Odds-Beating High Schools Foster Positive Youth Development

by Catherine Kramer, Research Assistant for NYKids

NYKids researchers find positive youth development is part of the DNA of odds-beating schools.

Positive youth development (PYD) involves a holistic view of youth, one not restricted to their roles as students. This was evidenced in three practices common across the seven odds-beating high schools studied in the recent NYKids College and Career Readiness Study.

PYD Lesson #1: Schools Run on Relationships

Odds-beating high school educators bring focus and intentionality to building relationships including multiple opportunities for young people to develop social connections with a caring adult.  One way they do this is through formal mentoring programs that pair faculty/staff and students. In odds-beater, Crown Point, all adults in the building including office staff, faculty, and student support professionals are part of a school-wide mentorship program.

Educators in other odds-beating high schools focus on positive adult-student relationships as a key component of their strategy for heading off behavior problems before they occur.  The Freeport principal referred to this approach as “therapeutic.” This communicates to students that adults in the building have their best interest in mind and when an adult delivers difficult advice, it comes from a place of care and trust.

PYD Lesson #2: Goal Setting is Youth-Driven

Educators in odds-beating high schools focus on helping adolescents set goals for life after high school.  This life course development emphasis, while a feature of the high schools, also is typically a district-wide priority.  In odds-beaters, conversations about pathways into a fulfilling adulthood begin as early as elementary school, and educators stress the importance of allowing youth to be actively involved in designing their course of study.

When [students] leave this high school, are they ready to be successful in whatever they have chosen to do? We understand, in this day and age . . . you should know what you’re interested in, what you’re good at, some things you might have skills in, and some preparation to help you then go further, whether it be college or trades or whatever you have in mind.

– Superintendent from Maple Grove Junior/Senior High School

Additionally, at some odd-beating high schools like Maple Grove Junior/Senior High School, career planning involves discussions about the sort of life a young adult would want to lead. Discussions included concrete concerns such as cost of living and budgeting, as well as developing skills like responsibility and leadership.

PYD Lesson #3: Emphasis on Fostering Well-Rounded Youth

Odds-beating educators describe the importance of modeling and providing opportunities for young people to engage in social and emotional learning opportunities as part of the school experience. Educators look for ways to develop self-regulation and leadership skills, and more broadly, to offer opportunities for young people to share their unique talents.         

They’re sitting there looking at you and it’s being absorbed into them what an adult is like. What it is to be a decent human being. The opportunity to have that kind of impact on their lives, I think, is a huge honor and responsibility as well.

 – Teacher from Maple Grove Junior/Senior High School

Students are encouraged – and celebrated – for participating in activities outside the classroom such as playing sports, physical activity (e.g., running, weight lifting), playing an instrument, participating in the school musical, or getting involved in creative arts.