Friendship formation and maintenance

Objectives

By the end of this section, you should be able to: identify types of friendships differentiate between peer influence and peer pressure identify strategies of resisting peer pressure

FRIENDSHIPS FORMATION AND MAINTENANCE

A friend is a person one is in a good relationship with and with whom one shares personal information and materials with. The teacher should involve the learners in acquiring knowledge values and skills on how to identify good friends, qualities of a good friend. He /she should also discuss things friends do together and the importance of having friends. He or she should emphasize to the learners the importance of establishing and maintaining friendships

Types of friendships at various levels

• family
• among the peers
• in the community
• teacher – learner
• tutor – trainee
• counselor – client
• doctor – patient
• employer – employee
• trader – customer
• spiritual leader – follower

Peer influence and peer pressure Peer influence is the strong pressure to an individual to adopt the attitude, values, behaviourand thoughts of his or her peer group. The pressure might be positive or negative.

Peer Pressure Resistance

Peer Pressure is the influence one has from friends and others of his/her own age to do things that he/she doesn’t approve of and really don’t want to do.

Positive and Negative Peer influence

Positive Peer Influence

• contributes to achievement of personal goals
• builds self confidence
• leads to respect of values and belief in society
• promotes of positive use of leisure time
• discourages risky behaviour
• promotes unity and co-operation
• encourages mutual trust
• enhances performance

Negative Peer Influence

• leads to riots and school unrest
• promotes harmful traditional practices
• leads to pre-marital sex
• drug and substance abuse
• bullying
• dropping out of school
• involvement in cuts and occultism

Case study

Nalina is going back home from watching a match in a nearby stadium. She is in the company of her close friend Mercy, and two young men, Tula and Ndalu.

the way a discussion ensures where the friends suggest they engage in sex before they part company. Nalina is opposed to this suggestion. A heated debate emerges. Nalina calms her friends down and tells them that she does not see the point of their disagreement. She suggest that each one of them should be given a chance to air his/her views about what they want and how to go about it. Tula and Mercy explained that they love each other and would like to have sex. Nalina says she is not interested in sex, and has never imagined being involved in love affairs at her age.

Ndalu says as much as he is for the idea, he believes it will serve a short term purpose. He is worried that he might contact HIV which will have a long term negative effect on her health. Based on their opinion the group agree that it is risky to engage in sex, besides, having sexual feelings does not necessarily mean you must always engage in sex.

Activity

from the above case study Identify pressure lines Identify various strategies employed by Nalina and Ndalu to resist peer pressure

Strategies of peer pressure resistance

• application of negotiation skills
• being assertive
• relating with positive socializing agents
• developing and upholding positive values system

Resources

These are non-Human materials, equipment and media and human used to enhance learning by experience. These aids and other references help a teacher prepare and present Life Skills activities effectively. These resources may be used by a learner either in isolation or in groups with other learners to enhance learning in a multi sensory approach. Human resource refers to the teacher other teachers on the school learners or any invited persons from outside the school to facilitate teaching learning process. Non-human resource include the print and non-print materials and equipments that are indispensable in the teaching learning process. The teacher should determine the best resources for a particular learning resource the resource should be used in the most natural and logical manner known to reinforce a particular learning activity however they should compliment teaching and learning and not replace the teacher. Same resources can be bought sourced from the environment, locally made borrowed or shared at departmental or with school levels. Importance of teaching/learning resources. Make the learning of Life Skills Education interesting real and enjoyable. Encourages learners to retain knowledge life skills and attitudes learnt They appeal to more senses e.g. sight, touch, small, among others Make it possible for learners understand abstract ideas, and clarify concepts and ideas Provides stimuli variation in the teaching learning process thus making the lesson interesting. Suggested Types of Teaching/Learning resources There are several types of teaching learning resources which a teacher may use to enhance teaching learning process. This includes the following: Real objects items or materials which may be collected or obtained from the environment e.g. balloon watches, foodstuffs drugs. Audio-visual, electrons equipment which a learner can look at (visual) and listen to (audio) in the learning process. They include video Television, DVDs, VCDs, CDs, film and sound slides Visual They include pictures, charts, photographs diagrams, statues, realia, modes etc. Should be simple neat well labelled, large enough to be seen. Audio: These materials include Radio, recorded cassettes, diskette record player among others Written or printed materials: They include text books; supplementary books, reference books, news papers, journals, magazine and periodic among others Resources persons: sometimes the teacher will be required to use other people, learners, other teachers, other knowledgeable people in other areas, rehabilited or affected persons This can be used to teach life skills education. This include the following Facilitators handbook on life skills education for the prevention of Drug and substance abuse Life skills Education for behaviour change facilitators handbook Guidance and counselling teachers handbook Life skills education for the youth Learn to say no to drug abuse Life skills activity book for age 15-25years Say no to drug abuse An information handbook on drug and substance abuse Selection of teaching learning resources while choosing resources a main gaining factor to consider should be: Specific objectives Content Teaching learning activities Other factors include: Cost of the resources Availability of the resource Size of the class Maturity level of the learners their past experience and needs Specific skill expected to be acquired How easy it is for the learners to use and resources Effectiveness of the resource to communicate and desired information Physical requirement for using the resource for example, electricity done room, quite areas, cool rooms