Schools across the country are implementing The Peer Support Program successfully with very positive results. Below are a number of tips to help you implement the Peer Support Program for 2017.
- Have a very clear plan about how the program will be implemented and linked to the school’s strategic directions and priorities
- Gain a firm recommitment from the Principal and the Executive regarding their support.
- Inform all staff members via an awareness raising session of the plan for Peer Support at the school. These are provided for you in our resources or we can conduct them on your behalf as part of your membership.
- Provide information to the parents to build their support.
- Plan the 2 day training for Peer leaders so that it is a special event for them and takes place close to the start of the Peer Support program.
- Carefully timetable the 8 Peer Support sessions across a term so that sessions are not always in the same subject area but spread across different faculties.
- Train Supervising Teachers to allow students time and space to succeed with The Peer Support Program.
- Brief and debrief Peer Leaders and Group members so that time is built in for students to reflect on and learn from their leadership opportunities.
If you trained your Secondary Peer Leaders at the end of 2016, use the 90 minute Extension Session in Section 1 of the Peer Leader’s Training to refresh skills covered during training – 6 weeks is a long break!
