Department of Youth and Development, The Hague University of Applied Sciences
The Department of Youth and Development at The Hague University of Applied Sciences develops, evaluates and disseminates Social Emotional Leaning (SEL) programmes for elementary schools and highschools throughout the Netherlands.
With special emphasis on schools in socially disadvantaged areas and lower vocational schools. Its main SEL programme, entitled Skills4Life, has been shown in several randomized control trials to be effective both in terms of enhancing prosocial behavior and effective school- and work attitudes and skills and academic achievement as well as in reducing antisocial behaviors and emotional problems/disorders.
The department trains school teachers as well as youth sport coaches and youth organization leaders in applying Skills4Life. With special emphasis on sport clubs and youth organizations with only or with a predominantly migrant youth population. A Skills4Life programme for parents is under development.
The department cooperates on SEL programme development, research and dissemination with TNO Innovation for Life (The National Applied Research Institution, The Netherlands), the University of Utrecht (The Netherlands) and the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning of Harvard University (Cambridge, US. )
Role in the partnership: The Department of Youth and Development will contribute to all phases of the project and will coordinating the partners' research activities and the preparation of the toolkit.