| The concept of resiliency has emerged as a way to explain maladaptive behavior by some individuals following disruptive life events where others, under similar circumstances, maintain healthy lifestyles and experience multidimensional growth. As work to gain a better understanding of what is taking place with resilient individuals is furthered, additional research is beginning in the area of formalized instruction of individuals for the purpose of enhancing their ability to avoid maladaptive behaviors and promoting growth through adversity. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of teaching with the use of resiliency-enhancing curricular materials, techniques and skills on students' resiliency.; Over a 10-week period a 33-module curriculum was used centering around strategies for enhancing an individual's resiliency characteristics. A 51-item preintervention and postintervention survey was completed by 282 public school students ranging in age from 12 to 15. The majority of the students involved in the intervention group reported a high degree of satisfaction with the materials and in their experience during the 10 weeks. This enthusiasm with the class did not, however, reflect positively in the results of the data analysis. There were no significant differences in preintervention and postintervention scores in either the comparison or intervention groups. This indicates a need for more research into the processes, time, subjects and materials used if resiliency-enhancing strategies in education are going to be effective. The experience of teaching these resiliency-enhancing strategies provided the springboard for an improved resilient youth curricula in its current form. |
