Youth Development/Afterschool/Violence-Early Work with Kids

Earlier Work grams at the Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development, praised the Seattle program as one of the With Children very best she has reviewed. Ms. Quinn, who is now program director at the DeWitt Wallace-Reader's Di- Steers Them gest Fund, said the study has three "remarkable features: One, the in- tervention is quite simple and straightforward, something that any From Crime community could adopt; two, it works with people who are already involved in the lives of children and By JANE E. BRODY recognizes young people as agents in Programs that seek to reduce vio- their own development, and, three, it lence, drug abuse, pregnancy and has powerful long-term results - a other dangerous or unhealthy activi- six-year follow-up is very unusual." ties among adolescents are notorious Dr. Roger Weissberg, professor of for doing too little too late and at too psychology at the University of Illi- great a cost. nois at Chicago, called the Seattle But a new study has shown that by work exemplary in its attention to starting early - in grades one social and emotional issues as well through six - to foster an interest in as academic performance. school and learning among children The study involved three efforts: and to enhance their self-esteem, with teachers in each of the six many of these risky behaviors can be grades, with parents and with the averted and school performance and students. During five days of in-serv- attendance can be improved through ice training, teachers were taught high school. how to foster cooperative learning At the same time, an independent among students so that each child is analysis of the study showed, com- rewarded for having contributed to munities can save money over and the achievements of the group. above the cost of such a preventive Dr. Hawkins explained that the effort. underlying goal was to help children The findings of this 12-year study, "develop a commitment to school, to published today in the journal Ar- value education and to become emo- chives of Pediatrics and Adolescent tionally attached to their school, Medicine, showed that coaching teachers and peers." teachers and parents on how best to "This in turn can give them the encourage young children's involve- motivation to live in a positive, re- ment and interest in school and sponsible way," Dr. Hawkins said. teaching children how to interact so- Parenting programs were offered cially can have a significant long- to the parents of every student in the term effect on their behavior and experimental classrooms. Over all, academic achievement. 43 percent of these parents partici- The study involved schools with pated. Parents were encouraged to students from Seattle's most crime- reinforce desirable behavior and to ridden neighborhoods. Some of the provide consistent discipline. They schools got the intervention program were also shown how to help their designed for the study and the other children succeed academically. comparable schools did not. As for the children themselves, Compared to students who did not their guidance started in school in receive the elementary school inter- the first grade with learning how to vention program, by age 18, those solve interpersonal problems, take who did were 19 percent less likely to turns and talk positively to them- have committed violent acts, 38 per- selves. In sixth grade the students cent less likely to indulge in heavy were offered four one-hour training sessions in refusal skills - how to drinking, 13 percent less likely to engage in sexual intercourse, 19 per- say "No" and still keep their friends. cent less likely to have had multiple The full cost of the program over sex partners and 35 percent less like- the six years of intervention was calculated at nearly $3,000 a child. ly to have caused a pregnancy or to However, Dr. Hawkins noted that if have become pregnant. The effects on curbing sexual be- such a program were adopted in a school system, the actual ongoing havior and teen-age pregnancy were costs would be lower because teach- achieved "without ever using the 'S' er training would not be repeated word," said Dr. J. David Hawkins, annually. the principal investigator and a pro- But even at the full cost of the fessor of social work at the Universi- program, the Washington State Insti- ty of Washington. "It's amazing to tute for Public Policy demonstrated see these outcomes," he said. that the intervention would be cost- Students who attended the schools effective if all that it achieved was a with intervention programs also reduction in crime. The institute cal- were more likely to stay in school culated a taxpayer savings of 21 per- and to achieve higher grades, al- cent just from the reduction in the though there was no significant im- number of felonies committed. pact on their experimentation with drugs or cigarettes. Jane Quinn, who studied youth pro- The New York Times MONDAY, MARCH 15, 1999