Goals and Objectives :: Goal D :: Instructional Strategies

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Students need to be encouraged to envision lives without drugs or violence, to identify people who have succeeded without drugs or violence, and to model those people by taking action consistent with what they know. Curricula can foster this process by providing students with opportunities to:

• assess what they can do
  Activities that call on students to examine their strengths can give them a realistic view of what kinds of obstacles might prevent them from their goals and what kinds of resources they might be able to call on.

• contribute to school, families, and community.
  Activities that require students to perform projects in their homes (in younger grades), schools (in intermediate grades), and their communities (in higher grades) extend the curriculum beyond the classroom in ways that enable transfer of knowledge to occur more smoothly.

• achieve success
  Because this may be the first time that students actually set goals for themselves, it is important for teachers to set up situations so that the students succeed. Teachers can do this by carefully monitoring students' goals to ensure that they're realistic, by giving students both the emotional support and resources needed, and by making sure that students are recognized and congratulated for achieving their goals.

Other specific instructional strategies that promote students' taking action are the following:

• Mapping and webbing the benefits of living safely and drug-free is useful for students to demonstrate understanding and see relationships among concepts.
• Drama play and theater games can provide students with opportunities to strengthen communication skills, self-confidence, and community service.
• Field trips to view community resources that will assist students in achieving goals gives students a firsthand look at people taking action.
• Problem-solving procedures and practice can develop personal abilities and provide strategies for helping others. Common steps include defining the problem, generating as many solutions as possible, deciding on criteria for judging the solutions listed, selecting the best possible solution, putting the solution into practice, and evaluating both the decision and the process.
• Simulations can provide students with opportunities to actively study and analyze real-life social situations while being active participants. The teacher's role is to plan and facilitate the simulation and conduct a briefing that allows students to prepare for realistic situations and to transfer skills.
• Community service projects, such as those generated by service learning projects, are the most direct means for students to take action in their community.