6 The Faceless Mobile Youth of Africa Drive Change
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leaders and building leadership capacity in those who exhibit leadership characteristics. School principals are requested to identify potential candidates in Grade 11.
Selection of participants is based on a screening document but it is up to the individual
to decide whether or not to enrol in the academy.
Manage expectations and outcomes phase
Enrolled youth are expected to commit two hours of their time every Saturday afternoon, from March till November. During this time, they participate in interactive
workshops, seminars and other activities aimed at building leadership skills but
which is also fun. University lecturers, community leaders and other subject experts
offer their time and expertise to engage with the participants during these sessions.
Recognition is given to those participants who exhibited dedication by attending a
minimum of 70% of the sessions, during a formal event. This event marked the end
of the programme and is attended by all involved as well the parents and guardians
of the participants. Each participant is expected to share his/her experience of the
programme with the audience. This in itself is a significant indicator of the level of
growth of each individual.
Develop emotional quotient (EQ) phase
Emotional intelligence plays a significant role in the development of young people
as it allows them to recognise their own and other people’s emotions, to discriminate
between the different feelings and to act upon it in an appropriate manner. EQ subject
experts facilitate workshops to build EQ skills and social competence, especially for
young people whose mode of communication is now via social networks and virtual
communities.
Create street law awareness phase
In order to take full advantage of the changing face of communication in terms of atrisk youth, one has to understand the challenges they are faced with on a daily basis.
It is therefore not only necessary to sensitise the youth about bad or potentially bad
situations, whether it is emotional or physical abuse, sociological and psychological
pitfalls or improper practices at institutional level. But recognition of potentially
dangerous situations alone does not empower a person to act appropriately. There is
thus a need to empower the youth to know their rights and to take action.
Street law taught by law students from the Faculty of Law at the NMMU has
therefore become an integral part of the YLA programme. Participants simulate
potentially bad situations and are guided by the facilitators on how to act upon each
situation. This led to the establishment of Street Law WhatsApp groups where group
members can get support or even summon help when in a bad situation. For the girls,
this proved to be exceptionally valuable.
Create awareness of responsible digital citizenship phase
The perceived distance and anonymity created by electronic communication methods
have resulted in unacceptable and undesirable communication behaviours among the
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leaders and building leadership capacity in those who exhibit leadership characteristics. School principals are requested to identify potential candidates in Grade 11.
Selection of participants is based on a screening document but it is up to the individual
to decide whether or not to enrol in the academy.
Manage expectations and outcomes phase
Enrolled youth are expected to commit two hours of their time every Saturday afternoon, from March till November. During this time, they participate in interactive
workshops, seminars and other activities aimed at building leadership skills but
which is also fun. University lecturers, community leaders and other subject experts
offer their time and expertise to engage with the participants during these sessions.
Recognition is given to those participants who exhibited dedication by attending a
minimum of 70% of the sessions, during a formal event. This event marked the end
of the programme and is attended by all involved as well the parents and guardians
of the participants. Each participant is expected to share his/her experience of the
programme with the audience. This in itself is a significant indicator of the level of
growth of each individual.
Develop emotional quotient (EQ) phase
Emotional intelligence plays a significant role in the development of young people
as it allows them to recognise their own and other people’s emotions, to discriminate
between the different feelings and to act upon it in an appropriate manner. EQ subject
experts facilitate workshops to build EQ skills and social competence, especially for
young people whose mode of communication is now via social networks and virtual
communities.
Create street law awareness phase
In order to take full advantage of the changing face of communication in terms of atrisk youth, one has to understand the challenges they are faced with on a daily basis.
It is therefore not only necessary to sensitise the youth about bad or potentially bad
situations, whether it is emotional or physical abuse, sociological and psychological
pitfalls or improper practices at institutional level. But recognition of potentially
dangerous situations alone does not empower a person to act appropriately. There is
thus a need to empower the youth to know their rights and to take action.
Street law taught by law students from the Faculty of Law at the NMMU has
therefore become an integral part of the YLA programme. Participants simulate
potentially bad situations and are guided by the facilitators on how to act upon each
situation. This led to the establishment of Street Law WhatsApp groups where group
members can get support or even summon help when in a bad situation. For the girls,
this proved to be exceptionally valuable.
Create awareness of responsible digital citizenship phase
The perceived distance and anonymity created by electronic communication methods
have resulted in unacceptable and undesirable communication behaviours among the