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BACKGROUND: Life skill education is critical for developing various competencies among the adolescent population, especially in India, given the recent shift in policy focus. AIM: To examine the reliability, factor structure, and the validity of scales measuring gender attitudes, perceived self-efficacy, resilience, and problem-solving in order to assess the effectiveness of a life skill program among Indian adolescents. METHODS: Baseline data, before a life skill intervention program by Magic Bus India Foundation, were collected from over 16000 Indian adolescents between 11 and 15 years on different measures. Results from principal component analyses with pro-max rotation indicated a one-factor solution for all the scales. Further, confirmatory factor analyses indicated an excellent model fit using the diagonally weighted least squares method of estimation for the above- mentioned scales. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The models for each scale were gender invariant, indicating that gender attitudes, perceived self-efficacy, resilience, and problem solving were assessed similarly between boys and girls. Additionally, correlation analysis indicated a positive relationship between gender attitudes and self-efficacy, a negative relation between gender attitudes and resilience, and a negative association between self-efficacy and resilience. Implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vincenzo Mele's book, "City and Modernity in Georg Simmel and Walter Benjamin: Fragments of Metropolis," explores the relationship between two influential thinkers, Georg Simmel and Walter Benjamin, who have had an impact on the field of sociology. Mele examines their perspectives on the subjectivity and mass society, particularly in relation to the metropolis. He draws on previous studies and builds on the insights of other scholars to contribute to a history of the present that considers both modernity and postmodernity. Mele's book is a comprehensive and interdisciplinary exploration of Simmel and Benjamin's ideas, providing readers with a deeper understanding of their work. [Extracted from the article]

Considering the disparity between mental health services and resources available in Nigeria, researchers have highlighted the need for organizations, policymakers, and health service providers to revamp their approaches. Due to its unifying nature and cultural importance in the youth population, grassroots sport programming has been shown to be an effective mechanism in promoting education and life skills. In Lagos, Nigeria, the Basketball Experience program was designed to promote physical well-being, healthy living, mental health, and life skills in Nigerian youth utilizing principles from the Resilience and Youth Development Module. Researchers interviewed seven female and three male coaches using a phenomenological approach to investigate their perspectives of the program's impact on themselves and the youth they coach. Results suggest that implementing mental health education and resilience development, specifically through positive mentorship and strategies such as breathing and mindfulness exercises, into a sport for development program can assist with increased knowledge and reduced mental health stigma. Coaches strongly endorsed increased use of programs like Basketball Experience to promote positive development and combat the disparity in mental health literacy and policy, and they suggested that such programs have the power to help restructure the longstanding cycle of negative stressors inherent to life in Nigeria. Based on these perspectives, the authors discuss how grassroots sport programming can be an effective tool in the development of both coaches and youth. Moreover, the authors advocate for the Resilience and Youth Development Module as an impactful theoretical framework for facilitating resilience and life skills in coaches and youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study examines the effectiveness of an After-School Life Skills (ASLS) intervention to improve the life skills of 110 students from socially disadvantaged backgrounds at public schools of urban Bangalore in south India. These students completed ASLS intervention from 2014 to 2018 during which the life skills were assessed on a yearly interval and the data were analyzed using repeated measure ANOVA. The results show that ASLS intervention significantly improved the students' life skills. Post hoc comparisons at time 1 shows that young students who participated in ASLS intervention significantly improved their life skills over the 4 years' time, although no significant variances were observed between measurement periods. The overall effect was found to be significant in improving the life skills, which shows that integrating life skills education in the school curriculum is critical and a timely need. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine the relationship between club rugby participation, collegiate experiences, and perceived gains, 25 rugby players and 25 non-athlete students completed the Student-Athlete Experiences Inventory-Revised, Student-Athlete Gains Inventory, and Perceived Stress Scale at the start and end of a semester. A RM-ANOVA and partial-η2 effect sizes determined if group and time differences were present. We selected variables associated with the post-scores for practical and liberal arts gains with the lasso method. Rugby players engaged in more diverse social interactions (partial-η2 = 0.091) and were more actively involved on campus (partial-η2 = 0.0914) than non-athlete students, but paradoxically had lower practical arts gains (p < 0.0001). All students reported increasing stress levels from start to end of the semester (partial-η2 = 0.109), which contributed to decreasing practical arts gains. Students need help with stress management near semester's end. Club rugby players should seek support services on campus to improve career preparedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We set out to test a theory-based measure of health literacy. To do so, we included the newly developed Calgary Charter on Health Literacy scale in Pre- and Post-evaluation of the Life Enhancement Program at multiple sites. The program focusing on health literacy and the prevention of chronic disease is conducted with health-care provider organization partners across the United States. In testing the reliability and validity of the new measure of health literacy, Cronbach's alpha is very acceptable level at 0.80. There are numerous statistically significant correlations between the change in health literacy and participants' changes in knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, and health status. Data and analysis indicate that the Calgary Charter on Health Literacy Scale is a valid and reliable measurement tool in the contexts and with the populations they were tested within. More testing is necessary and warranted in a wider variety of contexts and populations—ideally to include large representative random samples and comparison groups. We recommend that policymakers increase focus on advancing health literacy as an evidence-based approach to reach the goals of improved individual and public health at a lower cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Psychological stress during adolescence is a natural phenomenon. Issues related to academics, parents, peers, social life, and personal doubts have always created some queries in these young minds. But most of the times, they get neglected by care givers. So the psychological stress tends to go unchecked among school students. There is not much work done in the area of stress levels and interventions among Indian adolescents. So our primary objective was to test the effectiveness of life skill training program in reducing stress among adolescents. Methods: Forty two adolescent boys participated in the study. Prevalence of stress was determined by administering a standardized stress questionnaire. The intervention program consisted of seven daily sessions of 50 minutes each conducted within school timings. Life skills, stress management modules from NIMHANS model were selected to address adolescent stressors. SPSS 15 was used for data entry and analysis. Pre, post and three month follow up assessments were conducted. Results: 66% of the adolescents reported to be stressed. The mean stress scores among adolescents who underwent the intervention program reduced significantly from 133 to 116 after post one month and to 117 after post three month follow up (p<0.05). Conclusion: Results suggested that group based stress management programs if conducted regularly would be beneficial to reduce the stress levels. Positive feedback from students suggested that these activities were feasible and acceptable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central to the ability of successfully facilitating sport participation toward positive developmental outcomes is the youth sport leader. Youth sport leaders are responsible for addressing the many stressors and risk factors that youth encounter in both sport and life. However, a majority of youth sport leaders do not receive coaching education or training, especially in regard to youth development. The purpose of this study was to gain a greater understanding of the various factors, which affect youth sport leaders, their team, and the community in which they coach. The four key areas of team building/teamwork, parental influence/involvement, sportsmanship, and teaching life skills emerged. By better understanding the issues within youth sport, researchers will be more aware of the most relevant issues to guide future research and to inform the development of coaching education. Moreover, youth sport leaders will be better equipped and prepared to maximize youth development through sport participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines life skills taught by sport coaches working with children and youth in underserved areas in South Africa. A total of 19 coaches participated in five focus groups with coaches discussing the life skills they teach along with the strategies they use to teach these life skills. Twenty higher order themes emerged from the inductive content analysis related to life skills taught (e.g., self-regulation, work ethic, emotional control, substance use, and disease prevention) and strategies for teaching life skills (e.g., intentionality, group discussions, modeling, and self-exploration). Findings are discussed relative to life skill development through sport literature. Specifically, coaches' investment in teaching life skills combined with their in-depth knowledge of their players and community are discussed as strengths directly influencing their life skills teaching. Practical implications for coaches are also explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Power of People (PoP) is a personal leadership development course that was originally developed in a non-correctional setting and now serves as a prison-based life skills course. This study examined PoP’s effect on four different types of recidivism: rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration, and technical violation revocation. The results of the analyses revealed that PoP does not have a significant effect on any of the four measures of recidivism. Following established principles of effective correctional treatment, we make several recommendations that could improve PoP’s effectiveness on recidivism outcomes. Overall, this study provides guidance on how to make programs not originally designed for correctional systems into effective recidivism-reducing tools. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper explores pre-service PE teachers’ conceptions of outdoor education (OE) in Singapore. Survey questionnaires were administered to 120 pre-service teachers; 14 teachers participated in follow-up semi-structured interviews. The findings indicate that OE is predominantly situated within the outdoor camp environment. Pre-service teachers regularly envisioned the purpose of OE as to instil a sense of discipline among students and to ameliorate the negative health impacts of an urban and wealthy lifestyle. We propose that the dislocation of OE from local and situated school contexts as well as the instrumental nature of OE pedagogy runs contrary to aims of fostering acquisition of life skills and character development. We concomitantly question how the pre-service teachers’ envisioning of OE can convincingly support holistic learning outcomes deemed beneficial to Singaporean youth and society more broadly. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This qualitative study used critical ethnography as a theoretical framework to investigate the social coping strategies of gifted and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students in middle and high school. Twelve LGBTQ college students from a selective Southeastern university were interviewed and asked to retrospectively describe their experiences, feelings, and behaviors from middle to high school. Their most common coping strategies included finding supportive groups of friends; hiding or downplaying their LGBTQ identity; participating in extracurricular activities; confiding in supportive teachers; developing their writing, musical, and leadership talents; and conducting research to understand and develop their identity. The implications of this study can help educators guide students in the use of positive coping strategies that facilitate both talent and identity development for this socially and politically marginalized group of gifted students. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article examines how homework can be used to help students develop organization skills as well as promote self-management and independence. The authors discuss the ideal objectives of homework and how life skills such as goal setting, planning, and problem solving can be taught through relevant assignments. In addition, the value of homework for students with disabilities is explored as well as how parents should be involved.

The article discusses the use of community-based instruction (CBI) for teaching students with severe disabilities life skills in special education. The authors look at evidence-based intervention strategies that support school-based instruction of life skills to students with disabilities. Topics include the use of video technology and community-referenced simulation for instruction, the importance of reviewing students' individualized education programs (IEPs), as well as the use of social stories to teach students about the social context of personal interactions.

The article discusses using inquiry methods to teach science to students with intellectual disabilities, and describes a case study involving a special education teacher who integrated scientific inquiry into the individualized education program (IEP) of a disabled sixth grade boy whose educational focus was on functional skills. State and national education standards, life skills education, and curriculum frameworks are describes, and science lesson plans are presented.

The article provides lesson plans that incorporate core content into life skills instruction for secondary school students with moderate and severe disabilities (MSD). The article describes how the implementation of the U.S. education reform law No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has had an impact on the priorities in the teaching of core content material over life skills for MSD students. The lesson plans provided include strategies to combine functional skills instruction and core content into the general and special education curriculum. Other topics include the collection and analysis of student data and guidelines for instructional design.

The article discusses a teaching model known as Book in a Bag (BIB) which is a holistic, integrated approach to managing students' social, emotional and academic needs. BIB enables educators to focus not only on the literacy skills of their students, but also on social studies and social skill instruction, which often gets overlooked in the classroom. BIB focuses on a piece of children's literature and has an accompanying lesson plan about how to incorporate literacy, social skills and social studies instruction into the exercise.

The article discusses the importance of teaching food safety skills to students with disabilities. Food preparation education can help special education teachers focus not only on cooking instruction but also on reading comprehension, mathematics and life skills training. Food preparation instruction also helps students with disabilities prepare for work-study opportunities in the food service industry. The authors note that food preparation classes should include instruction on the various elements of food safety including personal hygiene, cross-contamination and food storage.

Background/ Context: In recent years, scholars the world over in both the social sciences and humanities have reanimated the ancient idea of cosmopolitanism. They discern in the idea ways in which people today can respond creatively to rapid social, political, cultural, and economic transformations. Scholars in this burgeoning field have examined issues involving cultural hybridity, global citizenship, environmental justice, economic redistribution, and more. In the article, I examine from a philosophical perspective how a cosmopolitan-minded education can assist people in cultivating thoughtful receptivity to the new and reflective loyalty to the known. Purpose/ Objective/ Research Question/ Focus of Study: Philosophical work has begun on possible relations between cosmopolitanism and education. However, there are virtually no published studies that deploy a systematic cosmopolitan frame of analysis in conjunction with qualitative or quantitative research. This article seeks to encourage such research by elucidating a distinctive conception of cosmopolitanism rooted in one of its long-standing strands. This strand is characterized as cosmopolitanism on the ground, and it features what has been called "philosophy as the art of living" and "actually existing cosmopolitanism. " Research Design: The article is a philosophical investigation that builds an argument using the techniques of conceptual analysis, comparison, contrast, analogy, metaphor, illustration, and exegesis of texts. Conclusions/ Recommendations: The long-standing strand of cosmopolitanism on the ground generates several key elements of a philosophy of cosmopolitan-minded education. These elements are (1) a recognition of the importance of local socialization as making possible education itself, (2) the recognition that a cosmopolitan outlook triggers a critical rather than idolatrous or negligent attitude toward tradition and custom, (3) the recognition that curriculum across all subjects can be understood as a cosmopolitan inheritance, and (4) the recognition that many teachers constitute an already existing cosmopolitan community and can build on their shared purposes to enhance educational practice the world over. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An important task of special educators is helping students with disabilities develop their self-determination skills. Considerable evidence suggests, however, that the goal of providing these students with the motivation and sense of independence that leads to self-determined behavior has not often been achieved. A multiple-case design was used in this study to describe the experiences of four elementary students with disabilities who were taught how to communicate their goals and identify appropriate accommodations at their individualized education program (IEP) meeting. Observations of the IEP meetings and follow-up interviews with parents, teachers, and students revealed that elementary students were capable of contributing important information about their disabilities and suggestions for accommodating them. The potential for promoting greater self-reliance in young students with disabilities is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies the effectiveness of coteaching in a general education life skills class in providing inclusive instruction to students with and without disabilities. Case study of inclusive instruction; Context for general and special education collaboration; Planning ongoing accommodations. INSETS: What About Coteaching?;Interviews.;Workers' Attitudes.;Negotiating Bus Fare.

Describes a collaborative approach to teaching social skills to students with prosocial skill deficits. Steps in the intervention include the formation of a team of two or more educations interested in participating in social skill instruction; Targeting prosocial skills students need to learn; Determining instructional setting and collaborative roles; Reinforcement; Monitoring.

Analyzes the effects of instruction given only at natural critical moments on the acquisition of basic sensory, motor, social and communication behaviors. Use of a multiple baseline design across skills within separate activities; Occurrence of `learning to learn' effects with introduction of new target behaviors; Use of integrated educational models for teaching basic skills.

Presents a review of the literature on life skills curricula and instruction in relation to students with learning disabilities. Summary of life skills literature; Life skills terminology; Common observations and recommendations about life skills instruction; Augmentation and infusion in life skills instruction; Research methodology and priorities; Conclusions; References.

Discusses the need for assisting individuals with learning disabilities (LD) through the transition to adult life with emphasis on the social aspects of the adult role. Research on adult adjustment of individuals with LD; Outline of models of career and life skills education; Application of the Resource Room and Work Study model; Suggestions for increasing the effectiveness of transition.

Describes how to teach the use of a check register as a skill. Selecting an effective approach; Design guidelines; Lesson illustration.

Reports on the implementation of educational methods that will foster life skill acquisition and generalization. Requirement for skill generalization; Teaching of community skills to persons with moderate to severe mental handicaps; Effect of different strategies used to promote generalization.

This article presents the author's views on a proper way of effective classroom teaching of modern languages that advocates for encouraging children to develop understanding of one another. The author makes specific reference to a story wherein he describes how a poorly-adjusted teacher failed to develop the real and full potential of her pupils.

This article discusses various issues related to the significance of the study of modern languages in life adjustment curricula in the United States. The article makes specific reference to a curriculum study conducted by the Commission on Life Adjustment in the Secondary Schools that identifies several areas that should form the basis of life adjustment curriculum. These are: family relationships, leisure time activities, development of creative arts, consumer education, and citizenship.

The article discusses research at Columbia University on the economic value of social and emotional learning. Topics covered include the six prominent interventions on social and emotional skills (SEL) which include positive action, life skills training, and responsive classroom and how each of the SEL interventions showed significant benefits that exceeded its costs.

Presents a selective review of programs designed to increase adaptive behavior in severely handicapped individuals. Strategies for teaching self-care skills; Strategies for teaching home management skills; Strategies for teaching consumer skills and community mobility skills.

Analyzes the training procedures involved in teaching of community survival skills to mentally retarded (MR) adults. Ineffectiveness of institutional teaching programs as compared to community training; Cooperation between applied behavioral investigators and trainers from community service agencies to submit training procedures to empirical investigation; Integration of MR into the community.