Scouting

:For professional sport scouts, see Scout (sport).

Conceptual Influences

Many elements of traditional Scouting have their origins in Baden-Powell's own personal education and military training. But it has to be remembered that the ideas that he promoted were revolutionary in education in his time. He was unique, a retired army general at 55 years of age, able to inspire and enthuse thousands of young people, from all parts of society, to get involved in activities most of them had never contemplated. The only comparable organisation (in the English-speaking world), the Boys' Brigade, has never been able to match the development of the Scouting movement.

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Some aspects of the Movement have been criticised as being too militaristic. Such things as military-style uniforms, badges of rank, flag ceremonies, and brass bands were commonly accepted in the early years because they were also a part of normal society, but many of those attributes have been watered down or abandoned in later times. Many other popular youth movements have also adopted similar attributes successfully.

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Local influences have also been a strong part of the Movement. By adopting and modifying local ideologies the Scouting Movement has been able to find acceptance in a wide variety of societies. In America, for example, Scouting uses images drawn from the U.S. frontier experience. This includes not only its selection of animal badges for Cub Scouts, but the underlying assumption that American Indians are more closely connected with nature and therefore have special wilderness survival skills which can be used as part of the training program. British Scouting, by contrast, makes use of imagery drawn from the Indian subcontinent, because that region was a significant focus in the early years of the Scouting Movement. Baden-Powell's personal experiences in India led him to adopt Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book as a major influence for the Cub Scouts — for example, the name used for the Cub Scout leader is Akela (whose name was also appropriated for the Webelos) is that of the leader of the wolf pack from this book.

Related Topics:
American Indians - India - Kipling - Jungle Book - Akela - Webelos

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The name "Scouting" seems to have been inspired by the important and romantic role played by military scouts in many of the wars of the time. In fact, Baden-Powell's original military training book, Aids To Scouting, was written because he saw the need for improved training of British military enlisted scouts. The book's popularity with young boys surprised him. So when he adapted the book for youth in Scouting For Boys, it was natural the movement took up the names Scouting and Boy Scouts.

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