FINAL REPORT
of the
Evaluation of the Kailua Intermediate School
Healthy Lifestyles Program
March 2005 – May 2006
A Comprehensive Youth Development Program
created and produced by
Breakthroughs for Youth at Risk, Inc.
Funded by the State of Hawaii Department of Defense
INTRODUCTION
This report to the Hawaii Dept. of Defense (DOD) and other interested parties outlines the design, execution and results of the Healthy Lifestyle in Our Community Program designed and delivered by Breakthroughs for Youth at Risk (hereinafter called “Breakthroughs”) and funded by the State of Hawaii Department of Defense, Friends of Hawaii Charities, Windward Rotary Club, Pearl Harbor Rotary Club, Exclusive Promotions, the Combined Federal Campaign, individual contributions and other sources.
Breakthroughs’ comprehensive youth development program for 7th graders at Kailua Intermediate School and 6th graders from Mokapu Elementary School, (who would become 7th graders at Kailua Intermediate School in the next school year), began with agency enrollment, then staff enrollment, and continued with both youth and parent enrollment into the purpose, method, structure, and intended results of the program, and at the same time community outreach for adult volunteer enrollment and participation.
The Hawaii Dept. of Defense granted us $125,000 out of the $196,000 we requested to conduct our program. Total expenditures for Breakthroughs was $225,000, thus the Kailua program was financed by $100,000 from other sources. We had sought an additional $50,000 from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA), however that grant was turned down, and so we spent a part of the year expanding our awareness of additional funding sources and connecting with those sources for both the Kailua program and future program funding.
This report to the Hawaii Dept. of Defense (DOD) and other interested parties outlines the design, execution and results of the Healthy Lifestyle in Our Community Program designed and delivered by Breakthroughs for Youth at Risk (hereinafter called “Breakthroughs”) and funded by the State of Hawaii Department of Defense, Friends of Hawaii Charities, Windward Rotary Club, Pearl Harbor Rotary Club, Exclusive Promotions, the Combined Federal Campaign, individual contributions and other sources.
Breakthroughs’ comprehensive youth development program for 7th graders at Kailua Intermediate School and 6th graders from Mokapu Elementary School, (who would become 7th graders at Kailua Intermediate School in the next school year), began with agency enrollment, then staff enrollment, and continued with both youth and parent enrollment into the purpose, method, structure, and intended results of the program, and at the same time community outreach for adult volunteer enrollment and participation.
The Hawaii Dept. of Defense granted us $125,000 out of the $196,000 we requested to conduct our program. Total expenditures for Breakthroughs was $225,000, thus the Kailua program was financed by $100,000 from other sources. We had sought an additional $50,000 from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA), however that grant was turned down, and so we spent a part of the year expanding our awareness of additional funding sources and connecting with those sources for both the Kailua program and future program funding.
The Healthy Lifestyles Program Objectives included:
1) providing teen pregnancy prevention,
2) providing family strengthening services,
3) empowering youth to become productive and contributing members of their communities,
4) contributing to the empowerment of the community as a safe, healthy, and nurturing source for youth and families,
5) contributing to the community’s understanding and valuation of their young people, and
6) providing opportunities for the youth to grasp and actualize their highest potential.
The youth were identified by school administration, counselors, and teachers. The key school staff were one school counselor who partnered with Breakthroughs, working days, nights, and even weekends throughout the entire enrollment phase (and without whom the enrollment phase would not have been the success that it was), and three teachers who worked with the program through the course and the year of weekly followthrough sessions. One teacher was replaced in September by another in September and proved to be a wonderful contribution to the students’ growth and maturation. These professionals were remarkable human beings committed to young people in their school, and without whom the program would not have been a success.
The Breakthroughs Comprehensive Program:
The Breakthroughs program is a comprehensive youth development program consisting of a 70-hour intensive adolescent development course, and a year of aftercare that included weekly followthrough sessions and adult mentoring. The elements of the program are identified below:
1. Breakthroughs and Kailua Intermediate School forming a commitment to work together to serve the young people at Kailua Intermediate for 15 months;
2. an orientation for Kailua Intermediate School staff -- March 30th, 2005;
3. a school staff training workshop – April 15th - 17th;
4. an adult mentor workshop to train community adults in supporting the young people April 24th – 26th;
5. an orientation where the youth identified dreams and goals for themselves substantive enough for them to commit themselves to the work of their own further development that would enhance the likeness of them achieving those dreams and goals - 12 orientations between April and May 2005;
6. an orientation for parents to enroll them into the program – 10 evening and weekend orientations between May and June 2005;
7. four parent workshops for parents to learn nature of program, adult role modeling, communication skills, relationship and trust building, and team work;
8. an intensive adolescent development course
9. chiropractic services, acupuncture, and NET services for the youth and their parents;
10. exposure to and the practice of Hula, Pilates, Tai Chi;
11. weekly followthrough sessions for the entire school year and various field trips;
12. a parent/youth workshop consisting of outdoor activities including low ropes team or relationship building activities;
13. a parent/youth communication workshop;
14. youth/sibling workshop consisting of outdoor activities including low ropes team or relationship building activities;
15. “Make a Difference Day” at Kailua Intermediate School;
16. showing the Jane Elliot video to the lunch time culture group, and then to all the classes in the school;
17. a completion ceremony and graduation on May 20th, 2005.
Our program goal at Kailua Intermediate School was to have 35 to 40 seventh grade students, who would be in attendance at Kailua Intermediate through their eighth grade. These students would be identified as possibly vulnerable to eventually using or abusing alcohol or other drugs and impregnating or becoming pregnant, and otherwise falling off track of achieving their potential. We requested, and were promised by the school, a list of 80 students who met our requirements. We received a list of only 43 students, which forced us to look first at 8th graders, and then at 6th graders, and then at the very last minute, we received an additional list of seventh graders. We enrolled 53 seventh graders from Kailua Intermediate School and 12 sixth graders from Mokapu Elementary School, the only feeder school that chose on short notice to actively participate.
Of the 65 enrolled, 38 started the youth development course in July 2005. Two more joined on the second day of the seven day course, for forty in total, and then we lost two during the course -- one suddenly moved to Maui (mother did not inform us prior) and another became ill during the course. Another, number forty-one, who was a military student, left on the second day, just prior to dad’s next deployment to Iraq, for a planned family vacation, and with prior notification to us. He was to return in the fall and continue in the followthrough. Thirty-eight completed that seven-day, seventy hour intensive adolescent development course. This was one of the best attended courses in Breakthroughs history. Thirty-six of the 38 had their parents in attendance for the course completion and acknowledgment ceremonies the evening of the seventh day.
All of the youth participated in and experienced chiropractic adjustments and learned about mental and emotional stresses, their impact on harmonious feelings within the body, and their impact on alignment of spinal structure, ultimately upon the quality of balance and harmony in the body. Chiropractic allowed the young people to discover how their mental or emotional knots create muscle tensions that pull their bones, and thus bodies, out of alignment, cause physical discomfort and even pain, and block a person’s ability to be at ease and in the present, versus stuck in some past incident. Discomfort produces dis-ease, which, if unattended, produces illness. It all begins with mental and emotional blockages that, if unattended, can eventually end up as emotional or mental illness, and ultimately can become physical illness.
They also experienced NET (neuro-emotional technique) a chiropractic technique that demonstrates how the body stores every lived experience in various organs in the body and how those experiences can impact the function or dysfunction of the bodily organs, and the body itself. All of the students participated in instruction of tai chi, pilates, and hula. The students in smaller groups rotated through each of the three activities, and then each group selected one to practice and prepare a performance for their parents on the seventh day of the course. A couple of the students even participated in the available acupuncture services. (We had presented these services to the parents at their orientations and made those same services available to the parents at the first parent workshop.) Our intention was to expose the students to these healthy ways of self care so that they would have that positive exposure and experience for later in adolescence when they might want or need such services, and would remember these services and choose one of them, rather than get involved in a negative and unhealthy activity.
During spring enrollment 120 parents were contacted via letters. Forty-five parents attended the hour and half orientations. Thirty-five parents (34 who had attended an orientation) representing 26 of the 40 youth, participated in the first parent workshop. This was the best level of parent participation in a parent workshop ever achieved by Breakthroughs. We demonstrated chiropractic and NET and offered them to the parents, so that they would know and understand these alternative resources for creating and maintaining health. Six parents went through the coaches training and participated as adult volunteers at the seven-day intensive course itself in July 2005. We have two of those parents still participating as volunteers with Breakthroughs, in a new course for Castle High School tenth graders in January 2007 and the ensuing followthrough. The son of one parent also participated in the January course, though he is a freshman at another high school.
The Breakthroughs program was designed to identify the issues that the students are dealing with in their lives, and to get beneath the surface of those issues and examine the causes and effects of those issues in their lives. For the most part, these issues stemmed from their parents, their siblings, or other family members, or from school, the administrators, or their teachers, or their peers. These were issues, which if not brought up to the surface, made conscious, and addressed in a healthy manner, could likely cause the young people to eventually become users, then abusers, and addicted to alcohol and other drugs, and/or to become sexually active at an early age, and to be irresponsible with sex, to become angry and abusive of others or to hurt themselves, and would result in failing grades and poor attendance, and ultimately could result in dropping out of school.
Developing confidence, discovering strengths, and learning to face fears: The ropes course was a vehicle for just that purpose – embracing one’s fears, realizing that everyone had fears, and learning to face and go through the fears and come out on the other side: accomplishment. The point of the program was to teach them to value themselves, and begin to treat themselves with more care, to learn ways of healthy self care, which would minimize experimentation, and how far they would have to go in resorting to any negative means of dealing with whatever was going on in their lives that caused them pain and that they could not control. The program was about the young people learning how to assert themselves, and speak in a way that others listened. The program was about self-respect. Teenage sexual activity, taking unnecessary risks, teenage pregnancy, use and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs by teenagers, are signs of a lack of self-respect, and knowledge and practice of healthy self care. Teens must find the courage or strength to let go of what they cannot change, such as mom and dad’s divorce, and to face what they can change and do what it takes.
Once school started we accepted youth who had not done the seven-day intensive course, into the aftercare component of the program, and it appears that about 50% benefited from their participation, and 50% were not able to meet the group level of relationship and intimacy. They eventually stopped participating. During the course we learned that several of the youth had severe issues from their childhood, and long standing issues with each other. We worked with the parents and counselors to secure the necessary services for these young people.
One important program benefit was the increased understanding of the students by the school staff. There were school staff members who did not participate in the program, but whose students had. These staff came to the program staff, asked for assistance in dealing with their students, worked with program staff in helping students to learn, grow and develop positively. In one special case, there was a teacher who brought in the parent and student together, and we all worked to develop a solution to the problem that the teacher presented. In yet other instances, parents called us and asked us to go and help their student’s teacher in resolving the problems at hand. Or in many instances, parents called us and worked with us in resolving problems their child faced. And, of course, we called all parents in seeking resolutions to problems that their children faced or posed, and we worked with those who were willing to work with us. Often, the school counselor and Breakthroughs held evening meetings with parent(s) and child to work together and resolve whatever the problem or issue was.
Every adult who volunteered their services learned of the variety and complexities of the problems and issues affecting these young people in their daily lives. We also learned of the efforts and struggles of the parents of these young people. We learned of the efforts of caring school staff and the structural limitations they faced in their efforts to effectively teach these young people.
The second parent workshop, was an outdoor activities and low ropes course day for both parents and their children. Twenty-three of 38 youth participated, 21 with at least one parent (or both parents), and some siblings also participated that day.
The third parent workshop, a communication workshop, had 19 students in attendance and 15 parents. Another 10 students had other activities, mostly sports, for a total of 29 students accounted for in approved activities.
The fourth parent workshop had only seven parents participate.
The siblings’ workshop was held in December 2005 and consisted of outdoor and low-ropes team building activities designed to strengthen the bond amongst our youth participants and their siblings.
The young people did a community service project. On the Kailua Intermediate School’s Make a Difference Day, they joined adults from the local community and the Marine base and worked that full Saturday with the adults, cleaning, scraping gum up off the walks, cleaning lockers, and painting their own middle school.
We showed the young people a video developed by Jane Elliot on an experiment she did as a teacher with her third graders in 1968 when Martin L King was murdered and she wanted them to understand racism. The video was called “Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes.” At the request of some students that video was shown in a lunch time culture group where students of African, Hawaiian, European, (and all the other cultures and races as contained in the school), gathered to share their own and learn about others’ cultures and races. The request was made to show the video to the entire school. The students presented the request to the faculty and administration. Once approved, the video was shown to all 7th and 8th grade classes. The decrease in antagonism and fights between military and local students over the year was significant. The following school year the video was shown to all incoming 7th graders.
The graduation event was in May 2006, and had a total of 14 youth participate, and 17 parents. Ten youth did not complete the program and attend the graduation as a result of military or other relocation, and 15 total dropped out of the program during the course of the year, because they no longer wanted to attend, or as a result of lack of parent support, or because they were removed due to needs beyond the program’s ability to provide, and referred to other services, such as individual therapy. Many working parents (or otherwise busy) had difficulty all year long with handling the weekly after school program attendance, and the once Saturday program attendance.
RESULTS OF THE PROGRAM
An extensive evaluation study was conducted in order to gauge the effectiveness of the program. The students completed a pre-program evaluation questionnaire, a post-course questionnaire, and a post-program evaluation questionnaire. Grades, attendance, reports on referrals (for possible disciplinary action) and suspensions were obtained from the schools and included. The results follow below:
Self Esteem
Immediately after the seven-day course and again after the program was completed, the youth were asked to assess how they feel about themselves as compared before the program.
Exhibit 1 Self Esteem
How do you feel about yourself now? // After Program
Much better
67% //56%
Little better
8% // 25%
About the same
17% // 19%
Little worse
8% // 0
Much worse
0 // 0
Don’t know
0 // 0
Average
1.33 // 1.38
Legend: -2=much worse -1=worse 0=same 1=better 2=much better
Conclusion: Three out of four felt much better or a little better about themselves, reflecting higher self-esteem, self-worth, self-respect and self-confidence. This is an amazing development that may establish a good foundation for positive attitudinal and behavioral shifts, which also will eventually lead to improvement in grades, as well as improvement in family relationships. People who feel good about themselves generally achieve greater success in most phases of their lives, so this change also foreshadows improved school performance, citizenship, extracurricular activities, graduation and higher education, better jobs, happier families, more successful relationships, and greater lifetime accomplishments.
Both before the program started and after the program was completed, the youth were asked to describe their lives, circling one of the following: sucks, not very good, OK, pretty good, awesome.
Exhibit 2 Describe Your Life
Before the Program 2.6
After the Program 4.0
Legend: 1=sucks 2=not very good 3=OK 4=pretty good 5=awesome
Conclusion: The improvement in the quality of life, rated by the youth themselves and outlined above, is huge. These ratings, reinforcing the findings in the previous exhibit, reflect higher self-esteem and self-worth, less stress, greater optimism, and more happiness. What must be noted is that for the most part, their actual lives had not changed much during the course of that school
year, but how they felt about their lives did change. We did a substantial amount of work with their parents, and with both the students and their parents, and in some cases, with their siblings and friends - parent workshops, student/parent workshops, and a student/sibling or friend workshop. In the final analysis, this statistic is one of the most important and illuminating in this report and is a key reason why Breakthroughs does the work that it does.
Family Relationships
The strength of the family is a positive (or negative) factor in the attitudes and behavioral patterns of the youth. Strengthening families was a commitment of our program. We had parent workshops for parents to understand themselves and their children, sibling workshops to improve sibling relationships, and parent/child workshops. The program included listening skills building, communication skills training, and understanding the other person in communication, and communicating so as to be understood. The youths in the program were asked to rate their relationships with family members and their responses are outlined below.
Exhibit 3 Family Relationships
Getting Along With…
Before Program // After Intensive Course // After Program
Mother
4.3 // 4.5 // 3.8
Father
4.1 // 4.0 // 4.4
Sister(s)
4.1 // 3.9 // 3.8
Brother(s)
3.9 // 4.3 // 3.9
Step Mother
3.7 // 3.9 // 5.0
Step Father
3.7 // 4.3 // 3.3
Grandparents
4.6 // 4.6 // 4.3
Legend: 1=very poor 2=poor 3=fair 4=good 5=very good
Conclusion: Relationships between the participating youths and their families improved. The youth in this program were 6th and 7th graders (vs. high schoolers in all of our previous programs) and the average family relationship rating of this current group was higher at the beginning of the program than for the high school students.
Behavioral Changes
The youths were asked to ascertain any changes in six behavioral models from the period immediately before the program to just after the intensive course, and then after the entire program had been completed. The following exhibit details the responses given after the intensive course.
Exhibit 4 Behavioral Changes
Much Better // Same // Worse // Worse
Getting along with peers
44% // 49% // 4% // 3% // 0%
Getting along with teachers
36% // 44% // 19% // 0
Attending classes
46% // 33% //19% // 0 // 0
Studying, doing homework
33% // 36% // 31% // 0 //0
Following rules
33% // 44% // 19% // 0 // 3%
Staying out of trouble
33% // 36% // 22% // 3% // 6%
Conclusion: The results here are very encouraging. For all of the behavioral categories listed, the change has been strongly positive. The proportion of youth who said they are better or much better in the six behavioral models ranged from a low of 69% to a high of 93%.
The following exhibit uses the same raw data and compiles this data in a different way. By assigning a rating to each person’s response, both after the seven-day course and after the entire program, then averaging the ratings for each behavioral model, the following has been computed.
Exhibit 5 Behavioral Changes
After 7-Day Course //After Program
Getting along with peers
1.35 // 1.19
Getting along with teachers
1.17 // 0.94
Attending classes
1.28 // 1.00
Studying or doing homework
1.03 // 0.94
Following rules
1.06 // 1.06
Staying out of trouble
0.89 // 0.81
Legend: -2=much worse -1=worse 0=same 1=better 2=much better
Conclusion: In five of the six categories after the seven-day course and in three of the six categories after the program ended, the average change was between “better” and “much better.” These are significant improvements in a very short period of time and reflect a fundamental change in attitude. The youth understood others better as a result of the course and the entire program. They also understood themselves better as a result of the course and the entire program. The result was less negative behavior – less need to act out, to test, and to cross the line.
Anger Management
When asked whether they lose their tempers more or less now than before they did the program, nearly six out of ten said they lost their tempers less and a third said it was about the same.
Exhibit 6 Anger Management
After 7-Day Course // After Program
More now
8% // 6%
About the same
33% // 38%
Less now
58% // 56%
Conclusion: The youth developed more responsibility for their emotions, anger in particular, and healthier ways to handle their anger. They also learned techniques to stop and think, to think deeper and to consider consequences more than before, thus improving control of their temper. They learned to listen to themselves, when no one else would. As a result, over half now lose their tempers less than before and probably live a less stressful, and more peaceful life.
Drugs and Alcohol Usage
Exhibit 7 How do you feel about alcohol?
Before Program // After 7-Day Course // After Program
Love to get high
0% // 0% // 0%
Not healthy for me
29% // 21% // 31%
Don’t care what I do to me
0% // 0% // 0%
I am hurting myself
13% // 3% // 6%
Definite no-no
47% // 63% // 44%
Makes me forget
3% // 0% // 0%
It’s my friends
0% // 0% // 6%
It’s my parents
0% // 0% // 0%
Won’t hurt me
0% // 0% // 6%
I can handle it
8% // 11% // 19%
No answer
5% // 0% // 12%
Exhibit 8 How do you feel about drugs?
Before Program // After 7-Day Course // After Program
Love to get high
0% // 0% // 0%
Definite no-no
53% // 49% // 62%
Don’t care what I do to me
0% // 0% // 0%
I am hurting myself
5% // 3% // 0%
Makes me feel better
0% // 0% // 0%
Need to stop
3% // 0% // 0%
Can’t stop
0% // 0% // 0%
Afraid
5% // 0% // 0%
Out of control
0% // 0% // 0%
Not healthy for me
34% // 51% // 56%
No answer
3% // 3% // 6%
Exhibit 9
Drug Use in the Last Six months (asked at the Beginning of the Program)
Never 84%
Various frequencies that could be chosen 0%
No answer 16%
Subsequent questionnaires asked the youths to describe the changes in their use of drugs. Virtually everyone stated again that they never ever used drugs and just one person said they stopped using.
Exhibit 10
Alcohol Use in the Last Six months (asked at the Beginning of the Program)
Never 80%
Twice 4%
Other frequencies that could be chosen 0%
No answer 16%
Subsequent questionnaires asked the youths to describe the changes in their use of alcohol. Virtually everyone stated again that they never drank. Four said he(she) stopped drinking, one said he(she) drank a lot less and one said he(she) drank the same amount as before.
Conclusion: A very few of these young people had experimented with alcohol and other drugs because of the influence of someone in their family and the access to alcohol or other drugs in their homes. All of these young people talked during the year about the easy availability of drugs on or nearby their campus via their peers. Two or three of these young people, who had not experimented before, experimented during the year. The easy availability combined with the issues going on in their lives, such as deployment, caused young people to experiment as a way to draw attention to themselves and their worries or fears. One teen who experimented simply wanted her father to not go on deployment. Those who had used alcohol or other drugs because of other family members influence did not report use during the program year, nor did counselors, or teachers, or parents report any use by any one of the young people in the program. We talked openly and frankly about alcohol and other drug use throughout the school year. And we monitored their behaviors in school during that year, and communicated frequently with their parents. Our aim was to teach them that alcohol and other drugs was not the answer to their problems, and to identify the problem, to learn to embrace and accept their feelings, and to talk it out with the person(s) involved, or someone who could assist them in positively resolving the problem. It is also clear that some young people did not feel safe in honestly answering this question, figuring that it would get back to their parents or somehow be used against them – 16% said no answer. Then one or two students may have been braggers as opposed to providing honest answers to this and other questions on the evaluation.
They are trying to find an identity amongst their peers, either the good guy or girl, or the bad boy or girl, experimenting, spending time at school with both camps, wanting popularity, wanting to have friends, wanting a boyfriend or girlfriend – all about being able to create and sustain successful fulfilling social relationships. The focus on relationships, and the drama, the arguments, the gossip, the fights because of “he said,” “she said,” the breakups, and the constant formation of new relationships, at this age is intense, and if unsuccessful or unresolved, the struggle is likely to continue right into high school, until they are able to achieve success in social relationships, or completely give up at succeeding, and become either socially alienated and withdrawn, or possibly socially aggressive and destructive.
Sexual Relations
Exhibit 11
What is your attitude about having sexual relations?
Before Program // After 7-Day Course // After Program
I am not yet old enough or ready
53% // 64% // 56%
I want to take care of my education first
37% // 47% // 38%
Only with the person I am in love with
13% // 11% // 31%
When we are married and not before
16% // 19% // 31%
Casual sex is okay
3% // 6% // 6%
It is important to respect myself
16% // 25% // 38%
No unsafe sex
8% // 25% // 38%
Need to make sure other person is tested
13% // 14% // 31%
No casual sex
3% // 19% // 19%
Unsafe sex is okay
3% // 0% // 0%
Important to respect other person
1 1% // 22% // 50%
Note: The percentages depict the proportion of respondents who selected these answers. The figures total more than 100% because multiple answers were permitted.
Conclusion: These statistics demonstrate a significant and healthy shift in attitude in two general areas. The first is in taking responsibility for their sexual conduct and the consequences. For example, there were strong increases in the categories of “no unsafe sex,” “need to make sure other person is tested,” and “no casual sex.” The second area pertains to love and respect. Thus, there were large increases in the categories of “only with the person I am in love with,” “when we are married and not before,” “it is important to respect myself,” and “important to respect other person.” Clearly, these youth are in a much better position to make healthy and responsible choices with respect to sex than they were before participating in this program. What allowed for the shift was their growth through the course and program in their own appreciation for and respect of themselves. They also saw very deeply into the makeup of their peers who were in the course, (as well as into themselves), and consequently developed a deeper awareness of who are positive persons or healthy, and who are negative persons, or not healthy.
No teenager became pregnant during the year-long program. During the entire year, we worked weekly, and sometimes daily with these young people. No sexual activity was reported by any students, or by a parent, teacher, school counselor, or adult volunteer.
One teenager was actually accused of sexual assault or rape. However, he reported the suspicion that he was going to be accused to a school staff almost immediately, and handled himself so maturely throughout the entire investigation, that he was found innocent of any and all charges, and all adults who knew him from before the program said that he would never have handled himself so responsibly before.
Grades
The grades over three semesters were studied. (1) The semester prior to their participation in the program – the second semester of the 2004-2005 school year. (The course itself was held in July 2005 during the summer between the school years 2004-2005 and 2005-2006.) (2) The first semester of the 2005-2006 school year. That first semester began in August 2005. (3) The second semester of the 2005-2006 school year. Our year-long followthrough of support for the students began at the start of that first semester in August 2005, and continued right through May, 2006 just prior to the end of the second semester 2005-2006.
Exhibit 12 Grades
Period of Review
2nd semester 2004-2005 1.92
1st semester 2005-2006 1.69
2nd semester 2005-2006 1.79
Conclusion: On the whole, grades actually dropped by a small amount during and after the program. Some students’ grades did improve, and remarkably so, as seen in their rport cards and reinforced by strong positive teacher or parent responses. However, most students’ grades did not improve. What we observed was that something else had these intermediate students concern and attention: whether dad’s deployment and mom’s depression; or the fact that mother wanted now to come back into my life, have me live with her, after all these years when she was addicted to drugs and not there for me; or that dad was soon to get out of jail after being locked up for five years, and worry about how that was going to change my life; or that mom never listened to what I wanted.
Immediately after the course ends and even after the program itself ends, many students struggle with the new knowledge that they themselves are responsible for their lives, and not others. The biggest challenge for the middle school students was accepting the fact that they were no longer kids, and were now going to have to take responsibility for their lives, and they struggled all year long with this challenge. Taking on this new responsibility often initially causes discomfort and some rebelliousness until they start to more fully accept this responsibility. High school students are more developed than middle school students, and therefore more able to hear and listen to the messages we delivered in many different ways on the importance of educating themselves. For high school students, we often found a later, definite and consistent improvement in grades. For these middle school adolescents given the circumstances of many of these students lives, the whole formation of identity and the need to belong with their peer group may be so demanding, that little attention and energy is left to be given to grades and such. As opposed to high school students, we found that the concerns of these young people were their relationships with their peers, and the issues and problems they had with their parents, and that their needs in regard to these concerns were very extensive, thus preventing them from focusing on their grades. Additionally, a good number of the students, 12, were medicated, before the program, back in spring 2005 when we enrolled them, and remained medicated during that first semester of 2005-2006, and still others were medicated in second semester 2005-2006. With most of them, there was small hope of impacting grades.
Referrals and Suspensions
We used the number of “referrals to the administration” for possible disciplinary action and the number of suspensions for the first and second semesters of the 2005-2006 school-year. Only those youth for whom we have referral and suspension statistics for both semesters are included here. Thus, if a student moved away before completing the second semester, his data for the first semester was excluded.
Exhibit 13 Referrals and Suspensions
1st Semester `05-06' 2nd Semester`05-06'
Average Number of Referrals 3.7 // 1.4
Average Number of Suspensions 0.5 // 0.7
Conclusion: In a marvelous development, the number of referrals dropped from an average of 3.7 per person in the first semester to 1.4 per person in the second semester. The number of suspensions increased ever so slightly. A large number of referrals and suspensions were made by only a few students who had many referrals and suspensions. And while thoroughly familiar with the school’s policies and consequences, young people experimenting in the formation of an identity and in establishing relationships with their peers, had to test the rules and consequences. Others still wrestling with trauma from their past, continued to wrestle with their habit of reacting to people and events that had nothing to do with what was really going on with them. Letting go of blaming others, and accepting responsibility for their choices was difficult.
In addition to the evidence presented above, which provides evidence of deep-seated emotional and psychological improvements, the following anecdotal evidence reinforces this phenomenon. The following are some of the responses to the question: “What do you notice as the biggest positive change as a result of doing the program?”
* “Been nicer.”
* “I’m not afraid of heights.”
* “Being nervous when talking to an audience changed.”
* “Attitude.”
* “I don’t think of suicide anymore.”
* “Meeting new friends.”
* “Listening better.”
* “When I climb up a high tree.”
* “Fighting less.”
* “My fear has changed.”
* “I learned how to deal with my problems.”
* “No fight.”
* “Myself.”
* “To have more confidence.”
* “Help me to learn how important my life is to me.”
* “My grades.”
* “More confidence.”
* “Do better things.”
* “Relieving my anger and stress.”
* “Getting along with others.”
* “Making new friends.”
* “My anger.”
* “To be more confident of myself.”
* “My dad.”
* “To overcome my fears.”
* “Get less angry.”
* “I’m not scared of heights anymore.”
* “Feel better.”
* “Meeting new friends.”
* “More friends.”
* “I can be counted on for responsibility wise.”
* “Listen more.”
* “I feel more confident.”
* “My putting people down.”
* “Reading.”
* “Paying more attention.”
* “Fighting less.”
* “Learned more about teamwork.”
* “I’ve gotten along better with peers.”
Parents’ Evaluation
In addition to the questionnaires that the youth participants were asked to complete, the parents were also asked to complete questionnaires. Unfortunately, only 12 parents completed the questionnaire that was distributed at the completion of the program. Nevertheless, their responses are vital in evaluating the program. One question was “When there is a problem at home, is there a difference with how it interferes with your child’s ability to do homework or his/her ability to concentrate on education?”
Exhibit 14 Parent’s Evaluation of Child Doing Homework or Concentrating
Major Improvement 25% No Improvement 17%
Some Improvement 42% No Response 17%
Conclusion: It’s encouraging that the parents themselves have observed a widespread change for the better in how the youth handle problems at home.
Another question was “Is there any difference in your child’s temper?
Exhibit 15 Parent’s Evaluation of Difference in Child’s Temper
Major Improvement 25%
Some Improvement 50%
No Improvement 8%
No Response 17%
When asked, “if there is a difference in your child’s temper, what is different?” the responses were:
® Seems better able to communicate.
® Started meds for ADHD so helped in matters of homework.
® He knows how to self calm himself.
Conclusion: It’s encouraging that the parents themselves had observed a widespread change for the better in how the youth handle problems at home and in the youth’s temper. One would expect the “no improvement” choice to be the overwhelming choice had there not been our program or any other intervention into the thinking and feelings of the youth. The very low 8% score for “no improvement” above is a strong validation of the effectiveness of the program.
Finally, the parents were asked: “Is your child’s current mood different than before the program? If so, in what ways is it different?” Seventy-five percent said “yes” and 25% said “no.” Statements made by the parents as to what ways the mood is different include:
® “Listens to instructions better.”
® “He doesn’t want to fight.”
® “More argumentative.”
® “______ is growing out of some bad habits. He seems to be maturing.”
® “With the fact that communication we did lack; now days, communication—we are very open.”
® “He seems much happier because he has friends now and is not as isolated from others.”
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