from yaprap April-May 2011
by Andrew Lines
- Adelaide-based educator
- founder of The Rite Journey
Young people in today’s modern culture often find themselves in a society in which there is sometimes little place for purposeful connection, guidance and ceremony. One of the points of life in which this lack is seen most clearly is the transition from childhood to adulthood. Today’s young people need their parents and caregivers to find the time and opportunities in which to connect, guide and provide ceremony and celebration.
1. Connection: Over the past decade there have been numerous studies attempting to identify key protective factors in teenagers, with one of the most relevant factors being connectedness. Dr Michael Resnick from the University of Minnesota conducted a study of 12,000 adolescents from across the USA and found that ‘young people who have a feeling of connectedness with parents, family and school have lower levels of smoking, drinking, other drug use, suicidal thinking, risky sexual behaviour and exposure to violence.’
2. Guidance: Opportunities to guide our children present themselves in many ways. It is how we approach these moments that is important and connection is again the key. Avoiding the tendency to ‘preach’ but rather using storytelling and personal experiences is an effective way of introducing children and young people to ideas. Not unlike the purpose of fairy tales and fables, these stories can carry powerful messages within. Often stories from our own lives not only might provide our children with food for thought but also increase the connection with each other.
One other integral element of providing guidance, especially for adolescents, is establishing mentors from outside of the family. As young people move beyond their transition age (14 years old) they begin to prioritise guidance from outside of the family. It is at this point that it is important for mentors to be sought and connection with them encouraged, be it through learning a new skill, camping or simply spending time together this connectedness is proven to be a positive influence on young people.
3. Celebration and ceremony: Modern society has left behind ceremonies, rituals and traditions which have been integral to life for thousands of years. The celebrations of a new season, a girl’s first period, or the transition of a child into adulthood are all much less common in today’s society. These days a celebration tends to involve the purchase of a present of some kind, rather than ceremony to ‘deepen’ such experiences, create community and truly honour these moments in life.
Ceremony and celebration can come in simple forms. Perhaps one of the few survivors of such a process in modern society is the birthday party; however there are many possibilities through life. For example, the holding of hands and saying of a blessing prior to eating a meal is a healthy way of honouring the food and the person who has provided it as well as a way of connecting as a group.
Ceremony in this sense can help us to reclaim our connection with friends and family. It reassures us that there are people around us who are ready to celebrate with us and support us as friends or as mentors for our children. Ceremony provides us with a sense of community which in turn links us to the world with a sense of positive connection and provides the opportunity to step out of the busyness of ‘normal’ life and honour a moment.
This brings me to perhaps the most important but most often overlooked ceremonial process for young people in modern culture…that of a rite of passage. In “Why Gender Matters”, Leonard Sax says, “More than in any other realm, (transition to adulthood) is where our society lets kids down. We offer our children no guidance about what it means to be an adult woman or an adult man. No other culture has ever abandoned young people making the transition to a gendered adulthood as completely as the twenty-first century post-industrial societies...”.
But, what does it matter? What do we find in society when we do not provide rites of passage? The Encyclopaedia of World Problems and Human Potential states: “The absence of rites of passage leads to a serious breakdown in the process of maturing as a person. Young people are unable to participate in society in a creative manner because societal structures no longer consider it their responsibility to intentionally establish the necessary marks of passing from one age-related social role to another, such as: child to youth, youth to adult, adult to elder. The result is that society has no clear expectation of how people should participate in these roles and therefore individuals do not know what is required by society”.
Despite our culture’s lack of an appropriate rite of passage into adulthood it is certainly possible to create your own. The primary aspects of any rite of passage involve some form of separation, preparation or instruction from an ‘elder’ and a welcoming back into society with acknowledgement of the adolescent’s new standing.
21st Century children are growing up in a world of risks and threats, one which even the adults of today struggle to comprehend and respond to. With the help of connection, guidance, celebration, ceremony and a rite of passage the children and adolescents of today will gain skills, experience and values to assist them in navigating their way through their transition into adulthood and indeed, life beyond.
The Rite Journey
The Rite Journey is a unique educational programme designed to support the development of self-aware, vital, responsible and resilient adults.
The Rite Journey provides young people with the opportunity of experiencing rites of passage, created and guided by caring adults. The Rite Journey targets Year 9 students, the age that most teachers recognise as 'the year of disengagement'. The Rite Journey reinvents the traditional process of a rite of passage to assist in transforming the adolescent from dependency to responsibility.
The Rite Journey at Exodus Youth Services
The Rite Journey is a program that can be used very successfully in alternative education settings.
With the focus on respectful guidance through group work discussions, the transforming process of experiencing rites of passage in safe and supportive environments and the focus on current adolescent issues such as conflict resolution, bullying, gender identity, etc, The Rite Journey fits perfectly within our Mind, Body, Spirit Program.
The effect on the young people is remarkable. Changes in the quality of social interaction is most noticeable, followed by a relaxed atmosphere around The Rite Journey sessions. The young people learn they will be heard and listened to and possibly for the first time, begin to have an understanding of their true, inner natures. - Jill Hayes, Senior Manager, Exodus Youth, Welfare, Volunteer and Food Services
The success of The Rite Journey lies in a number of factors:
- Continuity. The Rite Journey is part of the young people's lives for an entire year. This encourages ongoing development of self-awareness and builds strong, honest and respectful relationships with peers, parents and teachers, over time.
- Gender specific programs taught in same gender classrooms allows for role modelling, less distraction and freer discussion.
- Strong and rich community connections and support are fostered between students and teacher guides, parents/caregivers and mentors, as well as between the school and parents/caregivers.
- The mentoring program providing another valuable adult role model in the young person's life.
- Growing up. Young people are enabled to approach emerging adulthood with awareness, respect and 'step up' to their new-found responsibility.
- Positive cultural change. This year of distinct and celebrated transition from middle school to senior school brings a positive cultural change within schools.
- Individuality. The Rite Journey is not a 'one size fits all' program. The staff at each school (or youth service) design a specific Rite Journey experience for their own students.
- Staff Training. The Rite Journey includes a substantial two day staff training, comprehensive support materials along with ongoing assistance. Teachers (or youth workers) are trained and empowered to provide The Rite Journey for their group, removing the need for employment of outside providers.
- Adaptability. The Rite Journey is successfully being implemented in a range of settings, from a large co-educational independent school to an alternative school run by a youth charity. It can be offered as an intensive over a number of weeks, or most commonly over an entire year or even two, as appropriate.