View source for Baden-Powell's Scout training scheme

[[File:Lord Baden-Powell in Queensland-1911-.png|thumb|right|Sir [[Robert Baden-Powell]] talking to Boy Scouts in [[Brisbane]] during a tour of Australia in 1911]]
'''Baden-Powell's Scout training scheme''' was a progressive series of tests for [[Scout (Scouting)|Boy Scout]]s, in skills which the founder of the [[Scouting|Scout Movement]] believed would be useful in building character and good citizenship.
==Background==
[[Robert Baden-Powell]] tested his ideas on boys' citizenship training in 1907 with an [[Brownsea Island Scout camp|experimental camp on Brownsea Island]], and in the following year, published [[Scouting for Boys]] in fortnightly instalments. Originally intended as a programme for leaders of other youth organisations to utilise, however independent Scout [[patrol]]s were formed spontaneously across the [[United Kingdom]]. Baden-Powell's response was to establish a structured organisation, including tests for ranks which would enable boys to mark their proficiency in the various Scouting skills.
==Scout badges==
[[File:1919 Second Class Scout.jpg|thumb|right|The insignia of a Second Class Scout]]
===Tenderfoot Scout===
The Tenderfoot Test was the test that a boy, originally aged between 12 and 18 years old, would have to pass before he could make his [[Scout Promise]] and become an [[Investiture|invested]] member of the [[Scout Troop]]. To become a Tenderfoot, a boy had to prove that he: knew the [[Scout Law]] and Promise, knew the [[Scout sign and salute]], knew the composition of, and how to fly the [[Union Jack]], and could tie six specified [[knot]]s and knew their uses. The Tenderfoot Badge was the Scout [[fleur-de-lys]] emblem, embroidered on cloth and worn on the left pocket of the uniform shirt. A small brass badge was provided for wear in a lapel buttonhole when not in uniform.<ref>The Scout Association (2013) [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Scout-Tests-Pass-Them-Association/dp/1782431438 ''Scout Tests and How to Pass Them: Commemorative 1914 Edition''], Michael O'Mara Books Ltd, {{ISBN|978-1782431435}} (pp. 13-18)</ref>
===Second Class Scout===
To become a Second Class Scout, a boy had to: have been a Tenderfoot for at least one month, have a knowledge of basic [[first aid]] and how to tie [[bandage]]s, know the [[Flag semaphore|Semaphore]] or [[Morse code]] alphabet, follow a [[Tracking (Scouting)|track]] for half a [[mile]] within 25 minutes, travel a mile using "Scout's pace" (alternate walking and running) in 12 minutes, build and light a [[camp fire]] using only two matches, cook meat and potatoes over an open fire, have at least [[Sixpence (British coin)|sixpence]] in a bank account, and know the sixteen [[points of the compass]]. The Second Class Badge was a depiction of a scroll bearing the Scout [[motto]], "Be Prepared". It was worn on the left upper sleeve.<ref>"Scout Tests" (pp. 19-20)</ref>
[[File:1919 First Class Scout.jpg|thumb|right|The insignia of a First Class Scout]]
===First Class Scout===
The tests for a First Class Scout were: swim 50 yards, send and receive a message in Semaphore or Morse at a specified rate of letters per minute, go on a fourteen-mile expedition over two days, by foot, boat or canoe and write a report on returning, know how to deal with a wide range of specified accidents and know the correct first aid techniques to use, using an open fire, know how to cook items from a list that included skinning a rabbit and gutting a fish, also be able to make "[[Damper (food)|damper]]" (bread cooked in the embers of a fire), know map symbols, draw a sketch map and take a compass bearing, use an axe, estimate distances, area and capacity to within 25% error, and finally train another boy in the Tenderfoot skills so that he passes the test. The First Class Badge was a Scout emblem above the Second Class Badge.<ref>"Scout Tests" (pp. 21-24)</ref>
===King's Scout===
{{main article|King's Scout}}
To become a King's Scout, a First Class Scout had to complete four [[Scout badge|proficiency badges]] from a specified list that covered core Scouting skills to a high standard.<ref name="POR">[http://www.thedump.scoutscan.com/POR1919.pdf ''Policy, Organization and Rules for Canada''], The Boy Scouts' Association, The Canadian General Council, 1919 (p. 16)</ref>
[[File:King's Scout Badge 1919.jpg|thumb|right|The insignia of a King's Scout, UK and the British Empire, 1919.]]
==Later developments==
Scouting quickly spread to other countries and territories, both within the [[British Empire]] and outside of it. In these countries, Baden-Powell's scheme was adapted to suit local conditions. In the United Kingdom [[The Scout Association|Boy Scouts' Association]], there were several amendments to the scheme before it was replaced on the recommendation of the 1966 [[The Chief Scouts' Advance Party Report|Advance Party Report]], which said that "The worst condemnation of the present training Scheme is the fact that more than half of those who join the Movement never progress beyond the Tenderfoot stage".<ref>The Boy Scouts' Association (1966), [http://www.thedump.scoutscan.com/advance66.pdf ''The Chief Scout's Advance Party Report''] (p. 32)</ref> The proposal for a new three stage scheme in which Scouts could progress rapidly in the early stages was adopted by the Association and began to be implemented in October 1967.<ref>The Boy Scouts' Association (1966), [http://www.thedump.scoutscan.com/design.pdf ''Design for Scouting''] (p. 21)</ref> A number of Scout Groups that were dissatisfied with this and other restructuring formed the [[Baden-Powell Scouts' Association]] in 1970 and continue with an updated version of Baden-Powell's scheme to the present day.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.traditionalscouting.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=182&Itemid=91 |title=B-PSA UK History |last1= |first1= |last2= |first2= |date=2009 |website=www.traditionalscouting.co.uk |publisher=The Baden-Powell Scouts' Association |accessdate=14 February 2014}}</ref>
The [[Ranks in Scouts BSA|training scheme of Scouts BSA]], although thoroughly adapted and modernised, retains the structure of Tenderfoot, Second Class and [[First Class Scout (Boy Scouts of America)|First Class Scout]] devised by the founder.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.troop97.net/bsahist2.htm |title=A Brief History of the Boy Scouts of America 1910 to Today (continued) |last1=Snowdon |first1=Jeff |date=1984 |website=www.troop97.net |publisher=Troop 97 BSA |accessdate=14 February 2014}}</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Scouting}}
[[Category:Scouting]]
[[Category:The Scout Association]]
[[Category:Scout and Guide awards]]