• A patrol is a small group of boys and friends under their own leadership who plan and carry out  troop and patrol meetings and activities.  It is the basic organizational unit of a Scout troop. 

• Patrols and their boy leaders run the program in their Patrols and the Troop. The adults stand aside and let the Scouts do it all. Patrols teach youth leadership. The primary aim of the Patrol Method is to teach leadership. Scouts learn leadership by leading. The Scoutmaster provides them with the tools and encouragement to do their jobs.

Watch this video: https://youtu.be/01Ui_reskEU

The formation of youth into patrols of from six to eight and training them as separate units each under its own responsible leader is the key to a good Troop.
The Patrol is the unit of Scouting always, whether for work or for play, for discipline or for duty. An invaluable step in character training is to put responsibility on the individual. This is immediately gained in appointing a Patrol Leader to responsible command of their Patrol. It is up to them to take hold of and to develop the qualities of each boy or girl in their Patrol. It sounds a big order, but in practice it works.
Then, through emulation and competition between patrols, you produce a Patrol spirit which is eminently satisfactory, since it raises the tone among the youth and develops a higher standard of efficiency all round. Each scout in the Patrol realizes that they are in themselves a responsible unit, and that the honor of their group depends in some degree on their own ability in playing the game.
- Aids to Scoutmastership by Baden Powell (translated to update some archaic terms)

Patrol Method in Practice – The Character School by CLARKE GREEN on JANUARY 3, 2013

The patrol system is not one method in which Scouting for boys can be carried on. It is the only method.
It is not the slightest use to preach the Scout Law or to give it out as orders to a crowd of boys: each mind requires its special exposition of them and the ambition to carry them out.
- Baden Powell

Two things drive character development; the example of role models and interaction with peers.
Being told how they ought to act or having good conduct modeled for them is only the first step. The real work happens when Scouts develop mutual respect for each other and foster cooperation within a group of equals. This cooperation is where the really radical idea of Scouting, self-government through the patrol method, takes place.

When Scouts, make their own plans, formulate their own rules, keep up their own discipline, elect their own leadership charged with implementing these plans they have the opportunity to learn through experience what it means to belong to a group and to accept personal responsibility.
Within the troop and patrol  Scouts act on the notion of reciprocity. Cooperation, with all its troubles and triumphs,  enables each Scout to discover more about themselves and integrate the concepts of the oath and law into their own character.

When we have real self-government the Scout Oath and law are no longer just a bunch of concepts preached by adults. They find meaning in the life of the patrol and troop, individual responsibilities become group responsibilities.

Baden-Powell understood that role models have a limited influence on Scouts, that character really develops through small group interactions.  That’s why he was so adamant about the patrol system, that “the Scoutmaster has to be neither schoolmaster nor commanding officer, nor pastor, nor instructor” and  ”all that is needed is the capacity to enjoy the out-of-doors, to enter into the boysʼ ambitions, to put himself on the level of the older brother, that is, to see things from the Scoutʼs point of view, and to lead and guide and give enthusiasm in the right direction.”

If we limited character development to role models a Scout would become increasingly dependent on them  We want to foster cooperative independence through the patrol method. As BP said:” The patrol is the character school for the individual”.

The central importance of the patrol system prioritizes everything else about Scouting. It’s a little jarring at first! We think that the content of our meetings and camping trips is all-important, but they are actually just decorative. We think that the metrics of attendance, membership, fundraising, and advancement are important but they are merely indicators.

Instead of spending our time on decorations and indicators let’s concentrate on the real heart of the matter – the patrol method. If we build the patrol method the program features and metrics will follow.

Patrol Method in Practice – The Adult Role by CLARKE GREEN on JANUARY 4, 2013

Imagine a bus tour of some important city where, seated in the air-conditioned comfort of a motor coach, we listen to the guide explain each landmark in detail so we won’t miss anything. The guide sticks to the script, we sit behind the tinted windows of our bus dutifully turning our heads to the left, then to the right. There’s so much explaining that there’s not much time left for questions and soon the tour is over.

Contrast the bus tour with a hike led by a knowledgeable guide. He takes up the rear letting our group lead and find the trail. When the path branches he’ll tell us which way to go if we can’t figure it out on our own. He doesn’t mind if we stop now and then to admire a flower or take in the view. He’ll happily tell you what you are looking at if you ask.

Our guide will volunteer little information, he’ll drop a hint here and there and he’ll answer questions. We may miss some sights along the way or pass by interesting things, but our group will  probably get more out of what we discovered on the hike and asked about than the things the guide told us about.

Guiding Scouts using the patrol method is more like the hike than the bus tour; a gentle push in the right direction than dragging them along; a suggestion rather than a command, a question asked rather than an answer given. The adult role in the patrol method is more responsive than directive. Each group of Scouts is different so how we play our role is a response to their development, group dynamics and abilities.

There’s a difference between guiding and coercing. If we follow the metaphor our group of hikers has some idea of where they want to go and the guide is responding to rather than determining the interests of the group. We ought to respond to the interests of our Scouts rather than determining what they should be interested in. The field of play is the Scouting program, we guide them within that context, we train them to follow the program.

Our role in Scouting is important but we aren’t in the leadership structure, we aren’t even on the chart.

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Scouts form their own patrols, elect their senior patrol leader and patrol leaders, we don’t appoint them. We respond to the choices made by the Scouts and start guiding the leaders they elected.

Recall from the last post that we are not focusing on decorations and indicators, those come later. We think that the content of meetings and camping trips are all-important, but they are actually just decorative. We think that the metrics of attendance, membership, fundraising and advancement are important but they are merely indicators.

There are troops where the patrol method is watered down to an administrative nicety, a way to divide Scouts into more manageable groups and provide leadership positions for Scouts. When we put the patrol method into practice things change dramatically. Since people are usually resistant to dramatic change there are objections. In the next post we’ll answer the most common objections to putting the patrol method into practice.

Transition from Adult to Youth Leadership – The Patrol Leader’s Council  by CLARKE GREEN on JULY 13, 2009

A healthy patrol leaders council  (PLC) is the heart of a youth led troop. It should gather often to discuss and plan the troop’s program. The senior patrol leader (SPL) chairs the PLC, the Scribe keeps minutes and the meeting is open to patrol leaders (PL) and any other youth leaders, although the SPL, ASPL and PL's are the only voting members, any youth's opinion should be heard by the PLC.

I’d suggest that the PLC meet before and after every troop meeting for a few minutes and once a month for an hour or so. In lieu of our regular Monday troop meeting the PLC meets on the Monday after our monthly outing. Monthly meetings are a bit more formal than those held weekly, this is were the PLC will do the bulk of its planning, discussion and decision making. It should follow an agenda, maintain minutes and use salient elements of the rules of order. The PLC also meets every night when we are camping.

As a rule the Scoutmaster is the only adult who actively participates in meetings of the PLC, and only at the invitation of the SPL. Other adult leaders may observe but must not speak unless they are spoken to. Scoutmasters and their assistants tend to have all the answers and/or a great deal to say about planning and presenting the Troop’s program. However helpful or informative they may feel they are being their input tends to diminish the process of Scouts finding some important things out for themselves. The role of adult  leadership when the PLC is meeting should be clearly understood and strictly followed.

Weekly meetings are much less formal – ten minutes before the troop meets, ten minutes after. Before meetings the PLC reviews plans and checks to see that all is in readiness, after meetings they discuss that evening’s meeting, address any concerns that arose and review plans for the next week.

A Scoutmaster who listens carefully at these meetings will see many opportunities to interject a bit of coaching and mentoring into the proceedings. He may want to ask some questions that will help focus the efforts of the PLC.  In forming a new troop, or in a PLC that has significantly changed due to leadership elections, or in the case of a troop transitioning to youth leadership the Scoutmaster may have a somewhat more active role in the PLC but it must be a measured and disciplined role.

At the end of each meeting of the PLC the Scoutmaster should have the opportunity to make some brief remarks. When a PLC is running smoothly these remarks should be something along the lines of  ”You seem to have a handle on things, you’re doing a good job, unless you have any questions for me I’m finished.”

Troubleshooting the Patrol Method  by CLARKE GREEN on OCTOBER 10, 2012

This is a self assessment tool to help gauge how well a troop applies the patrol method.  It may be a good idea to have several adults and youth troop members complete the assessment and discuss the results. This is not very scientific but it will at least give you an idea of where you are. Here’s PDF version you can download.

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Chose only one option for each pair of statements

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