Author: Nikola Kočić

Youngsters, especially during adolescence which is their most vulnerable and impressionable age, are in need of role models, and take them from all areas that are close at hand, whether mass media, parents and family, or their teachers. Brining a role model into education has the aim is to expose youngsters to specific attitudes, lifestyles and outlooks, and, in particular, to individuals in which these attitudes and lifestyles are embodied. This educational tool is often stressed in informal education settings such as youth movements, where the sometimes charismatic educational youth leader embodies the values that he or she is promoting, and therefore provides a frame of reference for the youngsters. Why is role model education effective? Because it bridges the gap between the ideal and reality. Education becomes experiential as students learn a little about role model’s lives, and how they embody the values they are trying to pass on and explore. The gap between theory and practice is bridged, as ideological concepts become realities before the eyes of the students. Very often these role models are parents and teachers, but they are also some media stars, sports people or super heroes. This suggests a thirst for a strong positive role model to inspire them in the ways that they know are moral and right. This places the teacher and any educator in an ideal position to fulfill this...

The Internet plays a major role in the lives of young people today. Children and youngsters engage in online activities both inside and outside the classroom. Formally, that is in the school, young people use the Internet for instance, when searching for information and when completing tests. Informally, that is in their spare time, they chat with friends, play online computer games and are involved in various social media activities, etc. Both students and teachers can find practically any kind of information they want on the Internet. They can access newspapers, encyclopedias, history sites, film guides, lyrics, and watch movies together. However, due to the size of the Internet and the vast amount of online information there is, it may be difficult to find the spot-on information that one is searching for, because it is a skill that must be acquired. Thus if teachers want their students to do successful searches on the Internet, they have to teach them this skill, and they have to know how to do it. Ironically, youngsters are often more computer savvy than the teachers. Teachers/youth workers can ask themselves: Would digital images help students understand a concept or topic? For example, could they use the net to see images of black holes in space, historic photographs, artwork, or to look at satellite imaging or MRI scans? Would this help students with a difficult...

Games are a regular part of young people’s lives, no matter what their age is. They play games throughout the day on their computers, the Internet, and their smart phones. One of the few places they don’t regularly play games is in their classrooms. Although some teachers use games as a part of their teaching, most teachers do not, and those who do include them may not be using them to their potential. Classrooms can address even the most difficult content in a lighthearted, engaging way. Games are a powerful and useful tool to this end. Different researches indicate that games can have a significant effect on student achievement when teachers use them purposefully and thoughtfully1 If games do not focus on important academic content, they will have little or no effect on student achievement and waste valuable classroom time. The most efficient way to maintain an academic focus is to organize games around important terms and phrases. The most common error teachers make when using games is to add up team points and move on. The whole point of playing academic games in the classroom is to provide opportunities for students to examine important content in a lively and enjoyable venue. To stimulate analysis of important terms and phrases, a teacher can ask students which questions were difficult to answer and why. One generalization that applies to learning...

  Many outdoor activities can be set up and organized within local neighborhoods without great cost (e.g. local parks or forests). Everything is possible: from the tree-climbing, hiking, treasure hunts … Don’t be afraid to be creative! We catched fish, and talked, and we took a swim now and then to keep off sleepiness. It was kind of solemn, drifting down the big still river, laying on our backs looking up at the stars, and we didn’t ever feel like talking loud, and it warn’t often that we laughed, only a kind of low chuckle. We had mighty good weather, as a general thing, and nothing ever happened to us at all, that night, nor the next, nor the next.  1 Many programs, particularly for youth, make use of activities or outdoor adventure as a means of developing personal attributes such as self-esteem, confidence, responsibility and trust in a positive way, and building on individuals’ achievements and success to encourage further development. This is a major role of sport and recreation in schools and youth clubs , but it has been shown that some young people do not respond to the competitive and over-organized way in which many sports and activities are presented.  Such individuals do not respect the rules per se and prefer to establish their own parameters of behavior. Risk-taking is likely to appeal more to these...

Experienced youth workers have already met the need of young people to learn outside the classrooms. When they are not in school premises they do not look at learning as “pushing” or something that has to be done, but no matter they still learn. It is especially important for young people with poor school performance since they want to leave school because they feel that they are not able to achieve good results. It is, also, important to help them understand that people learn anywhere, as well as that learning environment is about how they see it.   What working with young people in an outreach situation needs is sustained, long-term, work. You need time to engage the young people, get their trust and get to know them, what makes them tick and then to actually alter, or try and influence, their behaviour and activities, and you don’t do that by jumping around from area to area. 1 Street youth work is all about engaging young people where they choose to meet    corner shop  park  urban housing estate and working with them to an agreed outcome. It is about empowering and supporting young people within their community, and definitely should not be used as a tool for social control. Street youth workers literally enter the ‘space’ occupied by young people, and the dynamics are different...

Length of session LEARNING OBJECTIVES Identify personal goals. Understand the benefits of planning to get what you want. Identify the steps in goal setting. Create a plan to reach a personal goal. Materials Needed Visual means for recording ideas (paper, chart paper, or white/chalk board and markers/chalk) Naslov Paper and pencils or pens (optional) Naslov One additional chart (to write new words) Naslov Facilitator’s Input and Discussion duration of activity Ask participants to think about something they want to accomplish, and be ready to share their ideas after you tell them a short story. Tell participants about a goal you have or had in the past. Explain what you did or are doing to reach your goal. t Ask participants l Facilitator’s Note Use a goal your group might share, such as earning money, finishing school, buying a motorcycle, getting a gift for someone’s birthday, buying a house, finding a job or getting married u Ask participants if they think you will reach (or would have reached) your goal if you simply wait (had waited) and hope (hoped) for it. Ask participants to name some of the things they want to accomplish or own. ^ Record their ideas on chart paper or the white/chalk board. Tell participants they have identified possible “goals.” Explain that it is good to have goals, and today they will learn how to take steps...