Description
Book SynopsisSocial settings have enormous power to promote or hinder positive youth development. Researchers and practitioners know a great deal about features of schools and programs for youth that affect development, but much less about how to transform settings to bring about these desirable features. This book shows how to harness the power of settings. It shifts the debate from simply enhancing youth outcomes at the individual level to improving the settings of youths'' daily lives. The book offers researchers and practitioners blueprints for creating and changing influential settings including classrooms, schools, universities, out-of-school time programs, ethnic systems of supplementary education, and other community-based programs. Leading scholars in psychology, education, human development, sociology, anthropology, economics, law, and public policy discuss a wide array of social change strategies, and describe how to measure key features of settings as a target and guide for change. The authors also demonstrate how larger social structures - such as school districts, community coalitions, community data resources - can support change. Many of the chapters describe ways to make settings work for all youth, including those marginalized by reason of race, ethnicity, social class, or sexual orientation. Toward Positive Youth Development will guide researchers, educators, administrators and policy makers to improve schools and youth programs for all of America''s youth.
Trade ReviewThe 2010 recipient of the Social Policy Edited Book Award as awarded by The Society for Research on Adolescence! "...a collection of well-written, inspiring scholarly contributions which build an evidence base for setting-level interventions to improve youth outcomes. While focused on macro level change (settings), the book maintains an awareness of micro level goals (positive youth outcomes). This unique, integrated focus should be of interest to a wide range of practitioners, researchers, funders, and policy makers--those dedicated to improving the lives of youth and those interested in organizational development and change."--Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare
Table of ContentsPART 1: CHANGING CLASSROOMS; PART 2: CHANGING SCHOOLS; PART 3: CHANGING COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS; PART 4: CHANGING LARGER SOCIAL STRUCTURES; PART 5. CROSS-CUTTING THEMES: STRATEGIES FOR MEASUREMENT AND INTERVENTION
