European guidelines for youth AIDS peer education - University of ...

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Project processesSetting up and implementing a peer education project will involve working with several parallel activities atthe same time. These activities are:1 procuring and maintaining funding,2 building and maintaining a project ‘coalition’3 working with young people4 the logistics of training, implementation and support, and5 designing and carrying out an evaluation.Though every peer education project is unique and follows its own course of development, the ‘Europeaninterviews’ that were the sources for these guidelines, and the associated literature, do offer general advice.Procuring fundingLike most public enterprises, AIDS peer education projects will require funding. Fundingcan be found in grants, allotments and subsidies or through utilising current recourses. The various policymakinglevels, private sponsors or research foundations can also be potential sources of funding.Financial sources need not be limited to those sponsoring HIV and drug prevention. AIDS peer education isan aspect of the expanding health promotion approach and potential sources of sponsorship lie in the publichealth and educational systems. It is not unusual for funding to be specially earmarked for vulnerablegroups such as migrants, ethnic youth, IDU’s, and the underprivileged.Whatever the source of the financing, the organisation responsible for allocation will need to be convincedof the project’s worthiness.Building the project coalitionPeer education projects are people-intensive. Working with young people, especially those who have notreached the age of majority, will mean involving gatekeepers and intermediaries such as parents, teachers,and youth workers. Since intermediaries belong to community organisations this will entail collaborationbetween the initiating agency and the organisations involved. Gatekeepers such as parents are oftenrepresented in associations and the project will need their co-operation. We recommend creating a projectcoalition with these organisations and groups. The nature of this coalition will vary considerably dependingon the target group and the peer education approach used. In outreach programmes, the coalition mayinclude pub or café owners, youth and outreach workers, and so on.The coalition is formed in the earliest planning stages and maintained through co-operation,communication and compromise. Convincing these individuals and organisations of the advantages of youthparticipation and AIDS peer education will be a major step. Their support, contribution and involvement willneed to be actively maintained.Working with young peopleThe main focus throughout the project will be the group of young people targeted and the peer educators.Young people usually know little about peer education, what it involves or what it is like to be part of it.They will need to be approached, informed, have their opinions heard, and eventually given a sense ofproject ownership. This relationship will need to be maintained throughout the project.Once the peer educators are recruited they will need to be trained, enabled and supported in their work.Chapter 4 covers this process in greater detail. Moreover, the project will not always be composed of thesame peer educators. Peer educators will drop out, get older and move on, and new ones will be recruited.Adults involved in the project may also move on. The hosting agency will need to take responsibility for thecontinuity of the project and stay in touch with the changing nature of young people.European guidelines for youth AIDS peer education 21
LogisticsPractical arrangements will need to be made to ensure the project’s success. These include co-ordinatingpeer educator training and support, arranging facilities and materials, setting up activities and meetings,writing reports, and so on. This logistical work is people-intensive, as it involves the peer educators, thecoalition partners and intermediaries. Continuous support for peer educators must be provided on an asneededbasis.Designing an evaluationThe aim of evaluation is to assess what the project achieved, how it was achieved, and to provide informationfor future practice. For an evaluation to be successful, it will need to be designed at the earliest stages ofthe project and continued as a parallel process until the project’s completion or a pre-determined date.The above processes sound like a great deal to plan for, but this is true for most prevention projects. Whatdistinguishes work in peer education is the active participation of young people and an empowering andsupportive role for the adults involved. How much actual work there will be depends on the size of theproject. Having an active coalition means that the work can be spread out over various agencies orintegrated into already ongoing activities, such as school classes. The peer educators will eventually be ableto do a great deal themselves. Outside trainers, evaluators and educators can be used on an as-needed basis.Nevertheless, a co-ordinator will be needed to oversee all activities.PlanningPlanning a peer education project will involve the steps given below, though not necessarily in the same order:1 Assessing a group of young people for peer education2 Designing projectsa Defining tentative aims and objectivesb Developing a project modelc Preparing an evaluation3 Initiating a projecta Building a project coalitionb Developing an action planc Recruiting peer educatorsd Preparing for traininge Preparing supportf The project co-ordinator1 Assessing a group of young peoplePeer education has proved to be useful in reaching mainstream and marginalised young people both in andoutside the school system. Projects can be started using new funding or be integrated into existing programmes.HIV prevention is a necessary investment concerning all young people and our future. However, some groupsare more vulnerable than others due to risk behaviours or because they remain outside mainstreamprevention efforts. The nature of these groups varies considerably from region to region in Europe. Since theHIV epidemic is actually a conglomeration of smaller epidemics with roots in local practices and social,economic and environmental conditions, peer education has the advantage of being able to focus on smalland culturally unique groups of young people. However, it is only one of several approaches that may be used.Success in approaching any group of young people will depend on intermediaries whom the young peoplelike and trust. These intermediaries can serve as contacts and eventually as key members of a project22 European guidelines for youth AIDS peer education
Page 4: ContentsPreface 4Foreword 5Chapter
Page 7: The final step was to re-write the
Page 11: Besides, how could an outside exper
Page 14 and 15: Chapter 2Policy making and AIDS pee
Page 16 and 17: What European policy says about the
Page 18 and 19: In most European societies young pe
Page 20 and 21: Project evaluation - a policy quest
Page 24 and 25: coalition. Projects that will invol
Page 26 and 27: What distinguishes this approach fr
Page 28: • an ability to work in groups an
Page 31 and 32: Chapter 4Training and implementatio
Page 33 and 34: It is recommended that the HIV/AIDS
Page 35 and 36: techniques, the presentation of lec
Page 37 and 38: • information kiosks• booklets
Page 39 and 40: exchange of ideas and experience. T
Page 41 and 42: Equity and empowermentHealth promot
Page 43 and 44: Models of systematic evaluationa Re
Page 45 and 46: Questionnaires can be descriptive i
Page 47 and 48: Appendix 1Field interview questions
Page 49 and 50: Appendix 2Projects interviewed fort
Page 51 and 52: Appendix 3Charter and resolutionCha
Page 53 and 54: The role of the health sector must
Page 55 and 56: 4 School environmentThe health prom

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