We held two training sessions for the board of directors/ program leaders last week. The purpose was to create a standard format for presenting health and social topics in a positive environment. Government Technical High School (G.T.H.S) Kumba were gracious enough to offer their facilities to us which allowed for a classroom for technical training and a football pitch (soccer field) for practical implementation. We focused on two main objectives: a football camp format and a topic presentation format. The idea is to create a relaxed atmosphere where the youth and leader get to know one another, become comfortable, and have a free exchange of information on health and social topics in the form of discussions as opposed to lectures.
12 young adults in Kumba composed the team of program leaders and they were very receptive to the training. I can see their passion for the objectives of this program.
After a few icebreakers to get things started, we went over the two formats and got started reviewing key information about each of the topics. Then we split into small groups to strategize an approach to present the health and social topics. Each group have several presentations on some of the different topics which led to further discussion of the topics and implementation strategies. The format we have selected for engaging the youth in the topics is as follows:
1. State the Topic and why it is important
2. Ask questions to learn what the youth may know or think they know about the topic. Begin the Discussion.
3. Present key information about the topic.
4. Use an activitiy like role play or true/false to provide a practical viewpoint
5. Ask the youth how the topic applies the them in their every day life - when they go home
6. End of Day: "What did we learn today?"
We have targeted youth from the age of 12 to 18 for now. Topics include, but not limited to: adolescence, healty relationships, communication with parents, HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, condom negotiation, teenage pregnancy, unsafe abortion, and violence against women.
After a successful morning session, we moved to the pitch and practiced the football format we discussed earlier. This includes: jogging, stretching, warmups, ball skills, football drills, and match play. We implement the discussions of topics within a training session. Interacting with the youth, encouraging them to feel free during the discussions, and mastering the football drills are some of the main goals for the program leaders.
After a successful morning session, we moved to the pitch and practiced the football format we discussed earlier. This includes: jogging, stretching, warmups, ball skills, football drills, and match play. We implement the discussions of topics within a training session. Interacting with the youth, encouraging them to feel free during the discussions, and mastering the football drills are some of the main goals for the program leaders.
These training sessions took place for the better parts of Thursday and Friday of last week. After training, we moved to the Cameroon coordinator's house to share a meal together. It was a tiring two days, but we all looked forward to implementing what we learned during the youth camps the following week.
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