Video Games and Scouting

I earned my Arrow of Light as a Cub Scout (the highest rank bestowed upon a little cub), became a Boy Scout and achieved the highest rank of Eagle Scout, and even joined the ranks of the Order of the Arrow.  I participated in a lot of really cool activities, but never once did I get to play Video Games and earn awards at the same time!  The BSA has introduced two awards for Cub Scouts to earn: The Video Games Belt Loop and the Video Games Pin.

Starting fires, learning to fish, playing with baking soda, and building wooden cars are cool and all, but when are you ever going to use that stuff? 😉 (Some sarcasm implied) These Video Game awards on the other hand are really quite ingenious and, I feel, are bringing the Scouting program into this century by introducing kids and their parents to a growing pass-time. As Graev says, perhaps they’ve just given up fighting it.  Video games are growing in popularity and if you can’t beat’em, join’em.

The requirements to earn these awards facilitate educating children and their parents as well as having them go through the motions of skills and know-how which I think are excellent.

Some of the requirements include:

“Play a video game with family members in a family tournament.”
The days of begging my parents to let me woop them at video games… how I wish I could have said “Dad, I need to beat you at Mario for a Scouting Pin!”

“Choose a game you might like to purchase. Compare the price for this game at three different stores. Decide which store has the best deal. In your decision, be sure to consider things like the store return policy and manufacturer’s warranty.”
Consumer education! Heck yeah. How cool is this?! I can totally see myself browsing Amazon, Bestbuy, Gamestop, and STEAM and helping them to understand the ins and outs of buying games and getting the best price. There’s more depth here than I think the BSA is even aware of since the whole digital download option has become widely available.

“With an adult’s supervision, install a gaming system.”
This used to be the biggest pain ever. Graev always understood the basics of getting these things installed, but I remember being a little guy and having to rely on my parents to help me set up my system. I remember taking it to a friends house or to a relatives’ and not knowing how to get it to work.

“Explain why it is important to have a rating system for video games. Check your video games to be sure they are right for your age. ”
Interesting coincidence that this comes right after the Supreme Court decides to hear the case about California and violent video games.  We’ll soon have a decision on whether or not it is constitutional for a state to limit the sale of video games.  Personally, I feel it violates the First Amendment and it’s an egregious error to say that video games are not an art form. There is definitely a rating system out there and it works. Educate yourselves!

And my favorite…

“Compare two game systems (for example, Microsoft Xbox, Sony PlayStation, Nintendo Wii, and so on). Explain some of the differences between the two. List good reasons to purchase or use a game system. ”
Bringing the Console Wars to the Scouts! I love it. I would pay money to see a little kid explaining to his leader about why the Xbox is better than the Wii.

I applaud the BSA for doing this. It won’t be long before the Boy Scouts program for the older kids offers a merit badge.

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  • I lol’d. Too bad I’m already 19 and can’t go back and get this. I’m an Eagle too keen! woo!

    ~Skryre

  • When the Boy Scouts stop being a discriminatory bigoted organization, I might care what badges they have.

  • I am an Eagle Scout, and find this to be silly. It’s about getting kids to do things they DON’T normally do. You’re not going to have to force a kid to sit down and play the Wii. It’s nice to get parents involved in their kids hobby, but is scouting really about the parents?

    Rather irrelevant, however, as the organization has been crippled by excessive influence from fundamentalist religious types. As much as it pains me to say, when I have kids, they will not be in the scouting program.

  • And Azou, you may have a point about scouting being about getting kids to do things they don’t do normally, but I think scouting is also about helping them be more self sufficient so these things sound great in that regard. Also there are many branches of scouting. I would encourage you to explore one sponsored by someone other than the fundamentalists if you don’t like them.

  • I agree that the scouts is about getting kids to do things they don’t normally do. At the same time, price-comparisons and benefit analysis (ie – the system comparisons) aren’t things kids normally do. They say, “I want this,” and their parents take them to the local GameStop or BestBuy and get it.

    If this makes them more responsible and thoughtful with their cash in the future, and teaches them basic analytical skills, then I’m all for it.

  • As a fellow Eagle scout (I’m kind of surprised to see so many of us read your blog Keen, plus I had no idea you were an Eagle Scout as well :P) I think this is a great (although somewhat odd) choice that the BSA have made. Most focus on video games from the media is either negative or strongly biased based on a select sub-sect of gamers, it’s refreshing to see an organization as well respected as the boy scouts taking an interest in promoting our hobby. I really like that the requirements aren’t just play X number of hours of a game and unlock all achievments, but that it covers all aspects of gaming from researching gaming systems to price comaprison to making sure a game is age appropriate. It should be a very good way to teach kids about making informed choices and in our economy that’s a great lesson to learn early.

    @Mahlah- I’m not sure what experience you had that makes you feel like this but I’m very sorry that you have such a negative impression of the scouting program. It has been nothing but a possitive influence for me. It kept me focus as a youth and gave me goals to work towards. It strengthened my relationship with my parents, I made some of the best friends of my life in scouting (still in close contact with 80% of them after 20+ years), and it allowed me to do things I would have never been able to do otherwise (boundary waters canoe trips to canada, ropes courses, constant camping/hiking/archery/marksmanship activities and loads more). I’m very sorry you feel the way you do about scouting, but I think your accusations are rather off the mark in this case.

  • That’s great! I love the scouts and worked at Philmont Scout Ranch, NM for a summer…loved it!!

  • Considering the type of awards these are, they are meant for those around 5th or 6th grade. This teaches the kids to better understand all aspects of the things they do already. It does teach them citizenship. Yes the BSA currently has some issues with acceptance of homosexuality and you can not be an atheist.

    Now I was not a Boy Scout myself, nor to I have any kids of my own, but I have worked with some of the local Scouting Troops. Any Bigotry is really localized. The groups I know are fairly open minded.

  • you can’t be an atheist? hmm… i was in the scouts back in the day and don’t recall any religious connotations being attached to it?

    actually there were at least 3 of us that were atheist and i don’t recall any discrimination… or even any sort of religious discussions taking place at all…

    maybe they happened and i just don’t remember… but i always thought of the scouts as being about the outdoors and self-sufficiency… religion was never a factor.

  • I wasn’t going to post, but I will.

    I wasn’t in the Scouts, my mom hated it because when she grew up her brother was in it and that was their life. My daughter however is now a Girl Scout, yes I’m old enough for that to happen.

    The news media has been railing the Scouts, Boys and Girls, over the last few years because they are a private organization who do not permit same sex couples’ childeren in. They also have been some accusations of religous beliefs because the Scouts were founded on more of your classic Christian ideals.

    The thing is, that is the parent organization. Each Troop is ran differently. I’m aethist and very Pro gay rights, though I’m married to a woman, and my daughter was accepted into the Girl Scouts with open arms. In fact my Wife does all the accounting for the Troop and we were the cookie distrubtion parents for the troop.

    So before you go anywhere and slam the Scouts, be it Boy or Girl, remember that the media is just trying to make money. Claiming that the Scouts hates “fill in the blank” is better than the Scouts have ideals and some Troop ideals clash with your own.

    As for gaming badges I’m torn. I think it’s good to get the kids thinking about economics and getting the family together but couldn’t they just have made a “play a board game with your family” and accomplished the same thing? Kids already spend to much time in front of tvs and video games.

    As for Eagle Scouts, as I said I was premitted to be a Scout growing up by 2 friends were and I got to go with them to alot of things. It was fun.

  • Scouting was always irrelevant to me: its like bowling leagues or camp. Stuff middle and upper-middle class white people do. This kind of confirms it: the kids who need male role models the most don’t need video game merit badges or to do things indoors with family, they need to go out and do things with a troop away from that.

  • I can tell you when I worked at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico we had all kinds of scouts out there working. In fact there was so much diversity out there is was mind blowing. So many expereinces, hikes, sunrises, sunsets, so much freedom, races, genders, religion etc. it actually was a life changing experience for me. It never felt so good to feel so insignificant, will always support the Boy Scouts.