Youth development

While many educators acknowledge the challenges of a curriculum shaped by test preparation, implementing meaningful new teaching strategies can be difficult. Active Learning presents an examination of innovative, interactive teaching strategies that were successful in engaging urban students who struggled with classroom learning. Drawing on rich ethnographic data, the book proposes participatory action research (PAR) as a viable approach to teaching and learning that supports the development of multiple literacies in writing, reading, research and oral communication. As Wright argues, in connecting learning to authentic purposes and real-world consequences, participatory action research can serve as a model for meaningful urban school reform.

Youth unemployment is a problem that affects developing countries, including Nigeria. Recent research on youths and their involvement in entrepreneurship activities is gaining ground seriously due to the economic downturn that increases unemployment. The study's goals include providing suitable suggestions to promote entrepreneurship, problems confronting youth entrepreneurship, the examination of the role of entrepreneurial education in youth employment, and schemes that boost youth entrepreneurship. Data was collected from the primary source by using a structured questionnaire. The sample was selected using a stratified random sampling technique. The target respondents were youths between the ages of 20 and 40 years. Data was gathered from 220 youth entrepreneurs in Lagos, Nigeria. SPSS and Excel were used to analyse the data. The study found out parents and family influenced their decision to start a business. Lack of access to finance and financial risks were found to be significant demotivators for youths against starting up a business. Education was seen to support the entrepreneurial careers of the respondents. The study also showed that difficulty in attracting funding was a significant problem affecting youth entrepreneurship. The recommendations include Tertiary institutions should train students in entrepreneurship. The government should set up special funds (Loans & Grants) for youth entrepreneurship. Youth should be involved in policy development on entrepreneurship. Capacity-building should be organized often for youth entrepreneurs. More functional incubation centers should be established across the country to breed young entrepreneurs. Established adult and youth entrepreneurs should be encouraged to mentor up and coming, youth entrepreneurs. The government should be consistent in youth entrepreneurship policy. The Government should address the issue of multiple taxations, poor infrastructure, poor planning, corruption, etc. The government should encourage citizens to patronize homemade goods. Bureaucratic bottlenecks concerning government transactions with entrepreneurs should be eliminated. The government should improve the ease of doing business.

The research discusses the implementation of youth political empowerment policies from 2010 to 2017 that has seen major shift in Zimbabwean politics. The research evaluates the impact of politics to the youth and the development of the nation. Understanding the history of youth political empowerment is fundamental following the implementation of Nation Youth Policy in 2000 which led to the establishment of the Boarder Gezi Youth Training Centre. The Boarder Gezi initiative failed mainly to two factors i.e. it used a military philosophy of imposing itself to the youth and also the majority of the youth lacked the willingness to be involved in a military kind of orientation. The researcher then evaluates the inter-relationship of youth empowerment, politics and development to ensure the importance of sustainable youth political empowerment policies. However, the reviewing of the National Youth Policy in 2010 gives provision to analyze the policies, programs and even events from 2010-2017, role of policy actors specifically CSOs and why the youth have remained in the shadows of politics. Overall, the research provides recommendations and possible solutions to various institutions involved in policy making and the youth in order to improve the visibility and activeness of Zimbabwean youth in mainstream politics.

Over the past several years, increased interest in preventing youth problems and promoting healthy youth development has led youth and family practitioners, policy makers, and researchers to develop a wide range of approaches based on various theoretical frameworks. Although the growth in guiding frameworks has led to more complex models and a greater diversity in the options available to scholars and practitioners, the lack of an integrative conceptual scheme and consistent terminology has led to some confusion in the field. Here, we provide an overview of three approaches to youth development and problem prevention, critically examine their strengths and weaknesses, and offer some elaborations to help clarify, extend, and integrate the models. We conclude by discussing some general implications for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers. I n recent years, efforts to address youth problems and enhance youth development have become increasingly more broad-based, involving fam...

This article discusses three focal areas in promoting positive youth development (PYD) in schools: positive people, positive places, and positive opportunities. Given school personnel workload and federal policies that emphasize academic achievement, it remains a goal to focus on holistic adolescent outcomes and school outcomes that increase both adolescent psychosocial wellbeing and societal well-being. Schools need to recognize, engage, and sustain existing and potential resources in their own school environment and surrounding communities, in developing ado

In the coming decades, the platforms and formalisms scholars employ to display, transform, and transmit information will continue to evolve. Innovations in information management did not stop with the codex. They will not stop with the PC. The purpose of this paper is to explore a specific implication that new paradigms of computing—especially those pertaining to 3D objects and 3D environments—will present for the discipline of history. Put simply, this study suggests historians will need to re‐think the aesthetics of their discipline. Drawing on the experience of the<it> 3D Virtual Buildings Project</it>, it suggests there are two possibilities historians can and ought to explore. The first is to test the efficacy of 3D objects as cognitive tools, tools designed to assist student realization that historical works are models, models that must be distinguished from the objects they represent. The second is to explore the use of 3D‐immersive environments as platforms to display research findings. If Virtual Reality is to emerge as a viable medium for the historical discipline, scholars will need to transform their practice. Assumptions regarding the constitution of narrative, authorship and the scholarly work will all require modification.

Early adolescence is a time of burgeoning independence, autonomy, and focus on peers. It is also a time when individual interests, skills, and preferences become salient to young people. Not surprisingly, out-of-school programs designed to capture the interest of early teens are diverse in focus and varied in structure, ranging from sports teams to drop-in recreation centers, from museum apprenticeships to mentoring relationships between an individual teen and an adult. This article describes the array of various organizations that offer programs and services for youths in their early teens. It explains the philosophy of positive youth development that has emerged as a unifying theme in this long-standing but newly self-conscious field. Principles of best practice are reviewed, as are five key implementation challenges: increasing participation by youths; expanding access to programs, especially in low-income communities; improving funding; evaluating program effectiveness; and coordination with other youth services. The article closes with a discussion anticipating the new opportunities that accompany the attention and funding now going toward positive youth development programs that enrich the lives of young people through informal learning.

Middle school students' experiences at afterschool programs were compared as they participated in different types of activities and with different social partners. The students (N = 165) attended eight programs in three Midwestern states. A total of 1,596 experiences were randomly sampled using the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) during 1 week in the fall of 2001 and 1 week in the spring of 2002. Student engagement was conceptualized as the simultaneous experience of concentration, interest, and enjoyment. Students reported high levels of engagement while participating in sports activities and arts enrichment activities at the after-school programs, and low levels of engagement while completing homework at programs. They reported being more engaged in activities involving both adults and peers than activities with peers only. Concentrated effort, intrinsic motivation, and positive and negative mood states were also compared by program activities and social partners. Findings about participants' subjective experiences and engagement in specific program activities have implications for understanding after-school programs as a context for youth development.

With a large and diverse sample of children from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, the role of infant-mother attachment security as a protective factor against the development of children's anxious and aggressive behaviors at first grade was examined. When child's sex, family income, maternal sensitivity, and prior levels of anxiety and aggression were controlled for, attachment security at 15 months of age was found to moderate the effects of negative life events families experienced, thereby protecting children from experiencing symptoms of anxiety, but not aggression, at 4.5 years of age. Children classified as insecurely attached at 15 months of age who experienced many stressful life events exhibited more anxiety symptoms in first grade than children classified as securely attached who similarly experienced many negative life events. These findings are interpreted within attachment theory, which predicts that early attachment security has a unique role in children's anxiety experiences later in childhood.

This article elaborates on an action research undertaken by three researchers from a business school of a leading university in the Philippines on the contribution of non-formal education programs in poverty alleviation, aimed to initiate women empowerment and youth development among selected women and youth in the parishes they belong to. Non-formal education programs such as home-based livelihood program, parenting for women, leadership, character building, values clarification, and priority setting for women and youth were administered as a way to reduce the selected parishioners’ vulnerabilities arising from poverty. Using outcome mapping as a project cycle management tool, changed behaviours, attitudes, and values were identified not as final indicators but as an indicator of progress in empowerment and development to which the non-formal education programs contribute.

Interesting and innovative youth development programs are important to further youth education. Programs focused on developing leadership skills in youth, specifically at-risk youth, are important when thinking of the future of our communities. The primary purpose of the study was to determine the impact of an equine facilitated, authentic leadership program on at-risk youth. Youth participated in a three-day equine facilitated learning program based on authentic leadership with focus groups conducted three days before and three days after the program. In this article, we describe the development and methodology of the program and specific implications for practice.

The authors examined the relations between participation in a range of high school extracurricular contexts and developmental outcomes in adolescence and young adulthood among an economically diverse sample of African American and European American youths. In general, when some prior self-selection factors were controlled, 11th graders' participation in school clubs and organized sports was associated with concurrent indicators of academic and psychological adjustment and with drug and alcohol use. In addition, participation in 11th grade school clubs and prosocial activities was associated with educational status and civic engagement at 1 year after high school. A few of the concurrent and longitudinal relations between activity participation and development were moderated by race and gender. Finally, breadth of participation, or number of activity contexts, was associated with positive academic, psychological, and behavioral outcomes.

There is a growing trend to involve young people in a range of advisory roles. As a research institution focused on healthy adolescent development, the Johns Hopkins Center for Adolescent Health recognizes its need for youth input on applied research activities as well as its ability to contribute to the positive development of the young people who serve in this capacity. Due to the lack of a tested theoretical model for establishing and maintaining a youth advisory committee, the Center’s Youth Advisory Committee is examined through the lens of a youth development framework that includes opportunities and supports for adult-youth relationships, youth participation, youth as resources, and program flexibility. Challenges and facilitating factors in the development and maintenance of a youth advisory committee are also discussed.

Middle school students' experiences at afterschool programs were compared as they participated in different types of activities and with different social partners. The students (N = 165) attended eight programs in three Midwestern states. A total of 1,596 experiences were randomly sampled using the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) during 1 week in the fall of 2001 and 1 week in the spring of 2002. Student engagement was conceptualized as the simultaneous experience of concentration, interest, and enjoyment. Students reported high levels of engagement while participating in sports activities and arts enrichment activities at the after-school programs, and low levels of engagement while completing homework at programs. They reported being more engaged in activities involving both adults and peers than activities with peers only. Concentrated effort, intrinsic motivation, and positive and negative mood states were also compared by program activities and social partners. Findings about participants' subjective experiences and engagement in specific program activities have implications for understanding after-school programs as a context for youth development.

It is difficult to provide disengaged youth, who are at risk of not fulfilling their potential, with the social support necessary to remain active contributors to society. They are more likely to fail and drop from education greatly reducing the prospect of becoming constructive, productive community members. Consequently strategies to promote engagement with learning and education need to be investigated. This study explores the impact on an individual's self-concept and social networking skills through participation in an experiential learning program at sea conducted in Australia's national sail training ship STS Young Endeavour and how this may influence student engagement with learning and education. Using qualitative interviews, engagement with learning and education of five participants from different educational backgrounds was examined pre and post voyage. The results suggest participation in the Young Endeavour program had a positive effect on development of social relationships, general self-concept, motivation to study, and sense of purpose for learning. Key contributing factors appear to be experiential learning activities specifically designed to support the development of greater self-concept and social skills such as climbing aloft, working together as a 'watch' and taking control of the vessel.

This article describes the theoretical and pedagogical background and results from the first semester of a service-learning program for English learners at a public Moroccan university and the local high school. This study fills a gap in the literature related to service-learning practice and outcomes in Morocco and the Arab world in general. The results of the program, based on student reflection journals, evaluation surveys, focus groups, and final course outcomes, showed overlap with the impacts predicted by previous studies, with some notable particularities for the Moroccan context. The initial results of the program are promising, and an expansion of the program combined with a long-term study will continue in future semesters. Servicelearning's impact on civic education and civic actions are also explored with results that are both positive and troubling for the region.

Community arts have been in evidence in Ireland for over three decades; however, this form of artistic practice has been largely overlooked from social studies perspectives. There is a dearth of social studies scholarship on community arts within the Irish context, which may be explained in part by participatory arts becoming the more dominant practice in recent years. Therefore, this article works to introduce youth work, community development and social studies students and practitioners to community arts and to try and spark interest in this type of arts-based practice. The paper seeks to provide an understanding of community arts and to differentiate community arts (focused on and emerging from communities) from participatory arts (focused on individuals and groups and emerging from organisations and/or institutions). The history of community arts in Ireland is outlined and the contribution of community arts to youth work and community development is focused on. Drawing from international empirical research the paper highlights the beneficial role that community arts can have, in the contexts of youth work and community development. To conclude, the article argues that community arts can play an important role in youth work and community development because this type of arts-based practice facilitates collective community expression and can help stimulate social change from the ground up. The paper encourages youth work, community development and social studies students and practitioners to examine any preconceived ideas they have, that might inhibit them from helping facilitating community arts projects and set these aside; in order to, explore opportunities to foster cohesive magic and creative collective expression to bring about social change.

This study examined the concurrent relationship between participation in extracurricular activities and externalizing and internalizing problems and social school behavior in a Spanish community sample, separately for boys (n 5 439) and girls (n 5 428), enrolled in 2nd, 4th, or 6th grades. emotional and behavioral adjustment and social competence. Overall, the relations were low and different according to gender, type of activity, and informant. Better adjustment was more related to participation in sports activities in boys and to participation in nonsports activities in girls. Size effect was higher for girls and decreased for both boys and girls when parental education and parenting practices were considered. Findings supported previous results obtained in American adolescents. C 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Study abroad has become a common experience for American social work students. However, there is little guidance for facilitation of such courses in an international context. As a result, there is a risk that students and facilitators can perpetuate the privileged and Ugly American image. Providing guidance for prevention of such mistakes, the authors present a conceptual model for international learning, based on an ethical framework founded on personal values and supported by traditional ethical principles and values. Included are the pillars of boundaries, self determination, dignity and worth of the person, community capacity, social justice and human rights, facilitative learning, competence, and integrity. Finally, consciousness-raising as professionals, respectful engagement in context, and intercultural competence are discussed.

Youth in Nigeria includes citizens of the Federal Republic of Nigeria aged 18–29 years according to the new national youth policy.

The youths of any nation represent the major human capital asset which the nation can harness for economic and development purposes. Young people are key actors and a driving force for global development and peace. They are critical partners in the development of nations and their contribution to society must be measured in terms of productive pursuits of service to humanity. The Youths are Nigeria’s foremost social capital and require proper monitoring.

In Nigeria, the seventh most populous country in the world, the total population is currently estimated at 195 million. This is further projected to reach 236 million by 2030 and 410 million by 2050 to become the third most populous country in the world. Yet, Nigeria has a median age of 18.4 years of age. This represents nearly 70% of its population under 30 years.

Unfortunately, this demographic statistics does not translate into a development variable because Nigeria’s development policy does not deliberately and successfully factor the youths into its economic policies yet. Presently, Nigerian youths are severely hampered by a number of challenges and are unable to attain their full potential.

Hence this report reveals considerable insights into the inclusion of youth in the political, social and economic growth and development of Nigeria. In this report, users will find statistical information related to youth participation in politics, economic development, and peace and conflict prevention. It is expected that subsequent surveys and reports will build on these aspects in order to adequately understand changes and developments over time.

In accordance with the social information processing model, how adolescents attribute cause to a particular social situation (e.g., bullying) they witness or participate in, influences their online social information processing, and hence, how they will act in the situation.
Objective 
The aim of the present study was to explore how older teenagers explain why bullying takes place at school, and whether there were any differences in explaining bullying due to gender.
Methods 
Two hundred and fifteen Swedish students in upper secondary school responded to a questionnaire. Mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative methods) were used to analyze data.
Results 
The qualitative analysis resulted in three main categories and nine subcategories regarding accounts of bullying causes. According to the findings, the youth explained bullying much more often with individualistic explanations (bully attributing and victim attributing) than non-individualistic explanations (social context attributing). Furthermore, girls tended to provide a greater number of bullying explanations and were more likely to attribute bullying causes to the bully and the victim, as compared to boys.
Conclusions 
The findings provide insights into older teenagers’ understanding of why bullying occurs in school. The study also identified some gender differences but also some mixed findings regarding gender differences in comparison with previous research with younger participants. The authors concluded that more research has to be done to investigate age and gender differences.

Outdoor education uses the ‘outdoor’ space in various ways. This chapter
explores some aspects of the outdoors as a fantasy space. I will compare this
way of using spaces with concepts of play and storytelling and suggest that,
whilst drawing on these traditions, what has developed has unique elements
that suit it to the modern western world. I will describe the way in which the
meta-narratives of the hero’s journey are used to create a structure in which
people can explore their autonomy, power and creativity that is their agency.
In particular I will discuss how the hero’s journey offers a rite of passage
from youth to adult at a time when this transition has become increasingly
problematic. As outdoor education has provided this opportunity largely
unintentionally and unsystematically, this interpretation will help identify
some weaknesses in normative provision. I will conclude by identifying ways
in which the hero meta-narrative might improve practice.

The growth of football both in playing numbers and spectators within Australia has increased remarkably. In 2005, after extensive reviews Football Federation Australia (FFA) decided to roll-out a nationally consistent small-sided football (SSF) approach. This initiative, targeted at junior players under 12 years old, claimed to provide a love for the game through spending time engaged in its play as well as developing contextually rich technical and tactical skills in safe, semi-structured environments. The purpose of this cross-sectional pilot study was to establish the procedures and methods that can examine how FFA’s SSF program has been implemented at grass-roots level and if this format supported both the espoused benefits acknowledged by FFA and global best practice in both game play and training practice settings. Results revealed statistically significant differences between time engaged, tactical skill events, contextually related technical skill events and activity levels during games compared to training. As well as this, a comparison of selected technical game events was made to another study concerning the benefits of playing a SSF game compared to 11 a side football, which supported claims made by FFA that SSF elicits greater technical skill opportunities. Future research is needed to establish if these results can be inferred to the population of clubs employing SSF.

An overview of peer-reviewed research on the physical impact of training on adolescents.  Topics covered include: pros and cons of early specialization; growth, maturation, and selection; effects on bone density; risks of intensive training before puberty; cultural implications; and implications for sport psychology professionals.

The practice of youth work in India has been influenced mainly by two perspectives: deficit and asset. Most of the awareness building, sensitization programmes and targeted initiatives
assume that young people lack the necessary knowledge and attitude; hence the need to bridge the gap, by offering them the required training and skills. These programmes are either
preventive or therapeutic in nature or both. Another set of initiatives, perceive young people
as resource. These initiatives perceive young people as skilled, passionate and energetic individuals and use them as a tool to achieve developmental outcomes. This paper, examines the underline assumptions, strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to work with youth and advocates for a review of the youth work in India.

Every summer more than 10 million children attend day or resident (sleep-over) camps sponsored by churches, not-for-profit youth agencies, and independent operators. This study explored the outcomes of a 1-week or longer camp experience from the perspective of parents. A national sample of almost 2,300 parents responded to pre-, post-, and follow-up surveys about their children&#39;s growth experiences at camp. Parents perceived statistically significant gains from precamp to postcamp in 10 youth development constructs with the highest effect sizes related to adventure/exploration, independence, making friends, positive identity, and peer relationships. Additional gains from the precamp to the 6-month follow-up were noted for leadership. Parents also described what their children learned at camp and what changes they perceived occurred as a result of their child&#39;s camp experience.

In a job-scarce environment, where unemployment is rife the need for fostering entrepreneurship especially among youth is a prime concern. This is arguably the case in South Africa, where despite a number of government-pioneered interventions, the level of youth entrepreneurship, particularly in township areas remains unsatisfactory. This study takes a two-pronged approach to establish specific factors that are inhibiting youth entrepreneurship development, and determine the prospects of youth entrepreneurship development in Khayelitsha in the Western Cape, South Africa. The data was collected via self-administered questionnaires that were distributed to 132 respondents, which were randomly drawn from a population of 200 youth entrepreneurs registered on the database of a local organisation which promotes and develops entrepreneurship in the Western Cape. The findings revealed, among others, that a major inhibiting factor to entrepreneurship development is the lack of awareness and inaccessibility of youth entrepreneurship support structures and initiatives in this community. Interestingly though, this hindrance does not appear to have a negative bearing on the identified growing enthusiasm of the youth to engage in entrepreneurial activities. Overall, on the basis of the challenges and prospects revealed, recommendations to improve the current situation are made. This study is an applied research effort and its relevance is linked to the fact that it provides rare insight into the state of youth entrepreneurship in a large but under-researched township community in the Western Cape. The findings and recommendations therefore bear far-reaching ramifications for all stakeholders who are concerned about developing youth entrepreneurship in this society.

This study examined results of a comprehensive, multifaceted longitudinal school-based prevention program called Raising Healthy Children (RHC). RHC focuses on enhancing protective factors with the goal of promoting positive youth development, reducing identified risk factors, and preventing adolescent problem behaviors. Participants included 938 elementary students from first or second grade who were enrolled in 10 area schools in the Pacific Northwest and randomly divided into two groups, those receiving RHC and peer controls. Analyses were conducted 18 months after implementation and focused on academic and behavioral improvements within the school environment. Results using hierarchical linear modeling showed that RHC students, compared to their peers who did not receive the intervention, had significantly higher academic performance (t ratio = 2.27, p < .001) and a stronger commitment to school (t ratio = 2.16, p < .03) according to their teachers. Similarly, compared to control peers, RHC students showed a significant decrease in antisocial behaviors (t ratio = -2.43, p < .02) and increased social competency (t ratio = 2.96, p < .01).