Moderator’s Note: Dear members, please find below the Consolidated Reply of the query on Life Skills Education among Rural Adolescents

Teachable Moment: While watching TV children ask several questions parents can take that as an opportunity to teach children.

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  Peer Pressure and Sexual Behaviour: Peer pressure can affect a youth's decisions about sexual behavior. Parents should know about the friends circle of adolescents and should advice them properly.
  

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  Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Sexually transmitted diseases can impact a youth's health and relationships. Parents should give information about such diseases and prevention.
  

What kind of programmes will ensure the involvement of Teachers and Parents in LSE?

In my opinion following Programmes can ensure involvement of parent and teachers in LSE

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  Workshops: Workshops for both teachers and parents can be helpful in creating awareness.
  

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  Extracurricular activities: LSE should be included in extracurricular activities in schools.
  

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  Radio/Television Program: Radio television programmes can create awareness among students.
  

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  Quiz /Debate/Poster Making: Quiz debate and poster making competitions can be organised for creating awareness regarding LSE.
  

How can we reach-out and ensure access to LSE Programme for out-of-school adolescents and who should take responsibility for this challenge?
Different NGOs working for children can take the responsibility of teaching LSE to out of school children. Different ways can be followed to reach the out of school adolescents.

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  Street Play: By effective street plays education about sex and information about sexually transmitted diseases can be spread.
  

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  Pamphlets: Pamphlets with effective pictures including wide range of LSE can be distributed among adolescents.
  

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  Children’s/Adolescents Club: In children’s club experts can come and can give advice to adolescents.
  

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  Movie: Good and relevant movies can be shown to adolescents in order to help them to understand the need and importance of LSE.
  

Dr. K. Suresh, Public (Child) Health Consultant, New Delhi

I have been following the query and responses. In terms of the content of Life Skills Educations, a lot has been written, shared and suggested to be referred. If I were to be this young social worker, I would have more confused than getting help.

I worked in Gulbarga district from 1968 to 1976 and in the process visited Sedam Taluka for the Vasectomy and Tubectomy camps have interacted with high school children between 1968-1971 more as science and math’s teacher. The closest subject I am involved for the type of work young Aarathi is struggling is known as State(district) specific Strategic Analysis for investment in Health. Without getting into content details I prefer to put a few experiences and suggestions for Aarathi’s queries straight.

What are your experiences with different approaches to implement the SRH component of LSE for High School students at village level?

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  Going to schools with a direct approach for LSE (which unfortunately concentrates more on sex education, HIV/AIDS) is not very welcome
  
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  This is more true if the intruder is young
  
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  If one were to initiate with common adolescent problems like anaemia and its consequences, personal hygiene, menstrual hygiene, exercises and games and their impact on health, scholastic competition, body image, transactions and conflict resolution, psychological stresses and other common adolescent health problems, you are better accepted. Once a rapport is build you can discuss any issue.
  

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  Interacting with parents in Parents Teacher Meetings and trying to discuss types of transactions and conflict resolutions (in general and one to one in some problem behaviour cases), professional educations that can be pursued, career opportunities are other areas of interest, that should make way for LSE discussions
  

What kind of programmes will ensure the involvement of Teachers and Parents in LSE?

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  The programs which supplement teachers responsibilities like body image and body mapping, transactions and conflict resolutions
  

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  Program which encourage parents involvement are transactions, conflict resolution and parental behaviour, not to pressurize for studying what they want etc.
  

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  Participatory Learning techniques for Action (PLA) e.g. anaemia prevention and management, anti-helminthic camps, growth monitoring demonstration, nutrition counselling etc will ensure parents involvement
  

How can we reach-out and ensure access to LSE Programme for out-of-school adolescents and who should take responsibility for this challenge?

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  The best way I have used with success is Child to Child. Make one school coming children (or group of children) to ensure intervention (IFA, Anti-helminthic, explaining body image, surveillance of communicable diseases etc) to one another (more) out of school children
  

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  The other method is running non-formal classes for these children meeting their felt need (education/sanitation, health and hygiene) an then moving towards LSE
  

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  The responsibility for such a change is of the Government’s Health and ICDS department staff and community at large with local youth, Mahila Mandals and elected representatives of local bodies and NGOs if any playing a vital role. Activists have to steer the group for constructive actions.
  

The reservations of the training materials used in the HIV program are understandable. The upfront discussions mainly on HIV and AIDS will put off common population. Depending upon the development of the local area, one needs to adapt the communication material and language (community diagnostic words for various technical terms) for better acceptance.

Dr. Suchitra Mankar, Pune

I personally feel that adolescents do know about sex and related issues but at times their thoughts, perceptions, convictions and doubts are highly influenced by their local socio-cultural settings.

The educator needs to understand these in order to make the education in context with the adolescents' milieu. No one medicine treats all especially in a society as diverse as ours.

Many thanks to all who contributed to this query!

 

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