Educating Youth in Developing Countries

Educating jejuneness in Developing CountriesJohn W. Gardner, former United States Secretary of Health, Education and Welf atomic number 18 give tongue to Much nurture today is monumentally ineffective. All too often we atomic number 18 giving young people cut f utterers when we should be teaching them to grow their give birth plants (http//thinkexist.com/quotes/john_w._gardner/). Gardners bidding expresses the necessity to educate children thoroughly by providing them with skills to harvest their own self-reformation. These skills include leading, team wee, confidence and responsibility. Many worldwide organizations focus on young person knowledge through education. Children ar the generation most fit of carrying out positive changes such as peace, development, and equity, due to time and materials being in their favor. When young person are given the means to educate themselves and acquire leadership skills, they are provided with an opportunity to agnise a positive con tri simplyion to their global society.Programs that focus on younker education and development through unionized activity are popular in developed and developing countries. Organizations range from summer camps to after school programs to foreign teaching initiatives. I work for an organization called Youth Leadership Camps Canada that specializes in functional with children ages 5-18 in an outdoor recreational environment to aid in their leadership development. Our staff is trained in dissimilar recreation techniques including games facilitation, high ropes and waterfront activities, teamwork initiative tasks, and reflection in order to effectively convey important leadership and self-improvement techniques to children and teens. Through working at YLCC,I have dis assureed that play is an effective way to teach leadership skills in a practical and kind manner. Children absorb concepts quickly through experience, and expeditious learning champions them bump off the confidenc e to lead among their peers when given the opportunity. I have seen positive results and growth in children and teens that are vision impaired, children with mental development issues, children who are labeled at risk and children who are labeled average and above average in their development.My experience working at YLCC has fueled my curiosity to discover similar programs and research their methods and levels of success. This research paper will explore factors influencing the need for development among third-world young person recreational education as a proven method of equipping spring chicken with essential skills programs that educate youth through activity, and criticisms of such programs.Factors Influencing the Need for Youth DevelopmentWhen discussing the impressiveness of rehabilitating and teaching youth, it is necessary to evaluate their living conditions and the factors that influence their need for development. Many children in developing countries live in undesira ble conditions, suffering poverty and starvation, low success in school, and negligence from parents. Michael Justesen and Dorte Verners book titled Factors Impacting Youth Development in Haiti discusses the state of matters among Haitian youth A series of factors predisposes a biggish proportion of youth to poverty, school dropout,3unemployment, early sexual initiation, teen pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, sexual and physical abuse, crime and fury, substance abuse and drug dealing, and societal exclusion (Justesen, M Verner, D. 20073). Determining the factors that propel youth to un healthy and unfulfilling conditions allows one to begin to develop a solution to the problem. According to Justesen and Verner, the sources of youth development hindrances are rooted in several aspects In many households absence of the father or both parents, drug abuse, pressure for female adolescents to bear children, and domestic violence contribute to the challenges young people face on a daily basis (20073 ). Addressing and understanding these factors and their sources is necessary if one has the intention to work with youth and help them to work toward self-improvement.The macrocosm Banks Country Study titled Caribbean Youth Development discusses three factors contributing to the need for youth development man-to-man characteristics, microenvironment, and macro environment. (The World Bank. 2003 28-42) Individual characteristics refer to the character and qualities of the person in question. For example, the study refers to the levels of self-esteem and feelings of rage among youth in the Caribbean (2003 28). Youth who experience rage are much likely to engage in crime and violence, or use drugs, alcohol and tobacco. (2003 28) More than half of children who display rage-like behavior in the Caribbean have been either sexually or physically abused (2003 29). Microenvironment and macro environment refer to factors such as parental and4 union influence, and economic situations and po sition in society, respectively. (2003 30, 37) Institutions and individuals with whom youth make contact are very powerful influences in their lives (2003 35). Direct connection with members of their microenvironment can play a role in a youths development, and the individual demeanor they will adopt. Macro environment concerns itself with factors that determine a persons circumstance, such as gender or economic situation (2003 37). The three aforementioned factors cover varying aspects of a youths life, addressing elements both within and beyond an individuals control.Despite records that certain factors lead to disagreeable living conditions, hope remains that Haitian youth, and others to follow, will maturate above their troubles and work as leaders, if given the proper direction Haitis history, combined with the countrys neighborly and poverty indicators, show that youth should be seen not as a problem, but as a product of the family and community environment and therefore sho uld be treated as a potential solution to Haitis development challenges (2007 3), This statement advocates the idea of developing youth through education and leadership, allowing them to be agents of change in their own lives and in their communities.Recreation and Youth Connections and ResultsPeople have enrolld in mutation and recreation for hundreds of years, from simple game play in the schoolyard, to worldwide Olympic events. According to Martha Ewings article, The Role of Sports in Youth Development, Children learn5 chaste behaviour from engaging with others, watching the behaviour of others, and/or being taught ethical behaviour (Ewing, M.E et al. 200237). In this sense, ethical behaviour can be acquired through active learning in an interactive team environment. Ewings article suggests that youth can learn moral behaviour and build character through participation in feature. Specifically, Ewing mentions that in studying children and their participation in physical educati on, it has been proposed that children (a) develop physical skills(b) improve fitness (c) learn social and emotional skills (d) develop moral value and (e) acquire a better sense of self through ontogenesisd perceived competence, self-esteem and self-confidence (2002 31). The essential skills gained from participation in sport work as an agent toward youth development and provide a solution from troublesome conditions. Through sports and team activities, children learn self-sufficiency, co-operation, and begin to believe that they are capable of being leaders. recreational programs are sometimes government funded and provided within schools, while others are non-governmental and extra-curricular, such as summer camp. Camp is often presented in the media as simply a place for children to have fun in the outdoors. However, summer camp provides youth with an opportunity to extend their personal boundaries, be active, make connections, and gain confidence through learning new skills an d interacting with others. Christopher Thurbers study Youth Development Outcomes of the Camp Experience Evidence for6Multidimensional Growth discusses the technique for youth development used by summer campsPromoting the healthy development of young people adheres to both complementary theoretical orientations. Prevention Science (e.g., Greenberg et al., 2003 Nation et al., 2003) aims to come out at-risk populations and alter individual characteristics that are precursors to unhealthy behaviors, such as school failure, drug use, and violence. Positive Youth Development (e.g., Catalano, Berglund, Ryan, Lonczak, and Hawkins, 2002 Larson, 2000) also seeks to reduce unhealthy behaviors, but by fostering the individual, social, and environmental characteristics-such as positive identity, social competence, and independence-that promote healthy development. Viewing young people as assets rather than liabilities also reflects the issue toward studying positive psychology and resiliency (e.g., Seligman, 2003 Werner and Smith, 2001), rather than focusing narrowly on pathology and risk (Thurber, C.A, et al. 2006 241).According to this study, summer camps break their education methods down into two categories. They evaluate not only the factors contributing to the need for development, but focus on methods of fostering healthy development in a positive manner. The union of discovering the origins of the problem with the process of intently working toward improvement and learning has proven to be successful(Researchers have) focused on children with identified problems, including emotional disturbances (Byers, 1979 Durkin, 1988, 1993), learning disabilities and social skills deficits7(see Mishna, Michalski, and Cummings, 2001, for a review), family dysfunction (Lewicki, Goyett, and Marr, 1996), chronic medical conditions (e.g., Zimmerman, Carter, Sears, and Lawson, 1987), delinquency (e.g., Castellano and Soderstrom, 1992), and gang involvement (Harris, Fried, and Ara na, 1995). Results of these studies all support the conclusion that camp promotes childrens health and development and reduces the take of referral problems.Summer camps and physical education are proven methods of guidance for youth in an active environment. The techniques used to increase a childs mental and physical health through activity can be used effectively to aid youth in developing countries to gain confidence and leadership skills.Programs Specializing in Recreational Education in Developing CountriesMany organizations have taken notice of the positive results that come from youth participation in organized activity. Programs such a Right to Play and OA Projects focus on providing children with essential skills through engagement in team sports such as soccer. UNICEFs Peace Education program facilitates various workshops for school-aged youth, intending to teach qualities such as empathy, tolerance, communication, and co-operation (Fountain, S. 1999 17). Susan Fountains article discussing training methods by UNICEF describes peace education among the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values required to live and work in dignity (19991). Specifically, sport and physical education have been used in Rwandan schools as a vehicle for developing skills and attitudes of peace8(199917). Training youth to work together as members of a team is a common goal among activity based NGOs like Right to Play and OA Projects. Right to Play is based on the guiding principle of inclusion, hoping to promote the involvement and acceptance of youth who are marginalized for various reasons, including gender, disability, and background (At a Glance, 2009 1). Right to Play also focuses on reintegrating youth affected by conflict into society health promotion and disease prevention education basic cognitive development and partnership with local community leaders and coaches to ensure individual as well as community development (At a Glance, 2009 1) Similarly, OA Projects pa rtners with local programs focused on promoting peace and rebuilding communities (www.oaprojects.org. About.) interaction with the project country contributes to the organizations authenticity.The Outcome Results and CritiquesNearly every effort to aid in developing countries provokes critiques questioning its integrity and authenticity. One might question whether a child can actually grow and receive essential skills from play. While leadership skills are important, do these programs provide youth with the opportunities to exercise them fully, and enough to make changes in their lives and in their communities? Cora Burnetts Sports-for-Development Approaches in the South African Context A Case Study Analysis looks at sports in the school, community clubs, and South Africas Youth Development through Football (YDF) program. In her conclusion she suggests, the emphasis of9traditional male sports such as rugby, cricket and football, inevitably limited the opportunities for ingenuous g ender participation (YEAR 38). While Burnetts critique states that inclusion of members of the community created mass participation at the school level and afforded many rural learners the opportunity to participate in a variety of sports (year 39), focus lacked in addressing contextual priorities and appropriate needs-based education and training to creat(e) career passageways or enhanc(e) the employability status (with reference to the school sport assistants and contract workers) of vulnerable populations (year 39). Burnetts critiques address concerns that many inevitably share, questioning whether the outcome of activity-based programs is worth the means to present them.ConclusionIt goes without saying that every child deserves to venerate life and feel the joy that comes with playing and being active. Programs that offer children an opportunity to grow through activity not only intend to expose war-affected youth to an experience of fun, but through the fun experience, show c hildren how to work together, lead and take initiative. Whether in Canada or in the third-world, physical activity is proven to increase fitness, confidence, and teamwork and communication skills. It is questionable whether sports and activity-based programs have a consistently favorable outcome as providers of better opportunities for youth. However, it is undeniable that the end result of joy and confidence for a child is worthwhile. Children in developing countries deserve a childhood just as much as children in10developed countries do. Through organized activity and sport, children are given the opportunity to play and laugh, while learning valuable team and leadership skills. Sports-based programs are not designed to pave the pathway of a better future for third-world youth, but rather to provide them with the confidence and skills to consider their pathways, and equip themselves to think critically about the pathways they are on.