Are we part of the overscheduling craze?

[Lisabob]

I do think scouting sometimes contributes to this ridiculousness. Let's take a look at a "typical" month of scouting for a boy like my son, who has been a regular participant with his troop in the past. I'll keep a running tally of the number of days on which he might have scout-related-stuff in parentheses

 

weekly troop meeting (4)

PLC (5)

monthly camp-out, Friday-Sunday (8)

service project (9)

fund raiser (10)

merit badge meeting with a counselor (11)

Eagle COH or extra patrol meeting or special district event or whatever (12)

 

OK now add in that he's the SPL so

Separate planning meeting with SM (13)

Report to the monthly committee meeting (14)

Calls and contact with the PLs and others, outside of meetings (15)

 

Then there are:

District Roundtables (some invite senior scouts) (16)

OA (17)

Venture Patrol/Jambo Troop/Philmont Crew, etc. (18 or 19 or 20)

 

So in a typical month, if a kid is at most (not even all, necessarily) of the troop's events, he might "have scouts" 1/3 to 1/2 or even more of the days in the month!

 

Of course not every kid will go to every event but in some troops, failure to attend most things is seriously frowned upon. And people who complain (on this forum, for example) about how the kids aren't engaged enough, sometimes need to stop and take stock of just how much is being asked of both the boy, and of his parents, to get him to all of this stuff. It adds up surprisingly quickly.

 

 

[mds3d]

Lisabob, I want to make a couple of comments on your "days." I did all of these things as a scout and my count was much lower.

 

weekly troop meeting (4)- Yes, absolutely

PLC (5) - Should be on the same night as Weekly meeting (usually before) so (4)

monthly camp-out, Friday-Sunday (8) Granted (7)

service project (9) - Every month, really? (7)

fund raiser (10) - See above (7)

merit badge meeting with a counselor (11) Granted, (8)

Eagle COH or extra patrol meeting or special district event or whatever (12) - Anywhere close to every month? What special district event does your son go to? (8)

Separate planning meeting with SM (13) - Should be on the same night as PLC or the week after (8)

Report to the monthly committee meeting (14) Does the Committee meet on a different night than the troop? (8)

Calls and contact with the PLs and others, outside of meetings (15) A couple of minutes at a time - E-mail between scouts is perfectly acceptable (8)

District Roundtables (some invite senior scouts) (16) Scout shouldnt be at these (8)

OA (17) Most are on the same night as Roundtable so (9)

Venture Patrol/Jambo Troop/Philmont Crew, etc. (18 or 19 or 20) Venture patrol is seperate from patrol listed above? so 10 or 11)

 

So where you come in at up to 20, I get up to 10 or 11. It looks like something could be run more efficiently for your son.

 

BTW - I am an Eagle, was SPL more than once, was OA, and in the Band, played two sports (captain of one), in Student Government, Did Drama club one year, involved at church, and a straight A student. So it is not as impossible as some would make it seem.

[Scoutfish]

 

 

To answer it just the way it was asked: YES! I have no doubt that we are part of it. But it's not of our doing. We are just a small part of a bigger plan that mom and dad have laid out!

 

Scouting itself isn't an over scheduled activity ( or isn't supposed to be) but I have no doubt that the parents who do overschedule - have scouting right in the middle of the mix.

 

When we had (1 of 3 ) PWD car workshop FOR THE scouts, quite a few parents wanted to know if we could reschedule because little Jimmy ( little Johnny's cousin ) was already scheduled for Baseball practice, or was it soccer, football, karate or gymnastics?

 

Mondays are our regular meeting nights, so they were out.

 

Tuesdays were piano or guitar lessons,

 

Wednesdays were for YMCA activities

 

Thursdays were for Chorus club.

 

Friday wasn't good because that was movie night.

 

Saturday was already taken in the am by the game they have been practicing for. Meanwhile Sat mid day and pm were out too because of playdates and explorers clubs. Sat night was out because of movie night.

 

Sunday, well, gosh, between church, after church social and all the activities that Jimmy was signed up for at the country club were already planned too.

 

I guess we were just a bunch of thoughtless Cub Scout leaders when we didn't just schedule PWD workshop, testing and the main event during the only available night.........Den meeting night!

 

 

Next year, well, there are about 15 minutes from the time Jr walks outside til the bus comes...if we plan it just so........

[Scoutfish]

I would have written more, but I don't have time....I have to tell a dad why we didn't specifically call his son up for an award at our last pack meeting...even though : "he's been in it long enough to have an award!"

[WestCoastScouter]

 

(This message has been edited by westcoastscouter)

[IM_Kathy]

I don't think that scouting is part of the overscheduling craze... I think a lot of it has to do with parents thoughts of making sure their kids do more than they did.

 

add into it the changes that have come along in the years... I'm only 37... when I was a kid we didn't start baseball/softball until 2nd grade - here they start at preschool or kindergarten depending on the parents... when it came to basketball it didn't start until 4th grade - now it's kindergarten here... band didn't start until 6th grade it now starts in 4th in our school. Now add in the fact that we didn't have "tournement teams" until middle school and now we have them starting in elementary schools - and back when I was on those teams (I was a sports nut) we had 2-4 tourneys a season (depended on if we kept winning) and now they have 1 almost every weekend... some sports seem to be either practicing or playing a game every day - they even get passed the wed night rule by going right after school that day so kids can be home for church/family night. If you're a pitcher or a catcher it wasn't until you got to high school that you worked all year long - now we have 3rd graders doing that.

 

when my kids were little we did start them off with each sport as soon as they were old enough - and let them try each for a couple of years to see if they enjoy it and want to continue or not. My kids aren't great athletes - my daughter as finally found that she excells in color guard and loves that - my son participated with basketball as manager and is running track this season to help with his physical fitness. We actually had some interesting discussions with him, because a track star he is NOT... asked why he wanted to be in track, does he understand that he might not win a single race to which he had the truest and most mature response with "someone has to come in last in every race - it might be me, it might not - and I don't care if it is or not. I want to have fun, and try something new." so we let.

 

with everything they do now that they are 16 and 14 is ask them what their priorities are - what comes first if there is a conflict? My 16 year old daughter's priorities are color guard, girl scouts, speech, and then work. My 14 year old son's priorities are BSA troop, the 1 sport that is in season, and then OA. And my kids know the first thing that goes away when grades drop are the extra school activities (sports, debate, speech, color guard) thankfully we haven't had to go that route.

[Lisabob]

mds3d, certainly things *could* be better organized to cut down on the number of days - but just because they could be, doesn't always mean they will be. And that is part of why scouting might be part of the overscheduling craze, for some families.

 

While my son does not participate in every single event I listed, the list, itself, is a pretty accurate reflection of the scouting 'stuff' that goes on around here. This month, for example, the troop has weekend activities scheduled on 3 weekends: regular camp out, venture patrol hike, annual planning camp. Not that any of these are bad and no, not every boy will do every activity (mine will not) but you see the point. And by the way, turnout at the planning camp is often kind of low - well yeah, people get burned out!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BrentAllen]

Lisa,

I would be much more inclined to label your list as "extraordinary" than "typical." The "typical" Scout has one 1 1/2 hour meeting a week, and one campout a month. The nice thing about Scouts is there are lots of extras a boy can participate in, if he chooses (and is eligible). OA, High Adventure, NYLT, Venturing, Summer Camp staff - all extras available, if a Scout wished to pursue them.

 

Instead of just talking about the craze, let's talk a little about the benefits. Jeff Foxworthy will gladly tell you that Scouting provided the father he never had thru his SM, and kept him on the path that lead to a successful career and family. I had lunch yesterday with a young man with a similar story - grew up poor with a single mom, in a very rough part of town. Most of the kids he was friends with are either in prison, on drugs or dead. Scouting was his refuge, his SM the father figure absent in his life. He stayed in Scouting, earned Eagle and went on to be the only member of his family to ever go to college. He is now gainfully employed, married with an 18 month old son. He can't wait until his son is old enough to join Scouts. As a Scout, he was thankful for every minute he could spend at a Scouting event. It was the strong, positive influence in his life.

 

I don't think I know of any other program that has nearly as many of these type of success stories. So while we are discussing the overscheduled, pushed-thru-everything kids, let's not forget about the other end of the scale, those for who Scouting may be their only activity.

[Beavah]

I am an Eagle, was SPL more than once, was OA, and in the Band, played two sports (captain of one), in Student Government, Did Drama club one year, involved at church, and a straight A student.

 

Yah, I think this is da other half of the equation. Bright, active kids like md3 fill up their own days, eh? If they weren't doing OA or da high adventure prep trip or whatnot they would find something else to fill that time, and remain just as "overscheduled."

 

Less active kids will fill that time with video games. Video games have become da substitute for what I used to do as a kid - run around da neighborhood with pals. That kind of unstructured time seems to have gone the way of the dodo.

 

I think da biggest change over the years has been the absurd explosion of professional sports and music programs into elementary and middle school. Second biggest change has been parental expectations that their kids should be involved in a half dozen things; I seem to remember only bein' in one or two.

 

Beavah

 

[Engineer61]

Yeah, I'd have to say that Scouting is pretty much the most often scheduled activity in the household (year-round), especially for the age group.

 

My Scout has one meeting a week and every Saturday and some Sundays he is off either on a campout, Some-boree, or volunteering on someone else's Eagle project.

 

Of course the wife has a couple of extra meetings a month for Scouts as well.

 

Cub Scouts was not nearly as loaded.

 

Of course, when my oldest enter's marching band this fall, he'll be occupied on the weekends and after school. His baseball season, for example, lasts only 12 weeks.

[Lisabob]

Brent, let's not get side tracked. I would not suggest - and I don't think others who say there are scheduling issues are suggesting - that scouting is a poor use of time. I agree that a boy may benefit tremendously, perhaps disproportionately, from the time they spend in scouting.

 

But if the question is whether scouting sometimes contributes or plays into overscheduling, I think the answer is YES, sometimes it does. THat's not a normative question, it is an empirical question (not value judgment- just how many days/hours)

 

 

[Engineer61]

On the topic of Scouting taking a backseat to other activities....I almost never see that.

 

I have had two scouts on my baseball teams in the past two years. The commitment has always been the same....Scouts first, team second.

 

Puts a cramp in the game if the Scout happens to be a critical skill position player.

 

Since my Scout is in no other activity...the only policy we have is school first, Scouts second.

[Eagledad]

>>Second biggest change has been parental expectations that their kids should be involved in a half dozen things; I seem to remember only bein' in one or two.

[Engineer61]

On the topic of Scouting taking a backseat to other activities....I almost never see that.

 

I have had two scouts on my baseball teams in the past two years. The commitment has always been the same....Scouts first, team second.

 

Puts a cramp in the game if the Scout happens to be a critical skill position player.

 

Since my Scout is in no other activity...the only policy we have is school first, Scouts second.

 

Fortunately, the scheduler for the league I coach in has caught on and no longer schedules games on dates that are occupied with Some-boree events....that has helped some.