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Promoting Pro-social Norms
Positive Action This approach incorporates evidence based strategies such as increasing perception of personal risk, life skills training, promoting pro-social norms and connecting to community prevention efforts. Positive Action is a comprehensive program for students 3-18 years old. It is targeted for all groups of individuals, regardless of age, gender, race, urban, rural, suburban, etc. Its methodology integrates daily classroom curriculum with a school based prevention program. The Positive Action approach teaches physical, intellectual, social, and emotional positive actions. Students focus on the importance of their thoughts, actions, and feelings. Some of the goals of this program is to improve students’ academic performance, instill students motivation to learn, assist the school, improve students’ behavior, develop students character, develop well rounded students, develop thinking skills, and promote good mental health in students. This program has been proven effective for increasing protective factors such as social skills, positive personal characteristics, knowledge regarding risks associated with substance use, information on positive health behaviors, negative attitude toward drug-related topics, positive relationships with adults, positive bonding to social institutions, and commitment to pro-social values. To learn more about Positive Action click on the link www.positiveaction.net. Project Northland Project Northland is rated an exemplary program by the U.S. Department of Education. The focus is on prevention of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use for students in grades six through eight. The project’s goals are to delay the age when young people begin drinking, reduce alcohol among young people who have already tried it and limit the number of problems. Project Northland was effective in changing peer influence to use alcohol, normative expectations about how many young people drink, and parent-child communication about the consequences of alcohol use and the reasons for not using alcohol. By incorporating evidence based strategies such as correcting misperceptions of norms, increasing perception of personal risk, life skills training and promoting pro-social norms Project Northland teaches youth decision making skills, assists in strengthening parenting skills, teaches youth interpersonal skills and provides information on substance abuse. To learn more about Project Northland click on the link www.hazelden.org. Seattle Social Development The Seattle Social Development Project promotes pro-social norms and corrects misperception of norms by training teachers to active classroom management, promoting children’s pro-social involvement and commitment to the norm of not using drugs. This is a school based intervention program for grades 1-6 that seeks to reduce shared childhood risks for delinquency and drug abuse by enhancing protective factors and decreasing risk factors. Targeted risk factors to decrease are family management problems, early anti-social behaviors, academic failure, low commitment to schools, and friends involved in problem behaviors. Targeted protective factors to increase are opportunities, life skills, recognition bonding with family and schools. By increasing these protective factors students have healthy beliefs and clear standards which lead to healthy behaviors. Therefore students avoid drugs, delinquency, risky sexual behavior, violence and dropping out of school. To learn more about Seattle Social Development click on www.preventionnet.com. Free 5 CPDU online workshop through Northeastern Illinois University’s College of Education Integrate pressing life issues into classes across the curriculum to effectively engage students in learning and support social emotional growth CLICK HERE to access the online workshop No need to come to a training. Download and complete the online workshop at your own pace |