quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
Would like to see a merit badge for one weeks pistol training with a Glock on it.

Two weeks pistol training with two crossed Glocks on it.

One week badge (6 hours ) of rifle training with one rifle,

Two weeks of rifle training badge with two crossed rifles.

A firearms safety training badge after five hours.

quote:

Originally posted by Scuba Steve Sig:
I've posted on this topic before and our son's involvement. I'm an Eagle Scout from 1997 from a MO troop. He made Arrow of Light two years ago and bridged over to a Boy Scout Eagle Factory troop. He got burnt out at around 2nd class and didn't want to do any more campouts. He really likes Taekwondo instead and gets more physical activity and accountability in that.

Our troop growing up operated on the paramilitary model, we all lined up as patrols behind our Patrol Leader, the Senior Patrol leader and Assistant Senior Patrol Leader led the Pledge of Allegiance, Scout Oath and Scout Law, then the Scoutmaster gave an introduction of the meeting's program and the older scouts implemented it with the other scouts. The leaders all sat off in the corner talking about leader stuff.

Eagle Scout Factory troops push merit badges every meeting, nothing "fun" happens at the meetings, which are only scheduled a couple times a month during the school year and not at all during the summer other than summer camp. Our troop was all male, campouts were OK but they often got cancelled due to bad weather. Only younger scouts needing the overnights for rank or camping merit badge went to the campouts. Many more kids went to summer camp, but only 1 week of that can count for rank and merit badges. Our son wasn't excited about going and most of the other parents drag their kids there "so they can get Eagle." Our son liked doing the merit badges, but I discussed with him I can teach him much of that stuff together if he wants. We made an agreement he would finish off the merit badges he was close to finishing in case he decided to come back (he was 12, so still plenty of time).

I had zero desire to push him through "Scouting America" in any troop. He didn't want to look for other troops because he knew the kids in this troop, but they weren't close friends giving him the motivation to stay. Right before he quit the Scoutmaster sent an email after the new Senior Patrol Leader was elected that "any scout who needs a leadership position and wants to be Assistant Senior Patrol Leader can do so." Meaning, ALL scouts who needed to get their "leadership position" needed to rank up you would call themselves ASPL. I couldn't sit in on a Board of Review approving any of that, the ones I did the Scouts couldn't even recite the Scout Oath and Law, and its not the Scout's fault, but this was the direction of the troop and I wasn't compelled to try and change it with our son having no desire to be in it.

From what I've seen, many of the boys in Scouting America now are there because their dad's are reliving their scouting past or trying to get their son to go farther, whether they want to or not. For the girls it is new terrain, leaving the arts of crafts world of Girl Scouts. I did Girl Scouts with our daughter, I was the only male and wasn't excluded, but wasn't really included. It's a weird program and I wasn't impressed. I can see why girls want to leave.

Merit badges are no longer earned where you look at the book, learn, prepare your stuff and meet with a merit badge counselor. Leaders sign up to be merit badge counselors for ALL the merit badges. They then award them to their sons. They rotate around and teach them in groups to the scouts in meetings and everyone in attendance "earns it." Troops conduct Merit Badge Universities as fundraising and scouts pay $20 or so to earn a merit badge in the morning and another in the afternoon with pizza in between. Everyone in attendance earns the badge. Some are taught better than others. What's the merit of getting an attendance prize? The long term benefits of scouting isn't earning the Eagle Scout, but the process of studying, preparing, and demonstrating a skill. Merit badges at summer camp are no longer just the usual swimming, shooting, crafts, nature/conservation, but the Citizenship and other book Eagle badges. Who wants to do that stuff during summer camp? "BUT YOU GOTS TO GET YOUR EAGLE!"

Scouts shouldn't be getting Eagle at 14 years old. 99% of those that do were pushed through by their parents.