On my honour, I will try,
There's a duty to be done and I say aye,
There's a reason here and a reason above,
My honour is to try and my duty is to love.
At campfires, my old Rover crew always sings one song, which we treat with almost mystic consideration. It is the old Girl Guide song On My Honour. I still find myself singing it under my breath at odd times.
When I sit down to think about the words we sing, it strikes me that they would be virtually incomprehensible to most young people who are not involved in Scouting. Why have words such as "honour" and "duty" come to mean so much to us and so little to the vast majority of the world? The answer to this question is important, not for what it says about my Rover crew, but for what it says about Scouting in general and the unique role Scouting can play in the moral development of the world's young people.
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal examined whether public schools should teach morality. Many educators and parents are concerned that children are growing up without the ability to make simple distinctions between right and wrong and without an understanding of social responsibility. As examples, it quoted a 1989 survey conducted on behalf of the U.S. Girl Scouts. The survey revealed that 47% of students would cheat on an important exam and 66% would lie to achieve a business objective.
Although the word "morality" has an archaic ring to it, these American educators have found the concepts it embodies important enough to reintroduce in their courses of study. Similarly, the words "honour" and "duty" in our campfire song sound old-fashioned but mean a great deal to countless Scouts and Scouters.
Scouting has many different meanings and benefits to those involved--fun, friendship, adventure, the outdoors. Without discounting them, it's important that we keep in mind the stated purpose of Scouts Canada: to help young people develop their character as resourceful and responsible members of the community by providing opportunities and guidance for their mental, physical, social and spiritual development".
If, as Scouters, we provide fun and challenge but ignore the areas of morality and social responsibility, there is little to differentiate our programs from the sports leagues, music programs and other activities that seem to drain our membership. While morality is fundamental to the true meaning of Scouting, it is not a concept easy to grasp or to communicate.
Some have argued that moral education should no longer be part of Scouting because it represents outdated, white, Christian, upper middle class, imperialistic values connected with our founder, Lord Baden-Powell. In fact, morals are simply the principles through which we distinguish right from wrong. The values associated with morality are universal--trust, courage, honesty, and responsibility--words with strong associations in Scouting today. The growth and success of Scouting in so many areas outside the industrialized world attest to the global acceptability of Scouting's aims.
Social responsibility, an idea relatively easy to grasp, is one of the core values inherent in morality. As B.-P. wrote in Scouting for Boys, " When in difficulty to know which of two things to do, (the Scout) must ask himself, 'Which is my duty?'--that is, 'Which is best for other people?'--and do that one.
In a broad sense, responsibility entails both accountability for one's own actions and benevolent concern for other people. An awareness of the world around them and attention to the effect of their own actions on others--these characteristics often distinguish Scouts and former Scouts from others. Today's young people are often reproached for being self-centred, but it does not seem to apply to many of those who have come through Scouting.
For previous generations, Scouting was just one of the guiding forces in the life of young people, following the lead of the family and the church. The Wall Street Journal article that prompted me to think about the role of morality and social responsibility in Scouting quoted a U.S. public school survey which showed that on average, parents spend just 15 minutes a week in 'meaningful dialogue' with their children. The primary providers of values to those children are their peers and television. Similarly, involvement with institutionalized religions has declined steadily since the second world war, particularly among young people.
In today's society, we have an opportunity to provide moral guidance through Scouting. We also have the mandate to do so, implicit in the writings of the founder, the stated purpose of Scouts Canada, and the promise every member makes at investiture.
We instill values through our programs in a number of ways. First, we pass them on by the example of our own lives as leaders. That does not mean we are expected to live as saints, but it is important that we keep reminding ourselves that young eyes are on us. Simply by giving our time and effort to a section, we are impressing the importance of concern for others.
We also instill values through the teamwork required to complete a wilderness camp and the self-leadership structure of our sixes, patrols, companies and crews. As American black activist Booker T. Washington said, "Few things help an individual more than to place responsibility upon him and let him know that you trust him."
As Cub leaders, we may find it easier to drop the closing pack prayer than to explain its meaning and justify its existence to our Cubs. As Scout leaders, we may find it easier to ignore the Scouts who use foul language, if we know that's how they talk at home. As Venturer advisors, we may find it easier to pretend we are not aware when a couple of young people go off for a smoke behind our backs, if we know this is acceptable behaviour around their friends and at school.
And yet, as leaders, we have both a duty (there's that word again) and an opportunity to make the words of our promises meaningful to our young people. If we fall short, we are not delivering the full potential of our programs.
Mark Gallop is a Venturer advisor, assistant Rover advisor, former Pack Scouter, and member of the Provincial Field Services Committee, Montreal, Que.
Last edited: February 22, 2004
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