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Merit Badge “Blue Card” Revised


bnelon44

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A new version of the Application for Merit Badge,

No. 34124, commonly referred to as the blue card,

is being released later in January 2013. The

availability of the new card will vary locally, and the

old cards are still acceptable as councils exhaust their

inventories. The new version will remain the old familiar

blue and the change is a small one, but as it takes

effect it will make a significant difference in the process.

 

On the front side (first tri-fold portion) above the unit

leaders signature line, the statement with the word

qualified is being changed to: I have discussed this

merit badge with this Scout and recommended at least

one merit badge counselor. The wording change has

been made due to confusion over the interpretations of

qualified, approved, and approval, as applied to

when a Scout could begin work on a merit badge. With

the new statement, the unit leaders signature indicates

that he or she and the Scout have talked about the

Scouts desire to work on the merit badge and that a

merit badge counselor has been recommended.

 

The intent of the modification is to give the unit leader

the chance to offer counseling as to whether or not the

merit badge is a good choice for the Scout, based on

his abilities and any prerequisites. The terms qualified

or approved were never meant to indicate that the

Scout needed to pass some sort of prequalifying test

before pursuing a merit badge, or that the unit leader

had pass/fail authority to allowor to not allowthe

Scout to undertake work on a badge.

 

Other than this single change, the good old blue card

is the same as before. Unit leaders are requested to use

this new approach now. With release of the revised

Guide to Advancement 2013 during the first half of the

New Year, the practice will become mandated.

 

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In 2013, we're re-issuing a silly cardboard 3-part form?

 

I reckon da old one was just fine. The time they spent on this should have been spent on fixing ScoutNet so that cardboard multi-part forms can be dispensed with. There would be much rejoicing.

 

Beavah

 

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"While the high-speed/low-drag folks are in charge of advancement at national not everyone agrees that is the best approach."

 

 

My understanding is no one in charge of advancement at National has ever signed off on a First Class POR, they have not conducted a Life Scout Board of Review and have never signed off any T-First Class requirements. They are not responsible for Programs that do not allow socuts to use Scout Skills once they are learned

 

National does not have a list of Merit badge counsleors who are know "soft" and while some units do not allow their youth to use them, they do not do what it takes to have those counselors removed form the rolls.

 

National has its share of pimples, that is clear but many of the issues in advancement are rooted in the Units, not in National

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Sorry as was pointed out it comes from the BSA Jan 2013 Advancement Newsletter which will go online at scouting.org eventually. The current link to it is here:

 

http://library.constantcontact.com/download/get/file/1109945141041-7/01-2013+Advancement+News.pdf

 

There is nothing new to the process with this verbiage change. It is meant to clarify the existing (and has been existing for decades) process.

 

And I think we have discussed this before. The national Advancement Team (who make these sorts of changes) consist of a lot of very experienced volunteer Scouters who have definitely been merit badge counselors, and have also signed of on many, many rank advancement requirements.

 

(This message has been edited by bnelon44)

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bnelon44, thank you for the link.

 

I know this "development" may deflate some SM egos in my area.

 

On the digital/paper debate. I think having a card to give to the scout gives him some control over his destiny when all other controls fail. Adults lose paperwork, adults forget to enter items into database. Accidents happen. A signed card/handbook is very good evidence that requirements were met.

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