Providing Education and Training for At Risk ... - Victoria University

This emphasis on having the ‘right’ kind of teacher in programs for ‘at risk’ young people,which is evident in both the literature and in our field research, is clearly well founded becausefor most students interviewed for this project, the clincher for their continued involvementwas the caring and accessible attitude of the staff and the supportive learning environmentthey created.Another aspect of the teacher role is the issue of leadership. It was apparent that most of thesuccessful programs relied on the leadership, enthusiasm and commitment of one or two keypeople. There are clear dangers in this model. In some instances the “driver’s” worth had beenacknowledged by the system, and she/he had been promoted to another position - to thedetriment of the innovative program she/he was leading. There is a clear need to establish astructure at the outset, which will ensure leadership stability.The other danger of this leadership model is ‘burn out’. Staff undertaking demandingresponsibilities such as these need to be adequately supported. This may take the form ofprofessional development in managing people and projects, adjustment of other responsibilitiesto provide real planning and organisational time, or the provision of administration or otherappropriate support. Voluntary and enthusiastic participation alone do not guarantee successfulimplementation of innovations. The role and responsibilities of program leaders must beacknowledged and they must be appropriately resourced.The above points raise clear resourcing implications if the implementation of theseprograms is to be successful. Structures must be put in place at the outset, which willensure adequate planning time, and regular, scheduled meetings of staff. A structurewhich ensures stability of leadership regardless of the inevitable movement of individualsin and out of the program is also essential.Principle 4: The orientation of the program moves beyond theparticular ‘risk’ to broader adolescent/ young developmentMost of the successful programs investigated in this project acknowledged the importance ofdealing with the whole person rather than focusing solely on the immediate curriculum content.Flinders Peak addressed the links between curriculum, welfare and discipline, while Box Hillintroduced a mentoring program, which involved students in setting personal goals. BlackwoodCentre for Adolescent Development provided a program which not only addressed academicneeds and included experiential learning strategies, but also focussed on the development ofstudent’s’ social competencies in self management, decision making, problem solving,communication, and resisting negative and limiting social influences. Schools such as Dovetonand Footscray City have strong associations with community agencies and are able to engagethis expertise on a regular basis. Agencies such as Citymission and BEAT have good connectionswith schools and TAFE institutes and can provide off-site programs when on-site programsare not working for individuals.Outcomes identified by staff and students in these programs affirm the benefits of the holisticapproach to education and training for this group of young people. Staff at Flinders Peak haveattested to a 75% reduction in truancy for students in the PEAK program while also noticinga marked increase in enthusiasm toward being at school. Box Hill identified a more positive57