The EKKO Project: a program to work on social skills in tweens

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The EKKO Project: a program to work on social skills in tweens

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The EKKO Project: a program to work on social skills in tweens

The Department of Social Services of the Arrasate City Council, San Juan de Dios Hospital, the Herri School in Arrasate, the Arizmendi School and the Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences of Mondragon University are participating in the project.

2022·06·22

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The EKKO project was presented at an event held on June 20 in Arrasate. The presentation ceremony was attended by representatives of the institutions that collaborate in the project, institutions such as the Department of Social Services of the Arrasate City Council, the San Juan de Dios Hospital, the Herri School in Arrasate, the Arizmendi School and the Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences of Mondragon University. The EKKO program (School, Community, Sports, Health) aims to work on social and emotional skills among students in the 5th and 6th grades of Primary Vocational Training.

The origin of the program lies in a study carried out by San Juan de Dios Hospital with athletes from the UDA and secondary students from Aretxabaleta, Eskoriatza and Arrasate. This research measured the type of substance use, resistance to peer pressure to use, assertiveness, perception of the risks of use, self-esteem and decision-making skills. In recent years after this analysis, work has been carried out in Compulsory Secondary Education, including interventions in which the need to start preventive work in Primary Education has become clear. To respond to these challenges, the EKKO program (School, Community, Sports, Health) was founded. This program will work with tweens to have an impact on their social skills and on their psychological, socio-affective and communicative development. Municipal services and schools have agreed that this intervention will be carried out in 5th- and 6th-grade classrooms (Primary Education). The project enjoys the collaboration of San Juan de Dios Hospital.

This intervention aims to offer tools to kids so that they will know how to manage the situations they experience. To be able to offer these tools it is essential that the instructors have prior training. This training will be carried out through the Specialist Course in Revitalization Strategies to Work on Children’s Social Skills, which will be taught in the Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences. The first part of the course will focus on the training of facilitators; in the second phase, biannual interventions in schools will begin.

The course is aimed at people who work in Arrasate with children and adolescents in the fields of leisure, sports, education and culture. Those interested in receiving the training will have a period of 10 days to register, at the BAZ de Arrasate (citizens’ information bureau) or online at www.arrasate.eus. Once the group has been created and the team of facilitators has been formed, the two-course program will be developed. These sessions will work on self-esteem, communication, decision making, problem solving and interpersonal interactions.

The Specialist Course in Revitalization Strategies to Work on Children’s Social Skills will be taught for the second time during the next academic year.