The Scout Patrol Method and Leadership

 Patrol Leader's Council Meeting, Glacier National Park

LEICA M9, ZEISS BIOGON 35/2.8C, JUNE 2010

The Patrol Method, and Leadership Development, are the two Methods of Scouting that are sometimes the hardest to implement because parents' instincts are to foster an environment where these methods are hijacked.

This is one of the big reasons why Scouting has evolved into a retraining organization rather than an organization that reinforces what's already going on in the home: there's a lot that has to be undone in order to even reach a foundation from which the Patrol Method and Leadership Development can be implemented.

When an 11- or 12-year old is given the chance to lead a group of peers, and when that group of peers has both responsibility and accountability, they can do great things as kids and become the right types of leaders as adults: leaders that serve, not bark.

Both responsibility and accountability have to be real, however, not contrived - and this is the primary difference between how responsibility and accountability is implemented in the contemporary American Home vs. the Traditional Baden-Powell-esque Scout Patrol.

That's why today, I'm handing the boys a new map, and asking them which trailhead they'd like us to drive them to tomorrow, and which trails they'd like us to follow them on, and which camps they'd like us to pitch our shelters near.

Great Bear Wilderness Trip Planning, Glacier National Park

LEICA M9, ZEISS BIOGON 35/2.8C 

Comments

[Mark]

Parents and adult leaders both tend to hijack those 2 methods. "What if they fail?" I get asked. We (as a society) have so insulated little Johnny from all possible failure that we (ditto) forget thats how we LEARN. The patrol method is perfect for making that happen safely.

[Andrew]

Ryan,

I've really been enjoying your photos, and they have been an inspiration to spend more time outdoors.

When I was in boy scouts, we did a lot of camping, but not a lot of backpacking, let alone light weight backpacking. Recently as an adult, I've been getting into backpacking on my own, and have found the one hurdle to be getting all the appropriate gear and clothing. When I was in scouts, I didn't even really know about synthetic clothing, we would just bring along several changes of clothes, but we typically weren't that far away from a car or building. The question I have is, how do you go about making sure all of the boys have the proper clothing and gear? The "normal" weight backpacking equipment that I am buying now (having my own source of income) seems expensive, let alone when I was a kid having to ask my parents for things, and much of the super lightweight gear seems like it can be even more expensive. Our troop owned tents, and cooking equipment, but none of it was really suitable for backpacking. Procuring backpacks, light weight tents or tarps, and stoves would have been a huge expense. Is that an issue with the group you work with, or how do you overcome it?