Re: Angry Parent

In a message dated 3/9/98 2:32:02 AM, arrowt@JUNO.COM wrote:

<< Then "IT" happened. Someone
missed a den meeting and they didn't get the ALMIGHTY paw. OH NO!!! my
kid doesn't have as much stuff on his shirt as everyone elses kid.

The parents knew they had to be there. The boys wanted to be there. AND
it helped to foster a togetherness of that den. >>

The former point here would seem to be the really important one. Why is that
paw print so important to the parent and to the boy that the parent becomes
angry if the boy can't get it. If we take something that is supposed to be
fun and educational and silly, like paw prints on a shirt and end up with it
being Draconian (God forbid that you would miss a meeting, then your kid would
miss a paw print and for the rest of his life hear "Nyaah, Nyaah, I have six
paw prints and you have only five") we as leaders need to look at our aims and
methods.

So in the case of the paw prints, is there some way that they can be devalued
in your pack so that missing one is less significant and your parents do not
need to be so compulsive lest their kid miss out? Advancement, as represented
by paw prints, is a means of Scouting, not an end and if it is taking such a
high place that parents are angry because of it, I would suggest it is time
for us as leaders to rethink the whole system, chill a bit and ask why it
stopped being fun. Is there a way to give other gee gaws and doo dads to the
Tigers so that no one has every award?

We talk on the list about Eagle awards, merit badges, lawsuits, protests to
National, etc. Tiger paw prints is where it starts. How can we make
advancement more of a means and less of an end for its own sake?

Neil Lupton

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