or single-sex. Each troop
is organized in Patrols, which are anyway single-sex.
When a group opts for single-sex Troops, they are usually "parallel"
ones, i.e. they follow the same yearly program but do most activities
separately; camps are usually done jointly.
There are four "steps" in the Personal Progression of Scouts and
Guides: Discovery, Responsibility, Authonomy and Specialization,
Animation.
The Scout or Guide wears the badge of the step he is working towards,
not of the one he accomplished. A boy starts working on Discovery
after his investiture.
To complete a step, a boy decides (together with the Troop and all
Leaders) his "aims". When the whole Troop convenes as the Law Council
it verifies wheter any boy completed his aims. This same procedure
applies for Merit Badges, Competency Brevets, and Patrol Merit Badges.
A boy can also work towards Merit Badges. If he has four or more
related ones, he can work towrds a Competency Brevet (which is much
harder).
A Patrol can work towards a Patrol Merit Badge. Patrol MBs are
different from the ones individuals can gain, and usually requires a
well rounded-out patrol, with different skills in its members. A
Patrol MB requires the patrol to accomplish three Enterprises in a year.
A troop usually has three camps a year, a Winter one (indoors!), a
Summer one, and St. George's Camp in Spring (around the day of St.
George). Each month there is either an overnight activity, or a
single-day one.
The Promise is:
"With the Help of God, I Promise on my Honour to do my Best to keep my
duty to God and my Country, to help others in every circumstance, to
live by the Scout law"
The Law is:
The Scout and the Guide
- put their honour in being trusted
- are loyal
- make themselves useful and help others
- are friends of everyone, and brothers of all other Guides and Scouts
- are courteous
- love and respect Nature
- can obey
- smile and sing even under adversities
- are hard-working and thrifty
- are pure in thoughts, words and deeds
The Motto is: Be Prepared
The patron saint is St. George (as for the whole movement)
The salute is done with the right hand, bringing the fore-, middle and
ring-finger straight at the height of the temple, with the little
finger folded under the thumb.
*** Rover/Scolte
They cover the age range 16-21
Scolta = Sentry, it is the term for girls.
On the first year they belong to a Noviciate, after that they belong
to a Clan, almost always mixed. Some activities are done jointly by
Noviciate and Clan.
There are no ranks or merit badges for Rovers; except that if they
haven't been Scouts before, they will pronounce their Promise now.
There is no further subdivision; the Clan or Noviciate will split up
into workgroups as needed.
Rover methodology is based on three pillars: Route - Community - Service
The "Route" (french word meaning road) is the main activity, it
consists of a moving camp, usually (but not necessarily) in mountain areas.
Each Rover is expected to find some service to do. In his first Clan
years, that will usually be something outside Agesci, maybe with
handicapped, sick or old people.
In his last years in Clan his service will be in helping leaders in a
Pack or Troop. He is *not* a Leader himself, just a helping hand.
A Clan has a "Charter", periodically revised since members change,
which sets out the principles of that particular group of youths. By
signing it, a youth chooses to accept them.
Instead of being assigned a set of "preys" or "aims" a youth sets up a
Personal Project, deciding what he expects to become and how. He
shares and verifies his project whith the whole Clan.
At 21 he is expected to do a precise choice. He can choose to ask for
his "leaving", so he leaves the Clan, accepting all principles of
Scouting for the rest of his life, choosing to do some Service to the
world (that's why he was experimenting with all kinds of service as a
Rover or Scolta), either as a Scout Leader or somewhere else,
according to his vocation and skills.
Law, Promise and Salute are the same as for Scouts.
The Motto is: "To Serve"
The patron saint is St. Paul, for all his rovering in various
countries spreading the Gospel.
---
Each group has a Leader's Community, to which all Leaders belong, and
which ensures that all units are applying the Scout method properly
and in armony with other units. A group has a "Educative Project"
setting its educative aims for the environment it operates in.
> 4.1. What was (is) the reason for such a system in age?
Each section lasts four years. A shorter time wouldn't leave enough
verticality in a unit, with older boys passing their skills and
setting an example to the youngers. A longer time in the same section
would lead to boredom by doing always the same things.
In Rovering the time is 5 years, but the 21 years age for leaving is
not mandatory - it can be as early as 19.
All transition ages are just recommended, and can be changed to fit
the individual.
> 4.2. Membership in different age groups?
If you ask for stats, they are in point 2
> 5. Leaders
Yes, we have adult leaders :-)
> 5.1. Short description of the system of the education of leaders
Rovers helping leaders in other sections are suggested to attend
the "ROSEA" - Route of Orientation to Educative Service in
the Association.
Leaders first attend a Methodological Formation Camp, lasting a week,
and done in the style of the section it is for (e.g. fixed camp for
Scout Leaders, Route for Rover leaders, etc.). It is organized on a
regional basis. The camp deals primarily with the nuts and bolts of
his section's methodology.
A year later, he can attend the Associative Formation Camp. It deals
mostly with helping to understand what education means, how to verify
oneself, life as a member of Agesci and in a Leader's Community, and
personal improvement.
After this, he can apply for Woodbadge.
Each unit requires at least one leader having attended the Associative
Formation Camp (two if the unit is mixed). A Group Leader or all other
cadres need Woodbadge.
There is a special camp, similar in contents to the ROSEA for adults
who haven't been in Scouting but want to become leaders. It is not
mandatory but heavily recommended.
> 5.2. Are there a different types of leaders (education, service,
> other staff)?
Yes.
There are Leader and Cadres.
> 6. Adults in Scouting
> 6.1. What is the interpretation of this term in your
> association?
Any Rover or Scolta who asks to enter a Leader's Community after his
Leaving, or any adult (more than 21) who makes a similar request. In
the latter case, he is expected to have done the same choices as a
Rover or Scolta.
> 6.2. How do you include parents of the children into the work
> of groups or association?
They can sometimes help in non-educative roles (quartermaster, cook,
etc.). In this case they aren't registered.
If they wish to become leaders, they follow the above procedure. They
are usually *not* sent to the unit(s) in which they have children.
> 6.3. What is a policy of your association about joining elder
> (age 40+) persons, without previous Scouting experience, to the
> leadership staff of scout units?
Same as above.
--
Gino Lucrezi @ Universita` "V. Rivera" - L'Aquila - Italy
INTERNET: lucrezi@dsiaq1.ing.univaq.it
FIDO: 2:335/602.1 2:335/601.4
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