Friendly Reminder, New Fitness Requirements for T-2-1 as of 2016

[John-in-KC]

Bryan Wendell is actually posting useful stuff...

 

New Boy Scout requirements put more emphasis on physical fitness

 

[Stosh]

I always thought that teaching the S-FC skills was like basic training that once they learned knots, cooking, planning, first aid, camp tools, etc. it would be something they would retain in later life.  

 

What does physical exercise for a month, once a year, teach the boys?

 

What does a couple of hours of service projects, every now and then do?  My 36 year old daughter and her daughter invited me to ring Salvation Army bells for a number of occasions this holiday season.  It's kinda strange.  She rang bells with me when she was a toddler and now her toddler is joining in.  It's kinda strange in that neither she nor my granddaughter ever heard of service project hours for advancement......  Just sayin'  Her grandfather (my dad) rang bells, too and over the course of his time with Salvation Army raised $108,000 for them a bucket at a time.  He was never a scout either.

 

Instilling the concept of helping other people at all times can't be done with service project hours mandated by advancement requirements.  Next thing the BSA will require will be counting the number of times one opens and holds the door for someone else.....  So much for Do a Good Turn Daily.....   I have counted my 2 hour shift at the Red Kettle a Daily Good Turn many times a season. 

 

This past week one scout and I were ringing bells in front of the local grocery store.  A gentleman came out of the store, dropped in a wad of bills and shook the hand of my scout and thanked him for being a good scout and helping out others less fortunate.  I thanked him and wished him a Merry Christmas.  After a rather long pause.  The boy looked at me and said, "I never expected that."  I smiled and said, "What did you expect?"  Couldn't get the grin off his face for the rest of the shift.  

 

Somethings in life don't need a check box to be valuable.

[NJCubScouter]

Stosh, I think the point of the physical fitness requirements and the service requirements is to instill in the boys the idea that these are things they should be doing on a regular basis. The point is not merely to "check the box." Whether it works that way in real life, of course, depends on the person and to some degree the "culture" in any given troop.

 

In any event, the new requirements are almost here and boys are going to start becoming subject to them after Jan. 1, when they join Scouting, or earn their last rank under the old requirements. Whether they are a good idea or not is secondary.

[Krampus]

Box checking? In Boy Scouts? Naw!

 

If BSA really wanted to hammer the point home, wouldn't they focus their dollars on outdoor programs rather than cannibalize their program and create a STEM offering? Can't be much exercise using a beaker.

[RememberSchiff]

IMO it appears the 2016 requirement changes are an indirect admission that more (exercise, service, camping,...) is better scouting than quicker (FCFY...).

[Stosh]

Stosh, I think the point of the physical fitness requirements and the service requirements is to instill in the boys the idea that these are things they should be doing on a regular basis. The point is not merely to "check the box." Whether it works that way in real life, of course, depends on the person and to some degree the "culture" in any given troop.

 

In any event, the new requirements are almost here and boys are going to start becoming subject to them after Jan. 1, when they join Scouting, or earn their last rank under the old requirements. Whether they are a good idea or not is secondary.

 

I'm thinking that under Obedience, if someone thinks a rule wrong or unfair, it is a Primary Obligation to question it, not accept it's worth as secondary to the issue....  At least, that's what I have been teaching my boys for over 30 years now.  Then again, I train challenging leaders, not submissive followers.

 

“We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason, if we dig deep into our own history and our doctrine and remember that we are not descended from fearful men, not men who feared to write, to speak, to associate, and to defend causes which were for the moment unpopular.

“This is no time for men who oppose Senator [Joe] McCarthy’s methods to keep silent. We can deny our heritage and our history, but we cannot escape responsibility for the result.â€

 

— Edward R. Murrow, 1954

 

Yes, this might be a small issue at the onset, but at least with one's finger in the dike, it buys some time to think about it.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Stosh

[John-in-KC]

Stosh, call your Council Advancement Adviser (professional).  This is an Irving decision, and as the GTA says, no one below them has the authority to modify or waive.

 

 

Challenging leadership includes knowing when to choose your battles.

Edited December 4, 2015 by John-in-KC

[Stosh]

But they have the right to challenge it.  That's all that counts.  Leadership development is an interplay between courage and knowledge.  Young boys today lack both and are led blindly by adults who make up rules faster than they can learn them.  Parents have their rules. Schools have their rules.  Churches have their rules.  The government has their rules. BSA has their rules. None of these have sacred enough cows that they can't withstand a little leadership challenge of the next generation of leaders.  If my boys get their knuckles slapped a few times, so what, it's part of their learning process.  History has shown there have been a lot of great leaders that stated out with a hopeless cause against an unjust rule.  Ya never know unless ya try.......