Introduction To Youth Development Work

Course Name - Youth Development Work

Assignment - 1st Critical Relective Journal

Date Uploaded - 19th September , 2018

Your discussion should the following :

-Very briefly summarise the modules and dicussions

-State areas of information that impressed with you

- Reflect on your personal and professional growth

- What new insights have you gained and how they impacted on your professional
growth?

- What challenges did you experience with the material ?

- Plan - say how you plan to use the new learning to improve your practice
The modules and discussions are based on youth development and the history of youth
development. The discusions refer to defining youth, adolescents, juvenile and the child.
The dicussions also refer to how youths can benefit from social institutions and the age
category of youth. In addition, the modules consists of the context , concepts and
perspctives of youth development work.

Areas of information that impressed with me would be understanding youth development

work. My understanding of youth development work . The Youth Act 2001 [Ireland]
claimed that youth work is concerned with the personal and social devlopment of young
people. Personal and social development is about the awareness of his/herself as an
individual and as an active participant in relationships with others. My thoughts on youth
and adolescents are they are at the stage that prepares them for adulthood. They are
molded into responsible young adults through the home , education systems and other
social institutions. However , juveniles are those who are under the age of eighteen whose
behaviour have not matured. Juvenile is also a behavioural pattern practiced by young
persons in society. As mentioned above , the term juvenile means those of immature ,
childish behaviour.

My refletion on my personal and professional growth as a youth and a student would be

that personally , I understand as a youth being able to use my knowledge , from home in
terms of morals and vaues and also the responsibilities as an individual in the home and
the education system from primary to present tertiary level. In the education system not
only have I gained knowledge academically but also culturally and socially so that I may be able
to apply this gained knowledge to society as an individual. This is what the youth development
course has reflected on me . Also professionally in the near future the knowledge I have gained
would be used to positively impact the youth of our nation.

The new insight I have gained would be resiliency . The reason for chosing this insight is that I
belive that youths such as myself and many more would be successful despite overwhelming
odds in our lives. This insight impacted my professional development as a student because I
believe that despite all the academic and personal obstacles/ challenges in my life, I should rise
above it and be successful. Resiliency is also be a great factor in developing youths into
adulthood.

The challenges I have experienced with the material was fully understanding and expressing the
terms , concepts , contexts and perspctives of youth development work. I overcame the
challenges through reading and taking notes of each term , context , concept and perspective
and express them in my own point of view. I also had the challenge with finding sufficient
reading material but this was resolved through research.

My plan to use new learning to improve my practice would be taking more time to read the
material given, take notes using my own point of view , researching relevant articles concerning
the course of Youth Development Work and applying these methods to all my courses and
studies. Professionally in my practice as a student and future youth development worker or
whichever path I decide to take in consideration for my BSc in Youth Development Work , I hope
to use the knowledge I have gained to ensure youths are positively impacted and prepared not
only for the future but their present life as well, that despite each overwhelming obstacle in
their lives they will be successful and they would be molded through the home , schools and
other institutions of society to become beneficiaries and positive , forward thinking adults.

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