Educating Differently

Scouting gives young people skills for life. It prepares them for real-life challenges by developing their knowledge, skills and attitudes. The outcomes can be further developed as the young person grows into adulthood and follows the path to leadership.

The educational approach which makes Scouting so popular and relevant to young people will continue to be tested as mainstream education uses more of the non-formal methods. Scouting’s success in this area is because learning occurs through fun activities, often games, selected usually by the young people and done in small teams with peers. 

Through the effective use of developmental age groupings (Sections), young people take responsibility and ownership and are empowered to investigate and take action on issues important to them. Through the reflection of these meaningful experiences, they continue to be active learners, gaining confidence to address bigger challenges. This ethos motivates adult leaders to support the young people as they progress through their personal journey and ensure all enjoy and learn from our game of Scouting. 

The Scout Method is an essential system for achieving the educational proposal of the Scout Movement. It is defined as a system of progressive self-education. It is one method based on the interaction of equally important elements that work together as a cohesive system, and the implementation of these elements in a combined and balanced manner is what makes Scouting unique.

Adult volunteers in Scouting play important roles in ensuring the success of the Scout Method. Their role is to provide the best possible guidance to the young people they support, encouraging and enabling them to make their own decisions and create their own activities and learning opportunities. As the world is constantly changing, what Scouting offers young people must reflect the current needs of their society. It is important to have the right adult volunteers; only those with the appropriate attitude and approach are eligible to work with young people. 


See also:

World Scout Youth Programme Policy

The Scout Method

Essential Characteristics of Scouting


408 reads
How useful was this content?00826