Scout Guidebook
Prometeo Archuleta
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Work on the new edition began early last year with a volunteer task force of experienced Lone Scouting volunteers, who set out under the auspices of the National Advancement Committee. The result is a well-organized and clearly written booklet that briefly describes the history of Lone Scouting. It provides detail on the roles of councils and districts in support of the program, and also how Lone Scouts and their counselors can work together for the best possible outcome given the lack of a pack or troop.
Rank advancement opportunities in Cub Scouting and Boy Scouting, including the merit badge program, are described in general, with references to the appropriate BSA literature for the details. The flexibility allowed in advancement for Lone Scouts is also covered, as is the importance of safety and youth protection as outlined in the Guide to Safe Scouting and other resources.
Nationally, at the end of 2014, there were 250 Lone Cub Scouts and 421 Lone Boy Scouts. They are scattered all over the country, of course, but the largest percentage live overseas where their military and civilian families are assigned to U.S. bases. Perhaps with a set of clear and up to date guidelines there will be more.
Hayley Cordaro is a member of the Communications team at Boy Scouts of America. She loves sharing inspiring success stories and uncovering new ways volunteers and employees can make the most of their Scouting experience. If you have story ideas or questions, reach out to us at communi...@scouting.org.
I go off the Book for advancements, that is the official record. Sometimes I enter reqs if I know it just happened or happened in mass (swim test - First class.) Some Scouts enter completions them self just as they would mark the left column of the book saying they are ready for testing. When a rank is done I just mark it done and do not worry about the underlying requirements as National does not care about them.
My troop tries to input into Scoutbook whatever is written in the handbook. I prefer to have the Scouts or their parents enter the data in Scoutbook so the leaders can concentrate on working with the Scouts instead of book keeping.
One of the things that the Patrol leaders should be doing is plan activities that get rank requirements signed off as completed. That planning is hard to do when they are ALL blank until after the Board of Review.
If one of your Eagle Scout Candidates (currently a Life Scout) handed me their Eagle Scout Rank Application, and the dates on the ESRA, Scouts BSA History / Individual Advancement Report, and Handbook / Merit Badge Cards did not all agree, the Scout would be asked to go back and have their unit correct Scoutbook and bring me corrected documents before I would submit the ESRA to Council for Certification and request authorization to hold the Eagle Scout Board of Review. That is a delay for the anxious Scout, that I ask units to avoid.
The BOR date IS the date the rank is earned. The dates are supposed to match. We have asked the developers to put in a check so if the BOR date is filled in, the overall completion date must match. This request is in the backlog.
The BOR date is not always the date the rank is earned. By GTA requirements do not have to be completed in any order. Often we have Star and Life scouts that will reach their time (4 months/6months) on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday of the
week. We meet on Monday. We will do the BOR on Monday then on day they hit their time will check that requirement as complete. In this case the completion date is the date later in the week not the BOR date.
This is incorrect. The BOR is always the last requirement completed and is the date the award is earned. The SUAC has consulted with the national staffer multiple times on this and he has always been consistent. There is no earned date for rank, it is always the date of the Board of Review.
Both the Handbook and Guide to Advancement are clear, the Board of Review is the last requirement completed and the date of the Board of Review is the date the rank is earned.
We have the Scouts turn their books into me (adwards advancement chair) as soon as something is signed off. I note it and enter it into Scout book with the date earned and hit the space for date entered. Scout book shows the % of the rank that is completed which is helpful. You know how close the scout is to completing the advancement. You can also check who needs what completed and sometimes they all need the same item. Then you can adjust meetings or outings to help complete what needs to be done.
8.0.0.2 Boards of Review Must Be Granted When Requirements Are Met
A Scout shall not be denied this opportunity. When a Scout believes that all the requirements for a rank have been completed, including a Scoutmaster conference, a board of review must be granted. (emphasis added.)
8.0.0.1 Purpose and Timeliness of Boards of Review
Because the board of review date becomes the effective advancement date, boards should be scheduled promptly as Scouts are ready, or set up on a regular basis that assures Scouts are not delayed in beginning time-oriented requirements for the next rank. (emphasis added.)
4.2.3.5 Unit Leader (Scoutmaster) Conference
While it makes sense to hold [a Scoutmaster conference] after other requirements for a rank are met, it is not required that it be the last step before the board of review. This is an important consideration for Scouts on a tight schedule to meet requirements before age 18. Last-minute work can sometimes make it impossible to fit the conference in before that time. Scheduling it earlier can avoid unnecessary extension requests. (emphasis added.)
So the Scoutmaster conference can be held at any time while a Scout is working on a particular rank, but the board of review must be done after all other requirements for a particular rank have been completed.
Thank you everyone for all the comments. I think I am going to start a discussion with our troop leadership and hopefully change our approach as to how we are utilizing Scoutbook. I would like to see it updated as the requirements are completed so that the parents, scouts, and leaders can look see how the scouts are progressing.
Scouts BSA Handbook is the official handbook of Scouts BSA, published by the Boy Scouts of America. It is a descendant publication of Baden-Powell's original handbook, Scouting for Boys, which has been the basis for Scout handbooks in many countries, with some variations to the text of the book depending on each country's codes and customs.
The handbook opens by introducing the Scout Oath, the Scout Law, the Scout Motto, and the Scout Slogan of BSA. There are currently two editions of the Scouts BSA Handbook, one for girls and one for boys, but other than photographs, the content is essentially the same.
The original edition of the BSA handbook was based on Baden-Powell's work. Ernest Thompson Seton combined his Woodcraft manual, the Birch Bark Rolls, with Baden-Powell's Scouting for Boys. Subsequent works were done by other authors. William "Green Bar Bill" Hillcourt wrote the 6th, 7th, and 9th editions. Frederick L. Hines wrote the 8th, and Robert Birkby the 10th, 11th and 12th editions.[1]
Since its first edition, the Boy Scout Handbook was published to be the primary reference for scouts. It was used by scouts at a time when the internet was not available and included practical information a scout needed. It also was designed as a moral compass. It was and still is brought out of the classroom and into the field including on camping outings. Many copies did not survive these years of use in harsh environments and very few early examples have survived to this day in good conditions.[2]
The first Official Handbook, subtitled A Handbook of Woodcraft, Scouting, and Life-craft was published from July 1910 until March 1911 and appeared in eight distinct variations. It was written by Ernest Seton and drew greatly on Baden-Powell's Scouting for Boys, it included information on the organization of Scouting, signs and signaling, and camping, as well as Scouting games and a description of several Scouting honours. Notably, this book did not place emphasis on first aid, knife and axe use, or map and compass work, as later editions would. Because this edition was intended solely as a temporary guide until an authoritative handbook could be made, it is now known as the 1910 Original Edition Handbook. The cover art was an illustration by Baden-Powell. There were about 28,000 copies printed, not 68,900 as previously thought.[1][3]
The Official Handbook for Boys was published in June 1911.[1] In this edition, the American Scouting program was standardized, albeit with many omissions and mistakes (cf. external links). As with the Original Edition, many now-standard Scouting skills were passed over, including knife and axe use and map and compass work.
The book describes many Scout-like virtues and qualifications. After a lengthy section on what a Scout should know, including chivalry, history, and national issues, it is noted that "in short, to be a good Scout is to be a well-developed, well-informed boy."[4]
The Boy Scouting program began admitting girls in 2019 and was renamed Scouts BSA. The handbook was renamed the Scouts BSA Handbook for the 14th edition. It is available in two editions with identical content but one with photos of boys and one of girls. The board of directors wanted to make sure that male and female scouts alike would see themselves within the pages of the Handbook. The text however is identical in both version including the requirements and program elements remaining unchanged from the 13th edition.[7] The boys' version has a green with lettering and First Class Rank Emblem in metallic gold cover, while the girls' version is tan with the same lettering and First Class Rank Emblem in metallic green cover.[8]
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