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Youth Supporting Youth
Ray Pidzamecky M.S.W. RSW
Native Mental Health Association Of
Canada 2010 Conference:
September 23 – 26, 2010
Saskatoon
In times of difficulty, youth often do not seek out professional resources, they go to friends
The number of certified professional counsellors
is limited and the needs of students are more extensive than most professional staff can meet
Students provide a practical and economical means for meeting the increasing number of guidance and counselling needs
Research indicates that student counsellors and facilitators can often be as effective as professional counsellors and in some cases they are accepted even more so, especially in the initial stages of developing a relationship
Sometimes information can be presented to students in an informal and less intimidating manner when peers provide the information
Many times adults do not understand the straight-forward language and customs of the younger generation; student facilitators can help bridge this gap and assist professional counsellors in gaining a better perspective on student problems and issues
The range of guidance services can be extended in a school when peers are used as resources
A peer counsellor program provides an “outreach” approach to counselling, which is most appropriate for contemporary times
Peer facilitators can function as models within a work or educational setting
Learning is more efficient when students assist other students and accept more responsibility for creating the learning climate
“Training as treatment”, the peer counsellor gains from being a facilitator of others
Peer counsellors/facilitator programs are the heart of a developmental approach to guidance and counselling. In developmental guidance programs, life skills are developed prior to a crisis
(Source: Peer Counselling Starter Kit, A Peer Training Program Manual, Rey A. Carr, Gregory A.K. Saunders Peer resources Victoria, B.C. 2006 www.peer.ca)
Youth of today are the promise of the
future and represent a tremendous
untapped resource
They are energetic, positive
Through inexpensive and purposeful training,
young people themselves can provide an
effective and efficient resource to one
another and support caregivers responsible
for the well being of today’s youth.”
Assist the youth by helping to empower and
sensitize them, the results will not only
benefit individual adolescents but also the
communities in which they reside
A peer helper program is an alternative
service delivery model that acknowledges
adolescent strengths, personal resources
and their ability to harness those attributes
to benefit each other and their community
Through peer helper relationships students
can begin to shape their own culture to
foster positive personal growth and support
for each other
What is PEP? 1998
The PEP program is an intensive, short-term,
interactive program intended to shape and
support crucial decision-making processes for
young adolescents as they adapt to the
culture of high school
The program can be used by any high school
as the issues affecting teens today cross all
geographic and socio-cultural boundaries
Key Components:
Groups of 25-50 same gender grade 9
students receive in-service from trained
senior students - one session each from
female and male senior mentors
At least one School Social Worker or School
Child Care Worker facilitates each session
with a team of 5 -10 mentors
An assembly presentation by the police
School Resource Officer (S.R.O.)
An assembly for all grade 9 students
presented by the senior mentors
Training manuals for staff and peer mentors
Objectives:
1. To dispel myths held by grade 9’s about what
is cool and reassures them that high school is
okay and that development takes time
2. To give youth information coupled with
abstinence and harm reduction messages
3. To encourage discussion about discrimination,
victimization and other issues and help identify
students who are possibly at emotional, physical
or psychological risk
4. Start identifying, in a proactive manner,
students who are possibly at risk rather than
identifying them reactively following a crisis
5. Teach mentors to be aware of various mental
health issues such as depression/eating
disorders/ so that timely intervention can be
offered to their peers
6. Impact in a meaningful way as to reduce the
risks of death and harm to our youth whether
that is through intentional or accidental actions
7. To help anchor younger students with older kids
for support and identification and foster a sense
of community between senior and junior
students
8. Provide an unencumbered opportunity to ask
the questions they need to ask
9. Reduce acting out and impulsivity and
alienation
10.Welcome the grade 9’s into the school.
Make them a positive part of school culture-
full members in the ‘club’ rather than the
applicants
11. In achieving the above objectives, create a
safe student/school and community
environment
Ray Pidzamecky helped Appleby College to
provide a similarly unique opportunity for
their youth when a partnership was formed
with the Dene First Nations people of
northern Canada in 2004
At that time, Ray was the Director of Youth
Programs at Appleby College. He was working
on a program to develop E.Q. (Emotional
Intelligence) and with Appleby College,
formed a partnership with the Dene in Fort
McPherson, Northwest Territories
I.Q. –Can move plus or minus 7
E.Q. – greatest predictor of success
Emotional self-awareness, Assertiveness, Self-regard, Self-actualization, Independence, Problem solving, Reality testing, Flexibility, Happiness, Optimism, Empathy, Social responsibility, Interpersonal relationships, Stress tolerance, Impulse control
WISDOM – the experience of others
Yellowknife March 2004
In 1971, Chief Jimmy Bruneau officially opened the Edzo school in the Northwest Territories that was to bear his name. On this occasion he spoke of the importance of a model of bicultural and bilingual education where equal emphasis must be given to educating children in two cultures
Some years later in 1991, a respected Behchokö elder, Elizabeth Mackenzie, commented on her understanding of the words of Chief Jimmy Bruneau, describing his vision as "Strong Like Two People". Originally, the statement referred to young people, and meant learning from, and being competent in the worlds of two people...the traditional world of the Tåîchô elders and the modern world that surrounds people today
The project took place at Appleby College’s
northern campus on Rabbitnose Island
located on Lake Temagami. Temagami: after
"Te-mee-ay-gaming" - 'deep water' in Ojibway
Temagami is a 4,000 square mile land of
lakes and deep woods in north-eastern
Ontario, Canada. It is the homeland of
Algonquins and Ojibways of Temagami First
Nation.
The Northern Campus is a secluded spot
accessible only by boat, snowmobile or foot,
and the home of the Northward Bound
program. Through a host of outdoor activities
such as backpacking, map and compass
reading, canoeing on Lake Temagami,
camping and snow shoeing, this program
teaches students wilderness and teamwork
skills, heightens their awareness of
environmental responsibility, and instils in
them a sense of accomplishment and
leadership
A main lodge with common room, dining area
and kitchen
Lodging for 40 students and six staff
Sauna and boathouse
A director's cabin
This program involves a partnership between
Appleby College, the District School Board of
Niagara and the Niagara Native Restorative
Circle
...says “Not only have we responded to the
needs of our youth, we will also tap into one
of our community’s greatest resources, our
elders. This coming together of youth and
elders completes the circle of life and offers
great promise for our youth and new found
hope for each day in our youth’s lives.”
Tremendous resources of money and time are
invested in reactive interventions
To a lesser degree, prevention programming
In spite of the best of intentions, statistics
demonstrate that youth are feeling more
stress and alienation
Most intervention models are initiated from
the top down. The adults make the decisions
resulting in dependent young people rather
than self-motivated youth who are
responsible for themselves and each other
The project involved using a peer counselling model
as developed by Peer Resources (Rey Carr & Greg
Saunders) which is considered to be a world leader in
peer mentoring development and training
We used strategies introduced into that model by Ron
Jorgenson who wrote the resource “Kit & Culture”
which introduces First Nations traditions and
ideologies into the model
The adult facilitators were trained during the
program to ensure the students and adults had the
skills necessary to introduce a local program into
their home school
The students were made up of six students from Appleby College, six aboriginal youth and six non-aboriginal youth from Fort Erie Secondary, St. Catharines Collegiate and Lakeport/Eden High School
The supervisors consisted of six adults from DSBN and three faculty members from Appleby College
The project included two components. 1) The participants worked to establish a peer-counselling network in the community and 2) The participants learned about First Nations culture, language and traditions
For the participants, the anticipated length would be 2 days of travel and 5 days on site
To create a youth oriented programme which:
Engages the participants in a First Nation’s culturally rich experience;
Trains participants with valuable skills for supporting other youth;
Exposes youth to the wisdom of the Elders who are valuable resources;
Provides youth with supports for social issues faced within their community;
Creates a long-term youth-oriented program providing non-athletic options.
To create a program, which the community sees as a positive and supportive agenda, which benefits the community through the involvement of youth.
To build a common or shared set of peer skills between Elders and youth
Empower youth to support youth by increasing the profile of positive youth action within the community through strategic peer helping skills
Enhance the self-esteem of youth through activities, which encourage them to serve the members of their community who are in need
Help youth to see their strength and value to each other and the communities they reside in
Teach youth about the values, traditions and culture of the First Nations including experiences on the land, use of the language and an understanding of traditional healing techniques
Introduce strategies to reduce rates of drug/alcohol abuse and suicide
Encourage discussion on the issues of harassment, discrimination, intimidation, racism, labelling, abuse and violence
Start identifying, in a proactive manner, students who are possibly at risk rather than identifying them reactively following a crisis
Teach youth to be aware of various mental health issues such as depression/eating disorders, so that timely intervention can be offered to their peers
April 3, 2009:
Groups travel to the Northern Campus (est. travel time 6 hours)
6:00 pm: Dinner at lodge & clean up
7: 00 Introduction to facility by Director of Northern Campus (Doug Stamper)
7:30 Lesson 1 – Getting to know you
10:00 Retire to cabins
April 4 – 6, 2009:
8:00 Wake-up
8:30 Breakfast & chores
9:30 Morning lesson
12:00 Lunch & clean-up
1:00 Afternoon lesson
2:30 Break
2:45 – 4:15 Elder’s session
4:30 – 5:30 Social time – TBA
6:00 Dinner & clean-up
7:00 – 9:00 Evening lesson
9:00 – 10:00 Free time & facilitator planning
10:00 Retire to cabins
April 7, 2009
8:00 Wake-up
8:30 Breakfast & chores
9:30 Morning lesson
12:00 Lunch & clean-up
1:00 Afternoon lesson
2:30 Break
2:45 – 4:15 Elder’s session
4:30 – 5:30 Closing presentations
6:00 Dinner & clean-up
7:00 Movie night
10:00 Retire to cabins
April 8, 2009
8:00 Wake-up
8:30 Breakfast & chores
9:30 Departure to bus
Lesson Topic Description Activity/Game
1 Getting Acquainted - getting to know names
- sharing background
- structure of lessons
To be determined in Facilitator
Training sessions
2 Nonverbal attending - questioning each other
- attending skills
- FELOR concepts
3 Roadblocks - ineffective communication
styles
- roadblock role plays
4 Listening skills - concept of listening
- recognizing feelings
- empathic listening
5 Empathic Listening - Rogerian listening
- review empathic listening
- listening dyads
6 Empathic Listening (con’t) - listening dyads
- review empathic listening
- natural listening
7 Helping relationships - Questioning skills
- Open ended questions
- role situations
8 You & I messages - self disclosing messages
- “You” messages
- “I” messages
9 Feedback - facilitative feedback model
- positive feedback
10 Values clarifications - concept of values
- Fallout shelter
11 Decision making - five step decision making
model
- decision making dyads
- decision making scenarios
12 Ethics, Issues & Referral - ethics
- confidentiality
- developing a code of ethics
- a discussion of issues in
their communities
- review of available
community resources
- methods of referring
F.E.L.O.R ?
Face: Willing to be with you
Eye Contact: I care about you
Lean: I am involved
Open Posture: I am receptive
Relaxed Position: I have the energy for the
work
Where The Spirit Lives
1989
Screen Door
The Temagami Project: Youth Supporting Youth
Featuring: Youth from Fort Erie Secondary School, St. Catharines
Collegiate, Eden Secondary School and Appleby College
Students and adults from four schools will share their
experiences on learning to become peer mentors. The group will reflect about the interpersonal skills they developed, the traditions of the First Nations which they
explored and their feelings about the impact of residential schools.
Topics of discussion will include:
What students learned about themselves
How the group dynamic impacted them
Issues facing youth in today’s culture
What they learned about aboriginal traditions
How they felt about the impact of residential schools
Place: Fort Erie Secondary School, Auditorium • 7 Tait Ave. Fort Erie
Date: May 20, 2009
Time: 7 – 8 p.m.
Cost: Free