NEED OF YOUTH CLUBS AT GROUND LEVEL
Introduction:
'India is a country with 60% of it's population as youth. The future of
this country lies in the hands of this youth. I saw a vision that by the year
2020, this youth of our country would be the leading face of the world. India
will rise and become a superpower and by 2020, the world will realize the real
potential of India. To fufill this dream, it is upto the youth to work hard and
make the country proud.'
-Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Its
Better to Do Something Constructive
and Creative in the free Time rather wasting
time….!!!
Youth are the
Future of a Country. For making a country a better place to live, YOUTH
POWER is the basic Need.
In next few years
India would be counted in developed countries of the world only if
Youths of our country gives their's best
in various fields by power of ideas, abilities
& dedication. Youth can contribute to INDIA'S success & progress
only if they are equipped
with proper skills and knowledge.
Governments are rolling out initiatives for all round
progress of the youth; still much is to be done at ground level. Youth club provides
dedication, hard work, innovativeness & quest of knowledge to bring INDIA
in list of
developed countries.
what is a youth club:
Youth clubs give young people a low
cost place to go outside of school, offering them a sense
of belonging. The activities and support from club leaders and volunteers allow young
people to learn new skills and build confidence and resilience for the future, as well as
have fun.Young people choose to go there, with
youth clubs open to all young people.
what do youth clubs offer?
There is everything from boxing to
dance, as well as clubs focusing on the environment, creative arts and leadership and work skills.
Relationships are also at the
heart of youth clubs both with friends
and the adults who
work there. For some young people, their relationship with their youth worker or club
volunteer may be the only meaningful relationship they have with an adult and it can be life
changing.Youth clubs offer something for
everyone. The thing is one has to make sure that all the young
minds were connected because youth clubs make a huge difference to young people’s lives.
Life isn't easy for young people
today
*Youth unemployment is reaching
record levels, with young black people
disproportionately affected.
*There’s more pressure than
ever to be successful at school, college and university.
*Many young people are
overweight and unfit.
*Mental health problems like
depression, eating disorders and self-harming affect many
young people.
*New technology like social
media opens up new ways to communicate, but can lead to
cyber bullying.
*Four out of five young people
end up hanging out on the streets because there’s nowhere
else to go, and 70% of young people believe
people their age get involved in anti-social
behaviour because they’re bored (YouGov
Princes Trust Youth Index, 2008).
Youth clubs are part of the solution
At the most basic level, youth clubs
give young people something positive and fun to do, stopping them getting
into trouble. But they achieve so much more than this. Clubs can change young people’s
lives. They give teenagers vital skills like teamwork and leadership. They
give young people a sense of belonging and a place in their community. Getting good
at a particular skill builds their confidence. Sports clubs improve young people’s health
and fitness. The leaders running clubs are often trained to give advice on everything from
drugs to relationships.
Youth clubs help make young people
happy, healthy, well adjusted and able to make positive contribution to
society and their communities.
The results speak for
themselves:
80% said their youth club helped them to know right from wrong.
93% said their youth club was a safe place to go in their community.
73% said their youth club had provided support with schooling and education.
71% said their youth club helped their career development.
70% said their youth club had increased their participation in sports.
Getting girls more involved in youth
clubs
From body issues to
bullying, school work to relationships, young girls face so many pressures. Taking part
in sports and activities helps them get fit, learn new skills, gives them somewhere safe to go
and builds their self esteem. But despite these
benefits, fewer girls than boys play sports and go to youth clubs.
WHAT MAKES FOR A SUCCESSFULYOUTH
CENTRE?
The five key ingredients
for a sustainable youth centre: youth ownership, mentorship,
community connectedness effective coordination, and a sustainable energy source. These concepts shift the focus away from the often allconsuming stresses of money and facilities to critical
factors such as community support, people resources, and
youth adults relationships. The research indicates that success in these five areas
makes it much more likely that a centre will find ways to meet its financial and facility
needs. These ingredients are interconnected and serve to build upon each other to
produce a successful centre.
Youth Ownership:
Youth ownership involves the
young people having a sense of responsibility for centre and a sense that they
have input into what happens there. A brightly coloured and hand painted sign in one
club says it all Respect . This is a great example of how youth can express themselves
and convey the message that they govern their space. Self-policing amongst the users
is another good indication of youth ownership. Although in many cases, adults play
important roles in establishing rules and regulations for a centre, when youth ownership is
present, the young people have input and have agreed.
Mentorship:
Mentors are individuals who
provide inspiration and support to others. The co-ordinator of one community
teen centre has built a strong relationship with the youth over two years. Some of the
girls say that they think of her as their mom. She is someone that helps them smile when
they’re down, but she also hangs out and play sports with everyone.
Mentorship can offer young people
support, role models to emulate, inspiration for their passions
or encouragement to define and seek their life goals. Everyone has mentors intheir
lives and in turn can be inspirational role models for others. for a youth. Yet many of the
co-ordinators expressed how much they have learned from the youth, whether it is the
latest sayings and fashion trends or how to operate a computer and surf the net. In
addition, there are innumerable ways that youth can mentor youth.
Mentorship allows each
person the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others. It builds
relationships between youth and adults and between youth that are essential to creating a strong
youth centre.
Community Connectedness:
Successful youth centres
depend on support from community members to operate, both in terms of
resources and volunteers. In turn the young people frequently give back to these communities
to create a two-way connectedness. For example, in one town a dedicated group of
teenagers shovels the steps of the local war memorial after eachsnowstorm. There is lots of
laughter and the odd snowball fight as the youth contribute their time and receive
recognition for it. Involving youth in direct service to the community has proven to be a
highly effective means of empowerment and a means to spark broader citizen
involvement important in community renewal (Warner and Langlois, 2002).
Breaking down the barrier between
adults and youth takes a commitment from both populations to provide
opportunities, services and resources for each other. Open, respectful communication
channels must be established. Youth Centres have succeeded at this through:
- holding community meetings
- developing youth-adult
partnerships on their governing boards
- allowing members of the
public to view the youth centre in operation
- renting facilities for day
care, community meetings, special events, etc.
- youth providing community
service
- using the networks of adult
coordinators or volunteers
At the root of community
connectedness is the idea that individuals, businesses and organizations must care and
take ownership for their youth and their concerns. Whether this occurs in a proactive
manner or as a reaction to community events and problems, an effective youth-community
partnership is vital to the well being of all, particularly the youth centre.
Sustainable Energy Source:
The sustainable energy source
was most often a person driving the project, motivating and drawing in others to help.
Learning to build off of this energy and dedication without draining it, is a key to
successful centres that maintain themselves over years. A former steelworker turned youth
worker, is an exceptional example of the dedication and passion of many people
associated with youth centres. His endless energy is undoubtedly one of the main
reasons the youth club continues to survive in an otherwise struggling community.
The club provides young people with a safe space to be themselves, and a dedicated individual
to support them in their endeavours. Much like fuel for heating or
transportation, to be sustainable, a youth centre’s energy source must be discovered,
tapped, monitored and eventually transferred to a new source. The energy source must
be constantly monitored to ensure that it does not burn out prematurely. Each
person has unique ways of coping with stress and large workloads, which both the
person and those around them must recognize and support. It is also import to avoid
exclusively depending on one individual, both to prevent burnout and provide
opportunities for others to grow and learn as they take on challenging responsibilities. What happens if the person
providing the core energy departs? This does not have to be a disaster, and can be a
great way to strengthen others connections to the project. Several centres in Nova Scotia
have gone through a number of successful transitions of their primary coordinators. A
key is having the other key ingredients in place, including a governing committee or Board of
Directors, youth ownership and community connectedness.
We also witnessed in out
research energy sources that are alluring but not sustainable. These are most often grant
money or the offer of a facility. Building a centre on grant money or the promise of a
facility alone, without sufficient attention to the other four factors is a weak foundation
from which to build. The other four components play a crucial role in leveraging the
source of energy. The fuel will run out if they are not in place.
Result
This research has identified, the key ingredients
that make youth centres successful through youth researchers spending time in a wide
range of youth centres across the province and through interviewing those with the
greatest investment in them. Although each ingredient is described sequentially, the
success comes in the interconnections between them. If funding is cut, it is youth
ownership, community connectedness and effective coordination that are the keys to
survival. Youth develop ownership if the coordination process gives them opportunities to
grow and learn and if they find meaningful opportunities to mentor or be mentored
through special relationships developed at the centre. Community connectedness
grows and volunteers get involved when adult see that youth care about the centre.
If energy is focused on all five interconnected
concepts, a special youth gathering place can result.
