AICAFMHA:
promoting mental health for young Australians
Australian Infant, Child, Adolescent and Family Mental Health Association Ltd
ABN 87 093 479 022
NYPS Project Update - 21/01/2005
WOW, where have the last few weeks gone?????
UPDATE
The draft models document is well on its way.
A group of young people and I have out stayed our welcome over the last few weeks at many of the cafes around Adelaide debating ideas, working out friendly material and also slipping in a bit of fun here and there.
The plan (at this stage) is young people and adult/workers can review the draft models through...
1. Youth friendly online survey, which will hopefully have auditory commentary by the young people for those who don't want to read it, but would rather hear it.
2. Group discussion/program where AICAFMHA provides the resources and negotiates the supports you might need out there in the community.
3. Youth friendly hard copy sent out through the post.
4. Adult friendly online survey
5. And of course......what the young people call The 'POSH' draft models document. A formal report providing references and quite a lot more detail!
It should be noted the youth friendly and adult friendly online surveys are pretty similar. In both you will be able to check out what other people have said, but the information initially presented to the youth is a lot more 'short sharp and shiny'. However, youth will be able to access more detail through a hyperlink, which will provide the same information which adults will be getting.
Once again we have to say...if you and/or a group of young people/workers would like to give comment simply email Dy on smith.dy@saugov.sa.gov.au or give us a call on 08 8161 7338 so we can discuss a process which best suits your needs. Also, if you need any extra information or marketing material to advertise this opportunity within your local community we are happy to help out!
Just remember, we truly do want to hear the good, the bad and the UGLY!
Now, A TASTE OF THE MODELS....these ideas are only being 'thrown around' at the moment they are definitely NOT set in stone!
The three models!
Each model builds on the next, a bit like a house.
Cyberspace/Consultation
provides the foundation
Link-up is the walls
Speak Out is the roof.
1. Cyberspace
Where youth are just talking on the internet.
Consultation
Youth are only giving feedback now and then as part of another group. Youth are not actually a member of the 'National Youth Participation Strategy'. They are getting paid as consultants to give feedback 'now and then'2. Link-Up
Means you start to talk over the phone and meet face to face.3. Speak Out
Is when youth do the organizing for the talking to happen
EMAILING LIST
NB: We encourage you to use the emailing list as a discussion tool in
regard to the field of youth participation or I am happy for you to email me
directly if you have any information you would like to have put 'out there' for
discussion.
INFORMATION UPDATE
How young people participate can take on various forms.
Feedback from the literature and through discussions with young people and
services providers indicate the following as the primary forms of youth
participation currently evidenced.
Administrators. Young people can participate in the day-to-day operations of
agencies through bookkeeping, typing, research, and data collection.
Advocates. They can make policy papers and join unions, rallies, campaigns, and
public debates on issues relevant to their lives. They can also join conferences
that discuss children and young people's issues, sit at children's hearings
where they can pose questions to an adult panel, and make public presentations
of the issues they are concerned about.
Counselors and peer support. Young people can listen to others and provide
support on various issues.
Decision-makers. They can sit as members of the
board of youth serving NGOs.
Mentors or educators. They can teach younger children. For instance, in
child-to-child projects, younger children can pass health messages not only to
their peers but also to adult members of their community.
Income generators. They can participate by helping generate income for their
families and their organizations.
Perform monitoring and evaluation functions. They can assess and evaluate the
effectiveness of their programs.
Managers of their environment. The environment here may be households, school
and school grounds, or community resources. Young people can ensure the daily
care of the environment and create diverse landscapes for their household,
school, or community.
Researchers in participatory action research projects. Young people can
identify their research problem, design the research methodology, implement
the research, analyze the data, and make conclusions from the analysis. They
can also join national surveys and contribute to a national research project.
(Child and Youth Foundation of the Philippines (CYFP). 1996; Hart 1997)
(Checkoway (2003)) (Holdsworth 2004) (ECPAT 1999) (Johnson V. 1996; Theis
1997)
REFERENCES
Checkoway, B., and Richards-Schuster, K., ((2003)). "Youth Participation in
Community Evaluation Research." American Journal of Evaluation.
Child and Youth Foundation of the Philippines (CYFP). (1996). "Sustaining the
Development of Civil Society. A Country Paper on Youth Participation in the
Philippines. IN Meeting Report; Youth Participation: Challenges and
Opportunities Conference." Nakhon Pathom, Thailand.
ECPAT, U. (1999). "Standing up for Ourselves - A study on the Concepts and
Practices of Young People's Rights to Participation." International Young
People's Action Against Sexual Exploitation of Children.
Hart, R. (1997). "Children's Participation; The Theory and Practice of
Involving Young Citizens in Community Development." UNICEF.
Holdsworth, R. (2004). Engaging Students in purposeful learning through
community action. Second International Middle Schooling Conference. Adelaide
Hilton International, Australian Youth Research Center, Faculty of Education,
The University of Melbourne.
Johnson V. (1996). "Starting a Dialogue on Children's Participation."
Participatory Learning and Action No. 25.
Theis, J. (1997). "The Old Wine in New Bottles? Some Thoughts on Children's
Participation in International Development Work." SEAPRO Forum.
Dyanna Smith-McCue
National Youth Participation Strategy Project Officer
smith.dy@saugov.sa.gov.au
Ph: (08) 8161 7338
Fax: (08) 8161 6983
PO Box 387, Stepney SA 5069
http://www.aicafmha.net.au/youth_participation/index.html
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