What consitutes delivering "The Scouting Program"

[LongHaul 10]

This type of discussion and interjection of views is exactly what I was looking for, I will rejoin here to respond to Eamonn and Ed Mori.

Eamonn wrote; A lot of what the youth see as the Scouting Program is the delivery person. The Adults that are there week in and week out, these people are the BSA to that kid.Still in the eyes of the youth we are Scouting what we do and what we offer is to them the Scouting program. Hitting the nail on the head does not do justice here. I was introduced to Scouting in 1957as a Wolf and stayed active till I was 25 and got married. Soon as my oldest son was able to join I was back and have been active since. When I was a scout in the early 1960s my father was one of my Scoutmasters. Have been through numerous training courses I can look back and say without a doubt that Dad and his successors did a lot of things wrong and some that were actually against standing BSA policy. Its so easy to be the Monday morning quarterback and say that things could have been better if my leaders had stuck closer to the book program than they did. As Scoutmaster myself today I cant truthfully say Im not any better at sticking to the book than my leaders were. I try not to repeat their mistakes( as I see them) and choose to make my own (as hindsight often indicates). The point is I didnt know they were not doing it right. I took it on faith that they knew what Scouting was and how to do it. What Im looking for here is to get other experienced input to gauge my opinion of my approach in delivering what I see as "The Program".

Ed Mori wrote; If we continue to do our best in teaching the Scouts in our units to make moral & ethical decisions we are Scouting! Is that actually the case? Is making moral and ethical decisions the definition of Scouting today? Ive heard the term Traditional Scouting and Traditional Units when dealing with Counsel Professionals. There is a whole other group of Scouts(?) in the Learning for Life Program that do none of the things I do except learn to make moral & ethical decisions. The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law. Our Vision Statement is; The Boy Scouts of America is the nation's foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership training. The Program by which we accomplish these goals seems to be what is up to interpretation.

LongHaul

[evmori 11]

We seem to be getting hung up on terminology. If we keep the Scouts best interest at heart & help them to learn to make moral & ethical decisions, we have done our job. Call it Traditional Scouting, New Wave Scouting, etc. Who cares. It's Scouting!

 

Ed Mori

Troop 1

1 Peter 4:10

[LongHaul 10]

Ed,

By that definition the Learning for Life Program which does not camp, use the patrol method, have advancement, is not youth run, is still "Scouting". The troop that is so by the book that they don't burp unless they can find justification to do so in the publications are one in the same with the in school/after school baby sitting program are one in the same in terms of being Scouting?

LongHaul

[Greying Beaver 10]

The list above:

 

-SM is WoodBadge trained

-Really understands and uses the Patrol Method

-Has 20+ active scouts

-Is boy-led

-Has a good outdoor program

 

sums up what is needed as the basis of a troop that can deliver the program.

 

The WB/21stCentury is filled with proven ways of doing that. One thing that really is useful is how "close to a problem" a SM sould be. It can vary from taking direct control all the way to the SM letting the boy-led, Patrol Method troop function while he/she watches from the sideline. The latter is the preferred method. The only one that could be optional is the SM being a Woodbadger, but not really. The time that it takes to complete the program (up to a year and a half)is the problem. Having an adult (ASM) interested in being SM, he is the one to send to Woodbadge. The lecture part can be implemented within a month of his/her starting the course (See above.). And possibly have him/her attend on a "troop scholaship", the troop paying for at least half of the cost of the course. Don't think that only SM's can attend WoodBadge. I was just a little ol' committee member when I went through. I cannot emphasize enough - Go sign up for . . . , Ooops, sorry. I digress.

 

 

A minimum of 20 active scouts is needed to make the boy-led, Patrol Method troop function. An SPL, ASPL, and three patrols of six (active) boys. For a long time the literature said that the perfect troop size is between 32 and 36 scouts: SPL, ASPL, and five patrols of 6(active) boys each+/-.

 

Ask any scout what he really like about scouting and he will tell you, "Camping.". Five or six scouts sharing camp duties from a chart that they made, working a menu that they planned and having good food from it; boy-led at the patrol level. And doing so on a monthly basis . . . regardless of the weather.

 

The only one that could be optional is the SM being a Woodbadger, but not really. The time that it takes to complete the program (up to a year and a half)is the precieved problem. Having an adult (ASM) interested in being SM, he/she is the one to send to Woodbadge. The lecture part can be implemented within a month of his/her starting the course (See above.). And possibly have him/her attend on a "troop scholaship", the troop paying for at least half of the cost of the course. Don't think that only SM's can attend WoodBadge. I was just a little ol' committee member when I went through. I cannot emphasize enough - Go sign up for . . . , Ooops, sorry. I digress.

 

Those five elements are linked together. Bbng is correct about adult leaders not using the Methods and wondering what went wrong with their troops, and that it takes time and effort to train the boy leaders in the Patrol Method and leadership techniques. But guess what? That is the adult leaders' job (8-O). What a concept. "It's in the book!" (This message has been edited by a staff member.)

[AvidSM 11]

I have been lurking around this forum for years and have finally decided to pipe up.

 

You are asking for examples of what constitutes delivering the socuting program. And, you don't want quotes from BSA publications...

 

Well, each of us has our own point of view. And, each of us would probably come up with a different set of standards, depending on our experiences and training.

 

Reading the replies so far, there seems to be a common thread running through it all: boy led, patrol method, outdoor program, etc. -- get enough experienced scouters together and they will eventually all come up with the same common thread. (Which, by the way, is very close to the BSA publications like the Quality Unit Award and the Unit Commissioner's Evaluation Sheet)

 

How far can a unit wander away from these standards and still be considered boy scouts? It's hard to say.

 

The boy's have no way of knowing that they are not getting the full program. If they are not allowed to cook, all they know is the adults are feeding them tasty meals that they don't have to clean up after. And, if there are no patrols or patrol leaders, all they know is they are not the one's telling the other boys what to do and getting flack for it.

 

Boy Scouts that have never been a leader, never cooked their own meal, never made a decision that affected others -- have fun, go camping, get advanced, and wear the uniform just like every other scout.

 

Does this matter to me? --- Yes and no.

 

No, because I have my own troop to run. And there is nothing I can do about the leaders who don't agree with the standards.

 

Yes, because they just don't get it. And, being an avid Scoutmaster, it bugs me to see adults cooking at a camporee and ordering the boys around like some want-to-be drill seargent.

 

Why do they try to reinvent the wheel to come up with your own standards? Is it their egos? They might say it doesn't work; that they have tried boy led and patrol method with bad results. Well, try again! Never give up! If you want perfection, you are playing the wrong game.