Youth Work Training Research Articles

The ‘Secular Culture’ of Youth Work Training: Are English Universities Equipping Youth Workers to Work with Diverse Religious Communities?

ABSTRACT Most professionally-qualifying youth work programmes in the UK are secular programmes in mainstream universities. Current UK National Occupational Standards require youth workers to ‘Explore the concept of values and beliefs with young people’. Faith organisations form the largest sector of the UK youth work field and all youth workers need to be equipped to work inclusively with diverse communities. This research explored, through a semi-structured survey sent to programme leaders, the coverage of religion, faith and spirituality in youth work training courses in England. We found tensions in how religion, faith and spirituality are incorporated into programmes and how programme leaders think youth workers should engage with it in their practice. Where explicit content on religion, faith and spirituality is incorporated into training programmes, it tends to focus on controversial issues such as radicalisation. The survey revealed a lack of consensus across programme leaders as to how the NOS relating to values and beliefs should be interpreted and whether their graduates are being sufficiently equipped to work with diverse religious communities. The research exposes a need for more explicit recognition of the place of religion, faith and spirituality in youth work and in the curricula of secular training programmes.

Exploring a constructivist redesign of youth work training: transformative-oriented learning and trainer development

Two small-scale studies were conducted to investigate the viability of a constructivist learning design for a 25-hour child and youth care training program. The first study investigated transformative learning conditions, belief change processes, and practice change. The second study explored a trainer’s development of transformative learning instructional practices. Results of study 1 indicated the training program fostered transformative learning conditions, practitioner reflection on practices, and changes in practice. The process of belief change differed by participants, with evidence of both transformative-oriented and nontransformative learning. Study 2 found the trainer’s change from a transmission to a transformative approach to teaching required shifting beliefs about types of effective teaching, greater attunement to practitioner points of view and the process of learning, and appreciation of practitioner initial resistance to training. The findings provide preliminary evidence for the viability and effectiveness of a constructivist approach to training and the process of trainer development for fostering transformative-oriented learning.

Trends in Youth Work Training

Youth work education data reveals rise in student numbers, but a tough job market for graduates

Large Group Work: Identity Development and Its Significance for Achieving Race Equality

This article examines and analyses the effectiveness of experiential large group work (between 24–35 students) in delivering community and youth work training at Goldsmiths1. It specifically focuses on students’ development and experience in their understanding of racism and identity. The training has refined a model of learning and teaching that combines large group work and experiential learning. It is in this arena that students explore and critically reflect on their life and work experiences. They learn to process and articulate their feelings and understandings across a wide range of issues that come from learning how to inwardly reflect and to develop an awareness of themselves and change. The article explores the experience of group work training and the significance of students’ development of their racial identity in effectively addressing racism. It draws on both the work of Paulo Freire (1972; 1995) on education and Pat de Maré (1975; 1991) on large groups. The article begins by examining some of the literature on both race and large groups followed by an exploration of racial identity and its development in the group work process in terms of distinct phases. It then discusses the importance of the large group and its relevance to development of racial identities. It concludes by highlighting the significance of the issue of racial identity in addressing racism.

Groupwork Training for social justice

This paper examines and analyses experiential groupwork in delivering community and youth work training at Goldsmiths, University of London. The programme has, over its forty year history refined a model of education and training that combines large groupwork and experiential learning. The paper explores our experience of groupwork training. The model developed combines groupwork as a tool for learning and teaching. It is in this arena that students explore and critically reflect on their life and work experiences, and learn to process and articulate their feelings and understandings across a wide range of issues, including democratic social change, equality, identity, empowerment and leadership which all comes from learning how to inwardly reflect and change and develop an awareness of themselves. The paper in particular focuses on the development of students’ identity from which they draw out their learning on equality and sets out that this is central to training for achieving equality and social change.

Groupwork Training for social justice

This paper examines and analyses experiential groupwork in delivering community and youth work training at Goldsmiths, University of London. The programme has, over its forty year history refined a model of education and training that combines large groupwork and experiential learning. The paper explores our experience of groupwork training. The model developed combines groupwork as a tool for learning and teaching. It is in this arena that students explore and critically reflect on their life and work experiences, and learn to process and articulate their feelings and understandings across a wide range of issues, including democratic social change, equality, identity, empowerment and leadership which all comes from learning how to inwardly reflect and change and develop an awareness of themselves. The paper in particular focuses on the development of students’ identity from which they draw out their learning on equality and sets out that this is central to training for achieving equality and social change .

’Pagan Knowledge’: a case study of post‐modern theorising and youth work training

AbstractYouth worker training has existed on a formal basis for many years but the training programme can be seen as conventional. There is an emphasis on participative activity where students are encouraged to work in groups, to develop learning opportunities and to use contracts to regulate their experience. A case‐study of a part‐time training route provides the focus for the paper. J‐F. Lyotard has developed a set of categories in his understanding of post‐modernity including the notions of pagan knowledge and the figural. Two scenes from the course are analysed through Lyotard's categories in order to reveal the distinctive discursive work that was taking place. Other accounts of such scenes have relied upon a clash between discourses, e.g. a discourse of oppression being countered by a different discourse. If Lyotard's ideas are developed, then the dominant discourse can be seen to contain its own oppositional practices and there is no need to search for further external discourses. The case‐study shows how the students in training used the dominant discourse of participation to bring about a series of different effects.

Criterion measures for youth-work training programs: The development of relevant performance dimensions.

Criterion measures for youth-work training programs: The development of relevant performance dimensions.

Criterion measures for youth-work training programs: The development of relevant performance dimensions.

An attempt to develop relevant criterion measures for work-training programs serving disadvantaged adolescents involved the longitudinal application of 32 trainee performance criteria at program completion and 40 longer-term outcome measures approximately six months following training. Factor analyses of those variables yielded four program completion (proximal) criterion dimensions of work motivation and planning ability, personal-social adjustments and training program competency. Post-program (distal) variables resulted in five dimensions encompassing areas of social and community adjustments, skill in job planning, ability to perform on jobs and to seek or find employment. Loading magnitudes and factor patterns provided a basis for identifying those variables with the greatest concurrent relevance; whereas, correlations between proximal and distal criteria pinpointed those end-of-program outcomes of greatest predictive relevance (e.g., proficiency ratings by counselors, work supervisors and peers; family adjustments, favorable self and social perceptions). This empirical approach to criterion development was shown to provide better understanding of the multidimensional aspects of a criterion domain and information for setting priorities in the choice of criterion variables.