More Eagles than in the Past?

[Beavah]

Yes they might be in an average of 4 years, but your not accounting for drops.

 

Yah, sure I was. If yeh have 900,000 scouts who are in an average of 4 years, then on average yeh have 900K/4 = 225K drop per year, and 225K add per year. We know some stay in 7 years and some drop in 1, but that's da average. So each year yeh have 50,000 Eagles, and each year yeh have 225,000 who joined. As long as that stays relatively stable, that means yeh get 50K/225K = 22% of the boys who join make Eagle.

 

Of course it's not completely stable, because membership has been declinin' just a bit each year. That of course would make the percentage of those who make Eagle slightly higher. Not by that much, though. So it's a pretty good rough estimate.

 

Of course da lower our retention rate the lower that Eagle percentage rate is. Da more kids we lose the more rare Eagle becomes. So if we hold kids for only 3 years on average it goes down to da 16.7% someone mentioned. IIRC, retention is between 3 and 4 years.

 

I think it comes down to da issue that families are smaller, so parents are more "invested" in each kid's success, and as a result the program has become more adult-driven / adult-structured in all da ways folks suggest. In some cases that also comes with a decline in expectations when things get too adult/advancement focused.

 

I gotta say, though, that it also seems much less fun to kids than it used to be, and more like work.

 

Beavah

 

[Tampa Turtle]

I have mulled this point my self. I think programs like "Life to Eagle" provide more support to boy who are disorganized and have problems setting goals and so make the deadline. In the past maybe only the really motivated and self-organized boys could make it.

 

I would agree that a lot of boys are going to classes and "ticket punching" requirements as opposed to really learning the skills.

[Eagle732]

Scoutfish makes a good point about technology today.

 

I have my Grandfathers 1923 Boy Scout diary. In it he writes "sent a letter to Mr. Murphy to request an appointment for Cooking Merit Badge" The a few weeks later "Took the trolley across town to meet with Mr. Murphy, passed Cooking Merit Badge".

 

When I was earning Eagle I would pick up the phone and dial (rotary dial type) up the MBC and make an appointment, then Mom or Dad would drive me over to meet him. Sometimes I would get on my bike and ride to the appointment by myself (pre YPT days). My project was not a "Leadership" project but just a service project. The approval process was no where near as detailed or in depth as it is today.

 

My son just earned Eagle, some of his MB work was done by email. He scheduled his project review with district by email. For his project he texted all his buddies to help. I thought he should have been scheduling help a week in advance but a text message the day before seemed to work better. Just kept sending texts until he got the help he needed for the next work day, it usually took him only an hour to get 5 or 6 boys lined up. He figured if he asked too early the boys seemed to forget and not show. His project write up was done on the computer where corrections are easily made. And digital pictures and graphics helped him to put together a great Eagle workbook.

 

Things certainly have changed over the years but I don't know it has made things easier or not.