Dataset Information

An Intervention to Enhance Social, Emotional, and Identity Learning for Very Young Adolescents and Support Gender Equity: Protocol for a Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The onset of puberty is a pivotal period of human development that is associated with significant changes in cognitive, social, emotional, psychological, and behavioral processes that shape identity formation. Very early adolescence provides a critical opportunity to shape identity formation around gender norms, attitudes, and beliefs before inequitable gender norms are amplified during and after puberty.

Objective

The aim of the Discover Learning Project is to integrate strategic insights from developmental science to promote positive transformation in social, emotional, and gender identity learning among 10- to 11-year-olds in Tanzania. Through a pragmatic randomized controlled trial, the intervention scaffolds the development of critical social and emotional mindsets and skills (curiosity, generosity, persistence, purpose, growth mindset, and teamwork) delivered by conducting 18 after-school, technology-driven, experiential learning sessions in small, mixed-gender groups.

Methods

The Discover Learning Intervention is a 3-arm randomized controlled trial that will be delivered to 579 participants selected from four public primary schools in Temeke District, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Randomization will be done at the individual level into 3 treatment groups receiving incremental intervention components. The treatment components include Discover Learning content curated into child-friendly videos, facilitated discussions, and a parent-child workbook, to be implemented over two phases, each 6 weeks long. A baseline survey will be administered to participants and their parents prior to the intervention. The process will be observed systematically, and data will be collected using surveys, in-depth interviews, observations, and focus group discussions with adolescents, parents, teachers, and facilitators conducted prior, during, and after each implementation phase.

Results

This study builds on formative and pilot studies conducted with the target population to inform the design of the intervention. The results will generate new evidence that will inform strategies for achieving scale in Tanzania and provide insights for replication of similar programs that are invested in gender-transformative interventions in peri-urban, low-resource settings.

Conclusions

The Discover Learning Intervention makes an important contribution to the field of adolescent developmental science as an intervention designed for very young adolescents in a low-resource setting.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04458077; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04458077.

International registered report identifier (irrid)

DERR1-10.2196/23071.

SUBMITTER: Cherewick M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7808886 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

An Intervention to Enhance Social, Emotional, and Identity Learning for Very Young Adolescents and Support Gender Equity: Protocol for a Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial.

Cherewick Megan M Lebu Sarah S Su Christine C Dahl Ronald E RE

JMIR research protocols 20201231 12

<h4>Background</h4>The onset of puberty is a pivotal period of human development that is associated with significant changes in cognitive, social, emotional, psychological, and behavioral processes that shape identity formation. Very early adolescence provides a critical opportunity to shape identity formation around gender norms, attitudes, and beliefs before inequitable gender norms are amplified during and after puberty.<h4>Objective</h4>The aim of the Discover Learning Project is to integrat ...[more]

PMID: 33206624

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundThe transition from childhood to adolescence is a uniquely sensitive period for social and emotional learning in the trajectory of human development. This transition is characterized by rapid physical growth, sexual maturation, cognitive and behavioral changes and dynamic changes in social relationships. This pivotal transition provides a window of opportunity for social emotional learning that can shape early adolescent identity formation and gender norms, beliefs and behaviors. The objective of this study is to evaluate the potential of a social emotional learning intervention for very young adolescents (VYAs) to improve social emotional mindsets and skills.MethodsDiscover Learning is a social emotional learning intervention designed for VYAs (10-11 years of age) to support development of social emotional mindsets and skills from four primary schools in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The intervention delivered three different packages of learning experiences to three arms of the study. 528 VYAs were randomized to each of the three study arms (A-Content learning, B-Content learning and reflection, and C-Content learning, reflection and experiential practice). A quantitative survey was administered to all participants before and after the intervention to capture changes in social emotional mindsets and skills. A discrete choice experiment measured changes in gender norms, beliefs and behaviors.Results528 VYAs were included in the analysis. Participants in all three arms of the study demonstrated significant improvements in social emotional mindsets and skills outcomes (generosity, curiosity, growth mindset, persistence, purpose and teamwork). However, Group C (who received experiential social learning opportunities in small, mixed-gender groups and a parent and community learning components demonstrated larger treatment effects on key outcomes in comparison to Groups A and B. Results indicate Group C participants had greater change in gender equity outcomes (OR = 1.69, p = <0.001) compared to Group A (OR = 1.30, p = <0.001) and Group B (OR = 1.23, p = 0.004).ConclusionThese findings provide evidence that social emotional learning interventions targeting VYAs can improve social emotional mindsets and skills and gender equity outcomes. The findings indicate the importance of experiential learning activities in mixed-gender groups during the unique developmental window of early adolescence. The study also provides support for the inclusion of parental/caregiver and community engagement in programs designed for VYAs.Trial registrationRetrospectively registered on July 7th, 2020. NCT0445807.

Dataset Information

An Intervention to Enhance Social, Emotional, and Identity Learning for Very Young Adolescents and Support Gender Equity: Protocol for a Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Trial registration

International registered report identifier (irrid)

Publications

An Intervention to Enhance Social, Emotional, and Identity Learning for Very Young Adolescents and Support Gender Equity: Protocol for a Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial.

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