Scouting: Difference between revisions

As a military officer, Baden-Powell was stationed in India and [[The Scramble for Africa|Africa]] in the 1880s and 1890s. Since his boyhood, he was fond of [[woodcraft]] and [[reconnaissance|military scouting]], and therefore – as part of their training – showed his men how to survive in the wilderness. He noticed it taught the soldiers to develop [[self (psychology)|independence]], rather than just blindly follow officers' orders.<ref name="Varsity ">{{cite book | last = Baden_Powell | first = Robert | authorlink = | year = 1933 |url= http://pinetreeweb.com/bp-vars.htm| title = Lessons from the varsity of life | chapter = Chapter X|accessdate=2007-02-04}}</ref>

In South Africa in the Second Boer War, Baden-Powell got besieged in the small town Mafeking against a much larger Boer army (the [[Siege of Mafeking]]).<ref> {{cite web | url = http://www.britishbattles.com/great-boer-war/mafeking.htm | title = The Siege of Mafeking | publisher = British Battles.com | accessdate = 2006-07-11}}</ref> The [[Mafeking Cadet Corps]] was a group of youths that supported the troops by carrying messages, which freed the men for military duties and kept the boys occupied during the long siege. The Cadet Corps performed well, helping in the defense of the town (1899–1900), and were one of the many factors that inspired Baden-Powell to form the Scouting movement.<ref name="cadet1">{{cite web | last = | first =  | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = | url = http://www.scouting.milestones.btinternet.co.uk/cadets.htm | title = The Mafeking Cadets | format = | work = Scouting Milestones  | publisher = btinternet.co.uk | accessdate = 2007-02-04}}</ref><ref name="cadet2">{{cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year =  | url = http://www.scouting.org.za/seeds/cadets.html | title =The Mafeking Cadets | format = | work =The African Seeds of Scouting  | publisher = Scout Web South Africa | accessdate = 2007-02-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Webster| first=Linden Bradfield| year=| title= Linden Bradfield Webster's Reminiscences of the Siege of Mafeking| journal=. The South African Military Society (Military History Journal) | volume=1| issue=7| pages=}}</ref> Each member received a badge that illustrated a combined [[compass]] point and [[spearhead]]. The badge's logo was similar to the [[fleur-de-lis]] that Scouting later adopted as its international symbol. In the United Kingdom the public followed his struggle to hold Mafeking through newspapers, and when the siege was broken Baden-Powell had become a [[national hero]]. This pushed the sales of a small instruction book he had written about military scouting, ''Aids to Scouting''. On his return to England he noticed the large interest of boys in this book, which was also used by teachers and youth organizations.<ref name="NPG">{{cite web |url=http://www.npg.org.uk/live/wobaden.asp |title=Robert Baden-Powell: Defender of Mafeking and Founder of the Boy Scouts and the Girl Guides | work = Past Exhibition Archive | publisher = [[National Portrait Gallery (United Kingdom)|National Portrait Gallery]] | accessdate= 2006-12-03}}</ref> He was suggested by several to rewrite this book for boys, especially during an inspection of the [[Boys' Brigade]]. This brigade was a large youth movement, drilled with military precision. Baden-Powell thought this would not be attractive and suggested that it could grow much larger when scouting would be used.<ref name="BPJeal">{{cite book | last = Jeal | first = Tim | authorlink = Tim Jeal |publisher=Yale University Press| coauthors = | year = 1989 | url = | title = Baden-Powell | pages = 360-362, 371 | accessdate =2007-02-04}}</ref> He studied other schemes, parts of which he used for Scouting.

In July 1906, [[Ernest Thompson Seton]] sent Baden-Powell a copy of his book ''The Birchbark Roll of the Woodcraft Indians''. Seton, a British-born Canadian living in the United States, met Baden-Powell in October 1906, and they shared ideas about youth training programs.<ref name="SetonWoo">{{cite web | last = Woo | first = Randy | year = Aug 1996 | url = http://members.aol.com/randywoo/bsahis/seton.htm | title = Ernest Thompson Seton  | work = The Ultimate Boy Scouts of America History Site | publisher = Randy Woo | accessdate = 2006-12-07}}</ref><ref name="SetonInfed>{{cite web | year = 2002 | url = http://www.infed.org/thinkers/seton.htm | title = Ernest Thompson Seton and Woodcraft | publisher = InFed | accessdate = 2006-12-07}}</ref><ref name="BPInfed>{{cite web | year = 2002 | url = http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-bp.htm | title = Robert Baden-Powell as and Educational Innovator | publisher = InFed | accessdate = 2006-12-07}}</ref> In 1907 Baden-Powell wrote a draft called ''Boy Patrols''. In the same year, to test his ideas, he gathered 21 boys of mixed social backgrounds and held a week-long camp in August on [[Brownsea Island Scout camp|Brownsea Island]] in Poole Harbour, Dorset, England.<ref>{{cite book| | author = Woolgar, Brian| coauthors = La Riviere, Sheila| year = 2002| title = Why Brownsea? The Beginnings of Scouting | publisher = Brownsea Island Scout and Guide Management Committee}}</ref> His organizational method, now known as the Patrol System and a key part of Scouting training, allowed the boys to organize themselves into small groups with an elected patrol leader.<ref>{{cite web | author = Johnny Walker| url = http://www.scouting.milestones.btinternet.co.uk/brownsea.htm| title = Scouting Milestones - Brownsea Island| accessdate = 2006-07-07}}</ref>

The Boy Scout movement swiftly established itself throughout the British Empire soon after the publication of ''Scouting for Boys''. The first recognized overseas unit was chartered in Gibraltar in 1908, followed quickly by a unit in Malta. [[Scouts Canada|Canada]] became the first overseas [[dominion]] with a sanctioned Boy Scout program, followed by Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Chile was the first country outside the British dominions to have a recognized Scouting program. By 1910, Argentina, Denmark, [[Grand Duchy of Finland|Finland]], France, [[German Empire|Germany]], [[Kingdom of Greece|Greece]], India, [[British Malaya|Malaya]], Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, [[Sweden]], and the United States had Boy Scouts.<ref name="bsahist97">{{cite web | last = Snowden | first = Jeff | year = 1984 | url = http://www.troop97.net/bsahist1.htm | title = A Brief Background of Scouting in the United States 1910 to Today | publisher = Troop 97 | accessdate = 2006-07-22}}</ref><ref name="woohist">{{cite web | last = Woo | first = Randy | url = http://members.aol.com/RandyWoo/bsahis/ | title = The Ultimate Boy Scouts of America History Site | accessdate = 2006-07-22}}</ref><ref name="scoutbase">{{cite web | url = http://www.scoutbase.org.uk/library/history/ | title = The History of Scouting | publisher = ScoutBaseUK | accessdate = 2006-07-22}}</ref> The first Scout rally, held in 1910 at The Crystal Palace in London, attracted 10,000 boys and a number of girls.

Baden-Powell could not single-handedly advise all groups who requested his assistance. Early [[Scoutmaster]] training camps were held in London in 1910 and in Yorkshire in 1911. Baden-Powell wanted the training to be as practical as possible to encourage other adults to take leadership roles, so the [[Wood Badge]] course was developed to recognize adult leadership training. The development of the training was delayed by World War I, so the first Wood Badge course was not held until 1919.<ref name="wbfounding">{{cite web | last = Block | first = Nelson R. | year = 1994 | url = http://www.woodbadge.org/founding.htm | title = The Founding of Wood Badge | publisher = Woodbadge.org | accessdate = 2006-07-20}}</ref> Wood Badge is used by Boy Scout associations and combined Boy Scout and Girl Guide associations in many countries.  [[Gilwell Park]] near London was purchased in 1919 on behalf of [[The Scout Association]] as an adult training site and Scouting [[campsite]].<ref name="historyofficial">{{cite book | last = Rogers | first = Peter | title = Gilwell Park: A Brief History and Guided Tour | year = 1998 | publisher = [[The Scout Association]] | location = London, England | language= English | pages = pages 5-46}}</ref> Baden-Powell wrote a book, ''Aids to Scoutmastership'', to help [[Leader (Scouting)|Scouting Leaders]], and wrote other handbooks for the use of the new Scouting sections, such as Cub Scouts and Girl Guides. One of these was ''Rovering to Success'', written for Rover Scouts in 1922. A wide range of leader training exists in 2007, from basic to program-specific, including the Wood Badge training.

The Scout method is the principal method by which the Scouting organizations, boy and girl, operate their units. The [[World Organization of the Scout Movement]] (WOSM) describes Scouting as "...a voluntary nonpolitical educational movement for young people open to all without distinction of origin, [[race]] or creed, in accordance with the purpose, principles and method conceived by the Founder..."<ref name="constitution" /> It is the goal of Scouting "to contribute to the development of young people in achieving their full physical, intellectual, social and spiritual potentials as individuals, as responsible citizens and as members of their local, national and international communities."<ref name="constitution" />

[[Image:Scout mem jamb 1979 1980 perry lakes gnangarra.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Sculpture erected in 1982 to commemorate the 1979 Jamboree at [[Floreat, Western Australia|Perry Lakes]] Western Australia and 75 years of Scouting]]

[[Image:Ideal Scout.png|thumb|200px|''Ideal Scout'' sculpture by [[R. Tait McKenzie]], outside the [[Cradle of Liberty Council]] headquarters in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]]

The Scout [[uniform]] is a widely recognized characteristic of Scouting. In the words of Baden-Powell at the 1937 World Jamboree, it "hides all differences of social standing in a country and makes for equality; but, more important still, it covers differences of country and race and creed, and makes all feel that they are members with one another of the one great brotherhood".<ref name="uniform">{{cite web | last = Wade | first = E.K. | year = 1957 | url = http://pinetreeweb.com/wade12.htm | title = 27 Years With Baden-Powell | format = PDF | work = Why the Uniform?, ch 12 | publisher = Pinetree.web | accessdate = 2006-07-24}}</ref> The original uniform, still widely recognized, consisted of a khaki button-up shirt, shorts, and a broad-brimmed [[campaign hat]]. Baden-Powell also wore shorts, because he believed that being dressed like a Scout helped to reduce the age-imposed distance between adult and youth. Uniforms are now frequently blue, orange, red or green, and shorts are replaced by long trousers in winter, and in areas where the culture calls for [[modesty]].

Worldwide there have been different approaches to co-educational Scouting. Countries such as the USA have maintained separate Scouting organizations for boys and girls.<ref name="bsagirls">{{cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2005 | url = http://www.bsa-discrimination.org/html/girls-top.html | title = BSA and Girls in Scouting | format = | work = | publisher = BSA Discrimination.org | accessdate = 2006-12-04}}</ref> In other countries, notably in Europe, Scouting and Guiding have merged, and there is a single organization for boys and girls, which is a member of both the WOSM and the WAGGGS.<ref name="canadagirls">{{cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2005 | url = http://www.bsa-discrimination.org/html/gender_policy.html | title = Scouts Canada Policy on Girls | format = | work = | publisher = BSA Discrimination.org | accessdate = 2006-12-04}}</ref><ref name="germanygirls">{{cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 2005 | url = http://n2zgu.50megs.com/GER.htm | title = Scouting in Germany | format = | work = | publisher = 50megs.com | accessdate = 2006-12-04}}</ref> In others, for example Australia and the United Kingdom, the national Scout association has opted to admit both boys and girls, but is only a member of the WOSM, while the national Guide association has remained as a separate movement and member of the WAGGGS. In Slovenia, Spain and Greece, it is the other way around, as the national Guide association has opted to admit both boys and girls, and the national Scout association has remained a separate movement.

|Indonesia

|Bangladesh

|Korea

|Nigeria

Since the inception of Scouting in the early 1900s, the movement has sometimes become entangled in social controversies such as the [[African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968)|civil rights struggle]] in the [[Southern United States|American South]] and in nationalist [[Indian independence movement|resistance movements]] in India. Scouting was introduced to Africa by British officials as a way to strengthen their rule, but came to challenge the legitimacy of the British Empire as African Scouts used the Scout Law's principle that a Scout is a brother to all other Scouts to collectively claim full imperial citizenship.<ref name="movement">{{cite web | last = Foster | first = Rev. Michael | year = 2001 | url = http://www.netpages.free-online.co.uk/sha/crisis.htm | title = The Growing Crisis in the Scout Movement |work = Scout History | publisher = Scout History Association | accessdate = 2006-12-09}}</ref><ref name="britimperialism">{{cite web | last = Parsons | first = Timothy | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = | url = http://www.ohioswallow.com/bookinfo.php?book_id=0821415956 | title = Race, Resistance, and the Boy Scout Movement in British Colonial Africa | format = | work = | publisher = Ohio University Press and Swallow Press | accessdate = 2006-12-25}}</ref> More recently, Scouting organizations that do not allow the participation of [[atheism|atheists]], [[agnosticism|agnostics]], or [[homosexuality|homosexuals]] have been publicly criticized.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.bsa-discrimination.org/html/god-top.html|work=BSA Discrimination|title=BSA and Religious Belief|accessdate=2006-02-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bsa-discrimination.org/html/gays-top.html|work=BSA Discrimination|title=BSA and Homosexuality|accessdate=2006-02-06}}</ref>

As Scouting has been a facet of culture throughout most of the 20th century in many countries, numerous films and artwork use the subject.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Dubill| first=Andy| year=2005| title=Scouts On The Silver Screen| journal=International Scouting Collectors Association Journal (ISCA Journal) | volume=5| issue=2| pages=28-31}}</ref> It is especially prevalent in the United States, where Scouting is tied closely to the ideal of [[Americana]]. The works of painters Norman Rockwell, [[Pierre Joubert]] and [[Joseph Csatari]] and the 1966 film ''[[Follow Me, Boys!]]'' are prime examples of this idealized American ethos. Scouting is often dealt with in a humorous manner, as in the 1989 film ''[[Troop Beverly Hills]]'' and the 2005 film ''[[Down and Derby]]'', and is often fictionalized so that the audience knows the topic is Scouting without any mention of Scouting by name. In 1980, [[Scottish people|Scottish]] [[singer]] and [[songwriter]] [[Gerry Rafferty]] recorded ''I was a Boy Scout'' as part of his ''Snakes and Ladders'' album.<ref name="I was">{{cite web | year = 1980 | url = http://www.metrolyrics.com/i-was-a-boy-scott-lyrics-gerry-rafferty.html | title = Gerry Rafferty - I was a Boy Scout | work = Song lyrics | accessdate = 2006-12-08}}</ref>