Guidance in uncertain times: new world, new paradigm

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Guidance in uncertain times new world, new
paradigm

• Dr. Dermot Stokes
• Thessaloniki
• November 26th 2009

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1. A changing world

• Master narratives have broken down
• The world is increasingly complex
• Individualisation
• globalisation
• fragmentation of markets, lifestyles and
  communities
• Change itself a central dynamic
• shift from certainty to contingency and from
  predictability to impermanence and fluidity

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2. Looking at the report challenges for VET
guidance

• Ongoing innovation and adaptability in VET,
  flexible, solution-oriented approaches and
  structures for delivery and qualifications
• Mismatches (eg between supply and demand)
  need for new relationships between educators and
  trainers and the world of work
• Lifelong guidance - enabling citizens to have
  improved access to lifelong learning (Copenhagen
  Declaration)
• new modes of participation for key target groups,
  new roles, new approaches and methodologies
• adapting existing models to changing
  circumstances
• New models developing from marginal or cutting
  edge contexts

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Looking at the report (2)

• Report is an excellent review and many very
  important points are made, eg
• Consequences of early school leaving (set out
  very well)
• co-ordination, a strategic overview, long term /
  sustainable funding are often missing and are too
  focussed on project based approaches.
• Early school leavers are an heterogeneous group
• Transitions are changing
• Guidance should not be seen as one of many
  approaches to supporting transition it should
  be seen as an integral part of any approach to
  tackle this problem. It should also be seen as a
  continuum guidance is not about supporting a
  young person at a specific point in their life
  only, but is something that extends over time and
  out into the community and the workplace.

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Looking at the report (3)

• elements of successful reintegration
• guidance
• environment
• Tailored, person-centred approach
• Celebrating achievement
• Flexibility in delivery
• Multi-disciplinary teams
• Collaboration with key partner organisations
• Starting with life and basic skills and offering
  a mix of practical and theoretical learning
• Facilitating access
• Motivation
• Supported education to work transition
• Agreed. We may have grown complacent on the back
  of the very active labour market. Need to prepare
  young people AND the receiving places

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Looking at the report - Conclusions

• It is not enough to just to support young
  people - crucially the front-line support staff
  need to be appropriately selected, trained,
  co-ordinated and then supported on an on-going
  basis.
• parental involvement plays a key role in
  motivating and supporting young people in
  education and training.
• Another important component underpinning many
  successful case studies is a multi-agency
  approach to the delivery of career guidance and
  personal, social and academic support for young
  people.
• NB the involvement of young people in the design
  of the policies and approaches.
• Successful guidance policies take into
  consideration the specific situation of each
  individual, rather than adopting a blanket or
  one size fits all approach.
• Among conclusions on preventive approaches
  Area-based approaches have the potential for
  reducing the level of early school leaving,
  although the criticism levied at them is that the
  funding tends to be spread too thinly to make a
  real impact. True but 50 of esls may not live in
  disadvantaged areas
• Generally, I endorse the recommendations but make
  the following points

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3. What do we mean by at-risk youth?

• A matrix of factors is in play
• Given eg SENs, ethnic/cultural factors, etc
• Ecological, eg
• families,
• school
• neighbourhoods
• peers
• social class
• Developmental
• Susceptibility/Resilience
• Nothing unusual in many lives, but some have
  significant difficulties to deal with
• Social reproduction overarches all
• Every story is unique

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4. Early school leaving in Ireland

• Definitions change
• A structural feature of education system
• National rates
• 1 from primary school
• 3 no qualifications
• 18-19 less than upper secondary
• 25 less than 5Ds in Leaving Certificate (
  baccalaureate)
• Females stay longer than males, outperform in
  exams
• Educational retention strongly mirrors social
  background
• These are robust figures, sustained over a decade
  despite heavy investment in preventive measures

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5. Two prong response

• In school
• DEIS the School Support Programme (SSP)
• NEWB the National Educational Welfare Board
• NEPS The National Educational Psychological
  Service
• NCSE The National Council for Special Education
  Needs
• NBSS The National Behaviour Support Service
• Curricula JCSP, Transition Year, LCA
• Extra guidance support in schools with high
  numbers at risk (Guidance Enhancement Initiative)
• Out of school
• YOUTHREACH
• Non-formal youth services and projects
• Youth Information Centres, youth cafés, etc
• Employment measures, incl training and employment
  services

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6. Youthreach

• Principal national response in Ireland targeting
  those who have left school early
• Aim to provide early school leavers (16-20
  years) with the knowledge, skills and confidence
  required to participate fully in society and
  progress to further education, training and
  employment.
• National programme, local delivery funded by
  Government, part of suite of lifelong learning
  actions
• Delivered in 150 centres for education/training
  these are small out-of-school units, fulltime and
  part-time staff

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7. International best practice

• Youthreach based on extensive European experience
• Model is universal system contexts differ
• For example, University of Arizona metastudy
  Identifying High Quality Youth programmes
• Physical and psychological safety
• Appropriate Structure
• Supportive relationships
• Opportunities to belong
• Positive social norms
• Support for efficacy and meaning
• Opportunities for skill building
• Integration of family, centre and community
  efforts

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8. Youthreach a synthesis of three traditions

• incorporates best practice from education,
  training, youth work

Guidance is integrated into each phase of the
programme
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9. Programme fundamentals

• Learner focus - Learners are regarded as
  resilient and resourceful people, continually
  consulted
• Methodology Education, training, youth-work
• One centre one plan the importance of
  planning, integration QF
• One learner one plan
• coordination, continuity, consistency,
  collaboration
• guidance and pathway planning key worker model
  and process
• Progression future skills needs literacy
• Inter-agency collaboration

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10. Presenting difficulties
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11. From dependence to independence
Instability, disorder, dysfunctions, detachment,
dependency
Stability, Integration, independence
The four programme phases
Foundation
Engagement and attachment
Progression
Transition
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12. Total guidance model

• (1) Key working all fulltime staff
• (2) Advocacy/mentoring on training and employment
  options
• (3) Expert counsellor (if available)
• (4) psychologist (if available)
• (5) Other specialist services (if available) (eg
  (youth mental health)

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3
2
1
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13. The webwheel

• A guided self-assessment Skilled Helper model
  (Egan, 1998)
• The core pathway planning mechanism
• Key features of the Youthreach webwheel process
• Mentoring
• Profiling
• Individual programme planning
• Inter-agency work
• support provision is integrated into the core
  work of centres

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14. mentoring

• Staff members are assigned to learners as their
  key workers - time is set aside each week or
  fortnight for mentoring sessions with learners.
• The key worker acts as the first point of contact
  with the staff team and engages with the learner
  in an individual profiling and planning process.
• Mentoring is a form of pastoral care - it is not
  counselling.

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15. The webwheel - profiling
5. Strong 4. Neutral 3. Slight problem 2.
Significant problem 1. Very serious problem
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16. Individual action plan stages

• Stage 1 The present scenario.
• Telling their story, describing what their life
  is like for them and rating it.
• Stage 2 Developing new preferred scenarios the
  what.
• Thinking about how else it might be and
  identifying goals.
• Stage 3 Thinking about what they will do (with
  the help of the mentor) to achieve these goals
  and what will go into their plan.
• informed by the learner's own perceptions of
  their strengths and needs
• based on their own expressed personal,
  educational and vocational goals.
• The plan describes the actions that will be taken
  in pursuit of these goals.

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17. inter-agency working

• Many of the problems the learners are outside the
  remit of the centre but significantly affect
  their participation and progression in the
  programme
• Although there are locally-based agencies and
  services whose function it is to offer help or
  support in relation to many of these problem
  areas, learners may fail to engage with them.
• The key worker can act as the point of contact
  between the learner and these services and can
  facilitate them to access and benefit from the
  supports available outside of the centre
• When they leave they may need ongoing support

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18. The MAGIC touch

• Focus on the possible not the impossible and on
  solutions, not diagnosis
• People own their problems, capacities and
  solutions
• Honesty, trust and respect you are as important
  as I am
• High expectations of the young person are
  communicated
• Safety and challenge are balanced
• Partnership is established between practitioner
  and young person
• Street knowledge of frontline staff and tutors
  very valuable

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19. Does it work?

• For learners
• Improved self-esteem
• Improved participation
• Improved attendance
• Greater satisfaction for staff
• Better outcomes in
• qualifications (average 1-2 NFQ Levels) and
• 75 progression to employment or higher level of
  VET
• But doesnt work for all

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20. Challenges

• for practitioners
• New roles, new functions
• Blurred professional definitions and domains of
  action - formal and informal
• Commitment and over commitment and consequent
  disillusionment and burn out
• young people often present with distressing
  situations
• Boundaries difficult to maintain, emotionally
  difficult
• Need for professional support and training not
  always well met
• Poor management/leadership
• For providers
• Availability of suitable practitioners (skills
  base, burn out, fatigue, IR issues, commitment,
  enthusiasm, after heroism)
• Resistance, fear, need for training and ongoing
  support
• Resources, time, training, support

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21. Challenges (2)

• For systems
• Macroeconomic and macrosocial forces very
  influential (demand weak at present)
• Huge effort made at preventing early school
  leaving in Ireland, little effect on numbers (not
  the only measure of success)
• Progression into employment good, but what
  about those for whom it doesnt work? What about
  Travellers? Employer response is dubious (ie
  supply is okay, no demand) need to prepare the
  receivers too!
• Resources structural deficiencies, short
  termism
• Recognition of new roles, modes of working,
  contexts, etc
• The mainstreaming challenge to change the
  mainstream, not shoehorn radical alternatives
  into the mainstream
• Innovative approaches must be as good as
  traditional equivalents - second chance does not
  mean second class
• Performance indicators for qualitative outcomes?

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22. Challenges (3)

• The trouble with risk
• Risk and prevention - loose and woolly people
  can dodge the hard yards too easily
• Critical issue is what happens when a risk
  becomes active.
• Preventive intervention
• Early warnings, rapid action, solution focus
• New methods dont replace old systems, they
  incorporate them - one integrated system,
  different modes, managed transitions continuum
  of care and response

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Websites

• www.youthreach.ie
• www.youthreach.ie/webwheel