Overview

This post will discuss the relationship between positive youth development and secondary education. Preparing youth for the world relies on developing young people into the best versions of themselves and how to adapt and integrate into society. Positive Youth development programs are created to instill traits such as resiliency and problem-solving that can be applied to real-world scenarios that young people will encounter.

“The main hope of a nation lies in the proper education of its youth”- Erasmus.

There are beliefs that education is the process of going to school, attending class, and retaining the information for an exam, and that process will better get us ahead in life. On the contrary, there is learning that needs to occur about oneself, the community, and the world around them, which happens outside of the classroom. Youth development occurs through education on becoming a better citizen through community engagement, learning to recognize one’s feelings, and defeating gender roles in their respective societies. Building young people’s education outside of textbooks and attending class contribute to the likelihood of success in their future.

Secondary Education on an International Scale

In the United States, secondary education includes middle, intermediate, general academic (high school), technical and vocational schools. The ages of youth that attend secondary education typically range from 11 or 12 to 18 or 19. However, these ranges don’t reflect every part of the world and vary from country to country (Source). For example, in India, middle school is included in the primary education range, and secondary school is only considered high school. The age range for a secondary school in India is 14 to 18 (Source). In Myanmar, Secondary education only includes two years of lecture-based learning and a third year to prepare for the matriculation exam at the end of the school year (Source). When defining Secondary education, it is essential to remember that it is diverse in structure and depends on the individual country. Factors involved could be a country having increased funding for additional years of education. It is crucial to escape the westernized mindset and open my mind to the fact that structures vary worldwide. 

Positive Youth Development (PYD)

Positive Youth Development is a development approach that engages youth with their communities, schools, organizations, peers, and families productively and constructively for their futures. It builds on Youth’s strengths and looks to enhance opportunity and leadership and create healthy relationships with others (Source). In its inception, Positive Youth Development focused primarily on protection tactics on issues such as teen pregnancy, substance abuse, and juvenile delinquency. Over time, specialists in the field have transitioned their focus to making PYD programs instill resilience tactics more than protection (Source).

Crossroads of PYD and Education

Education gives the youth the necessary foundation to communicate with others, ask questions, and a setting for social interaction. Positive Youth Development programs build upon the foundation of what is learned in school and demonstrate how the skills will be used once they have exited secondary education. For example, Suppose young people are learning to speak English in the classroom. In that case, a positive youth development program will assist their knowledge, increase literacy, and provide the tools to use the language. In a developing country where tourism is a prominent industry, speaking English effectively and professionally will lead to employment security in the future. The professional attributes accompanying one’s language skills may not be included in the class instruction, so additional direction must be present. 

Importance of Continued Support For PYD and Education 

It is essential to continue developing transferable and long-lasting tools for the next generation of youth. Creating a better future through developing competent and open-minded learners, so they will better serve their community and the world is the goal for education and PYD. This crossover constructs the necessary building blocks for becoming adults and community leaders. Continuing to strengthen PYD and Education through continued funding, effective policy, and an understanding by all of the importance of the two areas is crucial moving forward. 

Sources

ISCED levels of education. Education indicators: An international perspective/indicator 1 side bar. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://nces.ed.gov/pubs/eiip/eiip1s01.asp 

Positive experiences. Supervisor’s PYD Toolkit – ACT for Youth. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://actforyouth.net/youth_development/professionals/supervisors/experiences.cfm 

Positive youth development measurement toolkit – youthpower. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://www.youthpower.org/sites/default/files/YouthPower/resources/PYD%20Measurement%20Toolkit%20Final.pdf

Positive youth development. Positive Youth Development | Youth.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://youth.gov/youth-topics/positive-youth-development

Primary and secondary education. Nuffic. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://www.nuffic.nl/en/education-systems/india/primary-and-secondary-education#:~:text=Secondary%20education%20lasts%204%20years,a%20Vocational%20Standard%20XII%20diploma 

Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, February 6). Secondary Education in Myanmar. Wikipedia. Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secondary_education_in_Myanmar