Merit badge difficulty (old question, new twist)

[Fred Johnson]

I understand the BSA program pretty well. And, I fully buy into not adding requirements; supporting the scout; and the Scout earns his advancement (in contrast to being judged and awarded recognition).

The problem recently for me is as a “Citizen of the Nation” merit badge counselor. With the great education our local scouts get in schools, this badge has always been pretty simple. Usually, the scouts have already explicitly talked about the topics in multiple grade levels and even taken the tours.

Well, a recent experience with one of our best scouts really started me thinking.

It was his last badge to earn Eagle. His project was done. He just needed the C.O.N. badge. He had received his blue card a year or two earlier the scoutmaster. He talked with me briefly at that time. Then, I didn't hear anything other than an occasional sentence from him that he'll be talking to me about it. This spring, he had a civics course in school. It allowed him to answer all the questions and he used the speech they discussed in class (Gettysburg Address). Also, he said he watched the news every day for the last week and normally watches the news anyway. He talked about the gulf oil spill. I trust him. If he said he did it, I'm betting he did. This is a very up-right scout. Also, the requirements don't say show proof that you watched the news or read the paper. Just explain.

So when I look back at the badge and the effort, the additional effort to complete BSA requirements was about 15 minutes for the letter and about 40 minutes to talk with me (two conversations, 10 minutes 1st time and 30 minutes 2nd time). Otherwise, everything else was already done through school or normal family life. The BSA requirements didn’t introduce him to anything new. Where's the challenge? Where's the growth?

Did I do something wrong? Should I have looked for more even though he explicitly fulfilled the BSA published requirements? Merit badges introduce subjects and are not to develop expertise or mastery of the subjects. This kid knew the C.O.N. stuff just fine. So, he did the requirements.

It just seems that a BSA Eagle required badge took little effort. It was almost an automatic badge. Worse yet, he learned little from the merit badge other than the experience of our talking. If he did learn anything, he learned how to plan things in sequence to minimize effort and maximize return. That itself is a valuable lesson that I keep re-learning. The last time was when my Woodbadge patrol mate finished his beads in three weeks and it took me the full 18 months. As the old Crusade knight said in Indiana Jones, "You choose poorly."

Is it just a matter that this scout choose (aka planned) wisely?

[jr56]

Every scout has different life experiences. It just so happens that this particular scout fulfilled most of the requurements through school. Not all scouts will accomplish this in that manner. The requirements are what they are, and he fulfilled them as written, no more, no less. I wouldn't worry about it.

[Billiken]

IMHO, Citz Nation is the easiest Eagle-Required MB.

[lambeausam]

The schools that my three sons attend have really strong history sections. Plenty of discussions, many of which align with the MB requirements. However, the school district adjacent to ours is quite different. Pretty much chapter reading and question answering. It would be much easier for a young man to use our hs program for the requirements, but not the adjacent district's.

Along the same lines...my oldest son's science classroom has a star dome. It can be set by a calendar date to see what the star and planet relationships were on a given day and contrast it with another. He is using some of his lab time at school to support his requirements for the Astronomy MB.

I am aware of several home-schooling scout families that build their curriculum around MB's. Similar situation.

Sam

[Mrw]

I would not worry about it. At least we know he learned something in school! For a kid who wants to earn it earlier and has not covered it well in school, or a kid who hates that part of school, it may be much more of a challenge.

If you ask my sons, they will tell you that one of the easiest badges they ever did was Cycling because it was something we did as a family. So by the time they were old enough to be in Scouts as opposed to Cubs, the 50 miler was something they had done multiple times already.

Each kid is different.

I think the reason this is a required badge is not so much to challenge the guys, as it is to emphasize the importance of knowing civics. How things run in this country and how and why they were set up that way. All you need to do is watch the "man on the street" get interviewed around election time to find that far too few Americans really have much of a clue.

[Quailman]

On the flip side, my son, a HS senior, is taking government and he has been speaking up in class (for a change) because he learned a lot of the answers while working on this MB.

Merit badges introduce subjects and are not to develop expertise or mastery of the subjects.

If a young man already has been introduced to a subject through his life experiences, he'll have an easier time earning a badge than a scout for whom it's all new material. The MB counselor for Disabilities Awareness wanted to just hand my son a signed blue card since he is painfully aware of the difficulties faced by people with a disability (he has cerebral palsy), but he went through the program at camp anyway.

[evmori]

You did exactly what you were suppose to do. Nice job.

[smtroop168]

If he did the stated requirements, then he's good to go. Rigor is in the eyes of the beholder. For a kid who is almost 18, he's been through a lot of these many times (whether he realizes it or not!)


http://usscouts.org/mb/Old/mb003.asp

This link will show you what the Cit in Nation MB requirements were in 2005. Much less work to do to earn it.


If we want rigor, we can go back to the old Camping MB requirements of the 1950s where you needed 50 days and night of camping!

[wagionvigil]

If he did the stated requirements, then he's good to go. Rigor is in the eyes of the beholder. For a kid who is almost 18, he's been through a lot of these many times (whether he realizes it or not!)


http://usscouts.org/mb/Old/mb003.asp

This link will show you what the Cit in Nation MB requirements were in 2005. Much less work to do to earn it.


If we want rigor, we can go back to the old Camping MB requirements of the 1950s where you needed 50 days and night of camping!

SOunds Good to me and reinstate swimming and life saving as required NO OPTIONAL MB except for a couple of reasons.

[kwildman]

I agree about lifesaving and Cooking should be an Eagle required badge.

Citizenships are really not that hard. My son worked on them concurrently. He accompanied a group of tigers on one of their "Go See its" to the state house, federal court, etc. which was pretty cool.

II see a lot of scouts struggle at communications.

[cballman]

I will add my 2 cents worth. I have seen kids struggle through the requirments. I have seen kids breeze through the same requirments. NO more-NO less. Now for the kicker I agree with wagionvigil, Swimming and Lifesaving totaly required no alternates. I would also like to see Public Speaking instead of some others.

[lambeausam]

NO more-NO less. Now for the kicker I agree with wagionvigil, Swimming and Lifesaving totaly required no alternates. I would also like to see Public Speaking instead of some others.

How would you address alternatives for scouts with special needs that preclude completion of these two badges? Just curious to hear what you would subsitute.

Wagion Vigil Addition: That would be up to National But it must be sopmthing difficult. Not knowing how to swim is not a reason Fear of water is not a reason. WE need to tighten up the First Class swimming requirement. Too easy for a SM to by pass it.
What would you see as Special Needs?
Sean a quad amputee that has both?
Max a Downs SCout with 3 Palms? Including All Aquatics MB plus Climbing
Fred a Blind Scout with two Palms?
Are these special Needs? Nope!

[smtroop168]

NO more-NO less. Now for the kicker I agree with wagionvigil, Swimming and Lifesaving totaly required no alternates. I would also like to see Public Speaking instead of some others.

How would you address alternatives for scouts with special needs that preclude completion of these two badges? Just curious to hear what you would subsitute.

That would be up to National But it must be sopmthing difficult. Not knowing how to swim is not a reason Fear of water is not a reason. WE need to tighten up the First Class swimming requirement. Too easy for a SM to by pass it.
What would you see as Special Needs?
Sean a quad amputee that has both?
Max a Downs SCout with 3 Palms? Including All Aquatics MB plus Climbing
Fred a Blind Scout with two Palms?
Are these special Needs? Nope!

The BSA has an entire process to address Scouts with Disabilites. The procedures are there for those who choose to avail themselves of them. They require specific documentation for Alternative Advancement Requirements but they are not required to be used by any scout just because they have special needs. Some scouts and parents refuse to use them as evidenced by your examples. However I would also say there are those who want to use them as a last minute reason for extension for Eagle Requirements when they have never seen the need to use them up to that point.

I'll bet the reasons for changing the no Swimming MB "required" or Swimming MB no longer required before Lifesaving MB had nothing to do with Scouts with Disabilities. Both became optional required MBs inthe 1972 BSHS..the beginning of the "Culturally Relevant" and Skill awards era of scouting.

[wagionvigil]

I apparently hit edit instead of quote so I adjusted the post to show my input. Getting Old I guess

[kwildman]

How do you bypass the swimming requirements? I didnt think that was up to the scout master. Being the evil dad i made my boys actually learn how to swim good enough to pass the swimming merit badge.

[wagionvigil]

How do you bypass the swimming requirements? I didnt think that was up to the scout master. Being the evil dad i made my boys actually learn how to swim good enough to pass the swimming merit badge.

You are in the minority from what I have been seeing in many case. Any kid that pass the swimmers test can pass swimming MB.

[smtroop168]

How do you bypass the swimming requirements? I didnt think that was up to the scout master. Being the evil dad i made my boys actually learn how to swim good enough to pass the swimming merit badge.

You are in the minority from what I have been seeing in many case. Any kid that pass the swimmers test can pass swimming MB.

#4. Demonstrate survival skills by jumping feetfirst into deep water wearing clothes (shoes, socks, swim trunks, long pants, belt, and long-sleeved shirt). Remove shoes and socks, inflate the shirt, and show that you can float using the shirt for support. Remove and inflate the pants for support. Swim 50 feet using the inflated pants for support, then show how to reinflate the pants while still afloat.

This is the one requirement that can hang some scouts up for Swimming MB even though they can pass the BSA Swimmer Test.

[wagionvigil]

How do you bypass the swimming requirements? I didnt think that was up to the scout master. Being the evil dad i made my boys actually learn how to swim good enough to pass the swimming merit badge.

You are in the minority from what I have been seeing in many case. Any kid that pass the swimmers test can pass swimming MB.

#4. Demonstrate survival skills by jumping feetfirst into deep water wearing clothes (shoes, socks, swim trunks, long pants, belt, and long-sleeved shirt). Remove shoes and socks, inflate the shirt, and show that you can float using the shirt for support. Remove and inflate the pants for support. Swim 50 feet using the inflated pants for support, then show how to reinflate the pants while still afloat.

This is the one requirement that can hang some scouts up for Swimming MB even though they can pass the BSA Swimmer Test.

One of the easist requirements

[cballman]

Well I guess I am in the few moments. This year while my Daughter was working at Scout camp she became the Third out of 4 in the family to become a BSA Lifeguard. Only their mother dont swim strong enough to try. This being said I think that the Swimming merit badge teaches a set of skills that can save your life or help you save another life. Just my opinion.

[wagionvigil]

Well I guess I am in the few moments. This year while my Daughter was working at Scout camp she became the Third out of 4 in the family to become a BSA Lifeguard. Only their mother dont swim strong enough to try. This being said I think that the Swimming merit badge teaches a set of skills that can save your life or help you save another life. Just my opinion.

IMHO there should never be a non Swimming Eagle EVery Boy in my Troop that made eagle had Both MB. One boy they were his last two right before his 18th BD.