EducAid – Harvard University partnership

A few months ago, EducAid was approached by Harvard
University’s Katrina Hann and her team. 
They wanted to see if we would partner with them in a significant study
on clinical psychology interventions with young people affected by trauma.  Teresa Betancourt, who leads the team is a world-renowned
psychologist and researcher and we are excited to be working with her.

The Youth Readiness Intervention (YRI) is a ten-week
programme of weekly sessions with groups of young people who are taught
strategies for setting meaningful goals and targets for themselves and self-management
techniques for achieving them.  At the
end of this intervention, the young people (104 of them + 104 who have not
received the intervention as a control group) will join EducAid. The idea is to
compare success rates at sticking meaningfully with their choice to get back
into education after a period out of school.

We have greatly enjoyed working with the team although the
EducAid staff are thirsty for more information and training themselves but that
would skew the research findings so we can’t be allowed access too early.  When it gets to the role out phase next year,
we will be allowed into the secret of all the techniques the young people are
being taught and it may be possible to make some form of it available to all
our youngsters.

The YRI team seem to like working with EducAid too – our
staff are enthusiastic, systems flexible and aims more than compatible with
theirs.

The first groups of youngsters will join us for their
orientation in a couple of weeks.  Watch
this space as the story evolves. 

If you are interested in knowing more about EducAid’s work with vulnerable young Sierra Leoneans, please go to www.educaid.org.uk and www.sierraleonegirls.blogspot.com