Their claim was that no one was signing up for them. I suppose they they could have left them on the list but you know things happen: merit badge requirements change; maybe the volunteer who knows what to do leaves.
I went to a couple of Boy Scout meetings when I was young but never really got into it. In high school though I did join the Boy Scout Explorers for a year. The related part is that it was open to girls too. There werenât a lot of them but still more than the zero allowed in a typical BSA troop. Since the Explorers program is career focused (I was in a computing post and it was sponsored by the local IBM office) maybe it would be the better fit for science programs. Since they already are open to boys and girls, it would be up to the individual scouts/explorers which events they wanted to attend without restrictions based on genitals. The only problem I see is that it was restricted to teens and young adults. A younger version like the Cub Scouts or Brownies could fill that niche.
I suggest you visit this page. It lists the GSA badges. Science is (kinda claimed to be) a badge - at both the Cadet and Senior levels. Of course, they donât exactly treat âscienceâ in a serious way. The Cadet Science badge is âScience of Happinessâ
In this badge, you are the test subject, and your life is your laboratory. Youâll find out how scientists measure happiness, and youâll put their results into action. Youâll also get to perform a happiness experiment on your friends or familyâall with the goal of making your world a happier place.
- Make yourself happier
- Think differently for happiness
- Get happy through others
- Do a helpful happiness experiment
- Create a happiness action plan
When Iâve earned this badge, Iâll know how to use the science of happiness to make my world the happiest place it can be.
Science at the Senior level directly reflects what the museum was offering. Itâs called âScience of Styleâ
Imagine farming silkworms to make raw silk, engineering a biodegradable fabric, or using chemistry to develop a cover-up that hides and heals acne scars. Fashion and beauty are glamorous businesses, but itâs the science behind these industries that makes their products cutting edge and desirable. In this badge, use the science of style to createâand imagineâyour own products.
- Test skin care and makeup
- Examine the science behind fabrics and accessories
- Explore the science behind hair products and perfume
- Investigate the sociology of style
- Formulate future style
When Iâve earned this badge, Iâll know the science behind makeup, perfume, fashion fabrics, and skin care products.
In fact, that âscienceâ badge just replaced a makeup badge a few years ago. They have no stand alone science badge.
But that really doesnât matter - hereâs why not. In the GSA, you can make your own badges, and the museum should be encouraging troop leaders to do just that - seek out purely science-badges.
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Science of Style? Science of Happiness? Heavens to Betsy, that is not the GSA of my youth.
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Thatâs why I posted it across.
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Ok, thatâs worse than I imagined. I also see (at https://www.girlscouts.org/program/basics/science/)
Science and Technology badges connect girls to science topics they love from the development of video games to the physics of roller coasters to the technology used to create new fabrics. These badges include Home Scientist (Brownie), Entertainment Technology (Junior), Science of Happiness (Cadette), and Science of Style (Senior).
For the most part, I agree. However, I wouldnât put it entirely on the science center. [2] The troop leaders should be pressing the science center for this kind of thing.
[2] The affiliated museum has its own scouting programs http://www.carnegiemnh.org/programs/groups-scouts/ It looks like they have made a better decision on how to advertise the programs:
All About Animals | Tour ($9 per scout, 60 minutes) In a one-of-a-kind game of âI spy,â explore amazing animals that inhabit everywhere from backyards to exotic ecosystems. Discuss animal adaptations for feeding, defense, and keeping warm. Tour meets requirements: Webelos Naturalist #4, #7, and #9 Cub Scout Wildlife Conservation Belt Loop #1, #3, and Academics Pin #1 and #3emphasis mine. Nothing there that says boy-only, just that it fulfills some boy scout requirements.
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The museum made the point that there are other programs, but all are similar to what many colleges do - they direct girls to âacceptableâ sciences. (Quite a while ago I wrote about the differences in the intro pages for students at UC Santa Cruz. Certain science field pages only display male images - only âsoftâ sciences show female students.) My very first post in this thread was a direct effort to make sure the thread didnât target blame to the museum, but they do share responsibility for encouraging the adults to make better choices.
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Doesnât BSA indicate the nationality of the org? (Boy Scouts of America)?
I never meant to impugn coeducation. Every school Iâve ever attended was coed, and look how wonderful I am. However, a close friend attended a womensâ college, and she recommends the idea to every young woman who asks. So my opinions are second-hand, but not just invented. And yes, what you said about segregation is pretty much in line with her feelings.
Thereâs probably a definition of âprofessional sportsâ out there somewhere. I think it has to do with earning enough not to need a day job. That and a shitload of advertising. Iâm pretty sure the US/Canadian Womens Professional Soccer League is the only one of its kind. I could be wrong.
Fireworks!!! (The first thing that came to my mind when I saw sparkles in connection with chemistry.)
âŚcarbon-iron filings, or titanium flakes, make nice effects. The first makes orange branching sparks, the second is common for those bright white falling curtains of fire. And there are way more options.
I think that makes a lot of sense.
Your comment expresses well the sentiment of BoingBoing in general, which is a data-free modern denial of human nature. Every manifestation of gender differences are evidence of oppression. The thing is, there are gender difference. Are there not?
Things that sparkle. Girls tend to like them more than boys do. A world in which children can follow their interests entirely is a great ideal, no question. But when educators trying to appeal to girls through things that sparkle, rather than things that explode, I donât think they should be treated to the wrath of the oppression pointer-outers. I think we should understand that life is impossible without generalizations. Equating generalizations with oppression is simply incorrect. If that were all it takes, your propensity to treat kids as human beings who need to have more fun to learn than adults, would be a grave insult, and would oppress those kids who just want the facts.
Another thing: 9 out of ten of my sonâs educators being female, and an enormous preponderance of his early education being about colouring, cutting, gluing and yes, sparkles, I find it interesting that there is no outcry of oppression! to this state of affairs, of the sort that is trumpeted virtually every day on BoingBoing.
I enjoy BoingBoing, but thatâs despite the reality-denying, oppression pointing-outing.
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But the problem is not that there are differences. The problem is that it is fairly predictable who gets the short end of the stick in certain situations.
Do you think it is a coincidence that there arenât seven workshops for girls and âThe science of smashing stuffâ for boys?
And even with gender differences, why shouldnât they open all the workshops to everyone and let the chips fall where they may?
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But the problem is not that there are differences.
Iâm glad you think so. These days, that understanding is not held in mind by the oppression pointer-outers.
The problem is that it is fairly predictable who gets the short end of the stick in certain situations.
The problem is not that. Itâs that the perception of oppression is the gift that keeps on giving the toxic belief of inequity. Do you really think that girls get short shrift in education? Thereâs a profound underrepresentation of women in high tech. Do you really think that tech companies arenât falling over themselves to hire women? Or could it be that women donât care about ones and zeros zipping around microprocessors in the form of electricity?
Do you think it is a coincidence that there arenât seven workshops for girls and âThe science of smashing stuffâ for boys?
No. I think itâs a function of the differences in boys and girls. As you say, of course opportunities should be open to boys and girls. I will fall short of saying that there should be no grouping of boys and girls. Boys and girls donât naturally congregate. I hope you see that, although again, in this crowd, youâll be in the minority. Given that, any tailoring of those groupings to boys and girls will be jumped on by the oppression pointer-outers. Theyâre wrong.
The neo-quasi-pseudo feminists of today are doing a disservice to feminism and women. If I had a daughter, Iâd be sure to show her this.
Iâd let her know that she needs to be careful to not get caught in the vortex of the oppression pointer-outers, or she risks being shaped by a defeatist, self-pitying attitude as this young woman has. This girl has taken the path of giving up on the supremely difficult journey of becoming a competitive chess player, and can feel oppressed in the process. Much more appealing than failure, or a lessened interest.
That gift that keeps on giving is no gift at all.
Because of my background it so happens that about half of my close friends are female experts on machine learning and/or artificial intelligence. Sure, thatâs not exactly representative of the general population, but you can probably see why I think that may be a bit too generalized.
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iâm a bit puzzled. are you sure itâs my comment you meant to reply to? it wasnât exactly data-free since i was relating information about my experiences as an actual science teacher and while i realize the plural of anecdote isnât data i have had many years of experiences with hundreds of actual students that informs my comment. i also wasnât trying to point to oppression so much as i was to the waste of talent that lies behind 9 science sessions for the boys and 1 for the girls.
then again, after reading your response to the page with the essay called âdear magnusâ i suppose it may be less surprising that you would have such a non sequitir response to my comment. i find it remarkable, if not surprising, that anyone would read that and come away from it thinking of the author as defeatist rather than defeated or self-pitying rather than realistic. if you donât mind, i think iâll continue to encourage everyone i teach to their best efforts regardless of their race, gender, or economic status.
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Also, whoever scored Outlast seems to be pretty fond of the Tuba as a suspense builderâŚBraaap.
Note what I said was data free.
Itâs not clear to me what youâre saying your personal observation is. No substantial differences prevent a kid from doing⌠Youâre a 6th grade teacher, teach sixth grade kids. Thereâs not much in the curriculum that isnât by design doable by those kids.
The real question is, are there profound gender differences in boys and girls that would compel kids to do different things? Might they be excited and motivated by different things?
Itâs not clear from your comment what your position is on that, but if you think the answer is no, well⌠people can replace what they see with what they want to see.
Note that your reply provides another illustration of the pan-gender impulse to point out oppression. It feels downright heroic. Read in isolation, one might think that you were replying to the suggestion that girls and young women be kept in cages.
"The real question is, are there profound gender differences in boys and girls that would compel kids to do different things? Might they be excited and motivated by different things?
Itâs not clear from your comment what your position is on that,"
from my original commentâ
" iâve never seen any substantial differences based on race or gender that prevents a kid from doing those things and doing them well given opportunities to experience them in an interesting setting."
from your most recent reply to my reply to your reply to my original commentâ
âpeople can replace what they see with what they want to see.â
i believe you, you seem to be quite expert at that.
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You read that link and your take-away was that the girl was a cop-out who succumbed to self-pity?
Thereâs nothing anyone can tell you in this thread that will help you learn about reality, then.
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