Evaluating Requirements

Some requirements, like First Class Rank Requirement 1a, can be confusing; Since joining, participate in 10 separate troop/patrol activities, six of which include overnight camping. These 10 activities do not include troop or patrol meetings. On at least five of the six campouts, spend the night in a tent that you pitch or other structure that you help erect (such as a lean-to, snow cave, or tepee). I created a simple logic chart to determine if a given activity fulfils First Class Rank Requirement 1a;...

Podcast Episode (00:26:45): Download MP3 Listen to Scoutmaster Podcast 232 | Sponsored By ScoutmasterCG.com Backers Hello! Back home and lots of catching up to do! I answer emails about signing requirements, Troop Planning, Eagle projects, and advancement. Plus an announcement for those of you interested in going to Kandersteg, Switzerland! Get The SCOUTMASTERCG APP Podcast Archive Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Podcast Episode (00:28:17): Download MP3 Listen to Scoutmaster Podcast 230 | Sponsored By ScoutmasterCG.com Backers What kind of an internal standard is the aim of our work? We want our Scouts to form resilient character that they can call on as they move forward in life, we have some ofttimes overlooked opportunities to build an internal standard that will be a valuable asset. I’ll share how you can take advantage of these opportunities and I answer an email question regarding patrols, and (of course) your messages in the mailbag!...

Scout service projects are a basic element of any solid program, and participation in them is a requirement for advancement in rank. What service projects qualify for rank requirements? Let’s begin by looking at the requirements themselves: Second Class requirement: Participate in an approved (minimum of one hour) service project. Star and Life requirement: … take part in service project(s) totaling at least six hours of work. These projects must be approved by your Scoutmaster....

Podcast Episode (00:28:20): Download MP3 Scoutmaster Podcast 205 | Sponsored By ScoutmasterCG.com Backers Announcing the new Scoutmastercg.com site, new features roll out this week! What standards do we apply for evaluating leadership? Should we create a set of standards that define when a Scout has achieved the fulfillment of their ‘leadership’ requirements? How else can we encourage our Scouts to be responsible and guarantee we are being fair when evaluating their work?...

Guardian of the Gate by F. Darnall Daley Jr. (advancement chair for Area 6 of the Northeast Region). Some of you appear to be standing guard at the gate. Like good guards you are not letting anyone pass who does not have the correct password. When someone appears at the gate who does not have the correct password, you send them away. The treasure that you believe you are guarding is the SACRED ADVANCEMENT REQUIREMENTS....

Podcast Episode (00:29:11): Download MP3 Scoutmaster Podcast 192 | In This Podcast | | | In this edition of the Scoutmaster podcast we get an update on a previous podcast’s advice, discuss evaluating Scout Spirit, and answer questions about knives, Scouts getting credit for camping with Cubs, and helping the patrol leader’s council address a concern about their calendar. All this and your messages in the mailbag. | | | Links | | | | Scoutcircle....

There are times that what I assume or the way I feel Scout requirements are fulfilled does not jibe with the actual wording of the requirement. I don’t sign off many requirements. Requirements for ranks up to First Class are almost exclusively signed off by our older Scouts. I do sign off requirements in the if I am functioning as a merit badge counselor, but not too much in my role as a Scoutmaster....

Third in a series of articles about the four steps to Scout Advancement. (Click on the titles above to read the articles) … the standard of proficiency is purposely left undefined. Our standard for Badge earning is not the attainment of a certain level of quality of knowledge or skill, but the AMOUNT OF EFFORT THE BOY HAS PUT INTO ACQUIRE SUCH KNOWLEDGE OR SKILL. If he is a trier, no matter how clumsy, his examiner can accord him his Badge, and this generally inspires the boy to go on trying till he wins further Badges and becomes normally capable....

What does ‘active in Scouting’ mean? Scouting, unlike many other activities, is not designed to monopolize our Scout’s available time. Beyond that Scouting considers Scouts being involved and engaged in their communities, families and schools as goal of the program. Most of the other activities our Scouts involve themselves with do not reciprocate. Teams, bands, choirs, choruses, clubs, youth groups and many ot the other positive thing s a Scout can do outside of his troop may demand his attendance – they may have all or nothing at all policies....

A significant addition the Guide to Advancement walks us through the sometimes thorny issue of evaluating active Scouts. I have struggled at times, as have many of us, with judging how to interpret this requirement. The guide has made this process simple and clear. Evaluating the ‘active requirement is a three step process: Is the Scout registered? Is the Scout in good standing? Has he met the expectations of his unit?...

Years ago there was some question as to whether one of my Scouts who was a candidate for Eagle had satisfied the ‘active’ requirement. He had not attended many meetings or outings in the last six months. He was a high school senior and a wrestler. We set up a meeting with him, his father and his wrestling coach. At that meeting the Scout enumerated the things he had accomplished as a leader in his Troop and his wrestling coach spoke of how much the team relied on his leadership as a team captain....

When a rank requirement says ‘active’ what does it mean? How do we determine what constitutes an active scout? Here’s the policy – A Scout will be considered “active” in his unit if he is: Registered in his unit (registration fees are current) Not dismissed from his unit for disciplinary reasons. Engaged by his unit leadership on a regular basis (Informed of unit activities through Scoutmaster conference or personal contact, etc....

Badges and awards are results; but Scouters understand the importance of recognizing effort. In his book Shine: Using Brain Science to Get the Best from Your People Psychiatrist Ned Hallowell concludes that acknowledgment of effort provides vital encouragement, motivation and inspires greater confidence, but also promotes moral behavior; “When a person feels recognized and connected to the larger group, she knows viscerally, not just intellectually, that she has made a contribution others value....

I recently received this question about Scout Spirit via email: I am a new Scoutmaster and I think I have a bit of background on Scouting. However, I have been reading your Eagle posts with some confusion and need some enlightenment. I have a Scout, who is a Life currently, and is 17 years 1 month old. He needs one or two merit badges and his Eagle Project. He is always joking and clowning around....

A reader asks: I would like to get your thoughts on how you evaluate Scout Spirit. Is it standard practice for a scoutmaster to ask a scout to write out what the scout’s interpretation of Scout Spirit is? Each rank in Scouting requires that a scout “Demonstrate scout spirit by living the Scout Oath (Promise) and Scout Law in your everyday life.” Evaluating this is usually the simplest part of a Scoutmaster’s conference (that’s where I usually check the requirement)....

Here’s an exchange from Ask Andy about forms and Scouts. Hi Andy, I’m a relatively new Assistant Scoutmaster. I’ve been instructed that Scouts seeking ranks beyond First Class, in this troop, are required to complete a “Scoutmaster Conference Worksheet” before their actual conversation with the Scoutmaster, which they then submit for their board of review. (I’ve attached the worksheet for your reference—it was created by the previous Scoutmaster.) I’ve just read that pedantic, soul-sucking, cheerless form....

Our nationwide organization of some 2.8 million youth and 1.3 million adult participants is defined by written Scout rank requirements policies and procedures. Individual understanding, subject to an individual point of view, can lead to some misinterpretations if we do not read requirements, policies and procedures with an open mind. As an example look at these Scout rank requirements: Scout Badge 7. Understand and agree to live by the Scout Oath or Promise, Scout Law, motto, and slogan, and the Outdoor Code....

Star, Life and Eagle rank all require leadership tenure. For each rank the requirement states: “serve actively (x) months in one or more positions of responsibility ” The word ‘actively’ can be a pinhead on which many angels dance. In my experience Scoutmasters often read this word and start instituting metrics to evaluate the term. But the official interpretation of “active” is much simpler than that:A Scout is considered to be active in his unit if:...

In my early years a s a Scoutmaster I was upset when my Scouts chose to miss a meeting or outing in favor of another activity. It would not be too much to say that I took it personally (at that point I was doing most of the planning and leading anyway!). My initial response was to adopt a policy similar to one I have read many, many times in Troop-specific policy manuals; a set percentage of outings and meetings Scouts must attend to be considered active and a ‘leave of absence’ policy that outlined how to suspend a Scout’s active membership while they pursued another activity....