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Step 10 RESOURCES

Your youth organisation can avail of a wide range of resources on intercultural youth work. If you identify useful resources, please let us know. You may also be involved in developing resources for intercultural youth work. Taking part in training is an invaluable source of information. It gives you a chance to meet other youth workers and discuss problems and solutions. It is also an opportunity to ask questions. Training is available from (the National Youth Council of Ireland (NYCI) on issues such as tackling racism, intercultural awareness and developing intercultural policies and projects.

Good practice – Good Resources…

In general, the youth work projects featured in this resource, used a broad range of resources in their intercultural youth work, sourced from NGOs (non-governmental organisations), the NYCI, the Department of Education and Science, and resources from other contacts and volunteers.

“I was very involved with other youth groups within the Greater Blanchardstown Area... working across areas like Huntstown, Corduff, Tyrellstown, Hartstown. We put together international quizzes, flag-making workshops, and other activities aimed at getting young people to reflect on what is identity, integration, racism etc. We had another activity called ‘Around the World in 5 Days’. It’s about creating your own country – the young people imagine they’re on a deserted island and they have to create everything themselves, laws, flags, mascots, constitution etc. and work out how they are going to exist together and integrate”. (Tyrrelstown youth worker)

Youth workers said that events which brought representatives of the youth work sector together were invaluable in terms of sharing information and problem-solving. Events included training courses, and showcases such as NYCI ‘What’s doing?’ events, which invited people to come, see and speak to youth workers from five locally-based intercultural youth work projects in each of three locations; Dublin, Galway and Cork. NYCI also organised networking events called ‘What’s next?’ between the youth sector and minority ethnic communities in Galway, Waterford and Monaghan, which introduced participants to what was happening locally in their area.

 

Local events can also be a huge resource for your work.The Tyrrelstown Youth Initiative (Foróige), benefitted greatly from becoming involved in community-wide initiatives in the area, such as football leagues, art festivals and in particular a nationwide music project that the youth group participated in by creating a rap song.

 

In terms of working with young people from different backgrounds, one observation was that many of the resources are more suitable for a classroom-style of learning, despite the fact that they should be focusing on youth work as non-formal education. Resources very often require strong literacy skills for young participants. Youth workers must search for suitable resources for the group they are working with.

 

Youth workers and volunteers should also be aware that many resources reflect a mono-cultural perspective - in that the case studies are all about ‘the Other’ in another country – with very few examples focusing on equality and diversity in Ireland. We should seek to balance this and represent all sides. Case studies in the resources may also be very close to the true life story of many of young people you work with, in particular the separated children, other asylum seekers and refugees, so we need to be sensitive to this.

 

If youth workers worked in larger team settings and had appropriate funding, many felt that they could develop their own resources based on their own experiences.  This has taken place, for instance, in YMCA who have developed programmes such as ‘Y- Share Our World’.

 

Additional Resources/Training:

 

The youth work projects featured in this resource recommended the following resources for intercultural youth work:

 

Castlebar Neighbourhood Youth Project, ‘Talking Heads’ project, Foróige

 

young people having fun  

Localise, Multicultural School

  • The Localise Multicultural School relied on a network of volunteers who often came from various cultural centres in Ireland. Localise invited the volunteers as guest speakers to the multicultural school to give classes on different cultures e.g. Japanese, French etc.
  • Resources produced by Localise include
  • the CSPE (Civil, Social and Political Education) manual for schools
  • the ‘Localise manual’ for training volunteers.  For more information contact Localise www.localise.ie

 

No. 4 drop-in centre (Galway Diocesan Youth Services (GDYS))

  • NYCI draft ‘Towards A Quality Mark in Intercultural Youth Work: 12 Steps to Best Practice’  now ‘Promoting Quality in Intercultural Youth Work: 12 Steps to Good Practice’
  • NYCI training ‘Intercultural Awareness and Cultural Competency’ www.intercultural.ie/training

 

Ógra Chorcaí, Bishopstown Youth Project

  • Excellent relationship with other community-based services, especially the youth workers from Traveller Visibility Group (TVG), Cork

 

Tyrrelstown Youth Initiative, Foróige

  • Greater Blanchardstown Area Intercultural Sub-Committee and community-wide initiatives organised through that and other fora.
  • Outreach took place through youth organisations in neighbouring areas to assess what a youth service in Tyrrelstown should offer.

 

VSI (Voluntary Service International), Teenage Programme

 

Youth Work Ireland Galway, SPARK Project

 

YMCA Cork, Ninos Club

 

How would you rate? /How is your organisation doing?

  • Has your organisation developed a list/file of resources and activities on intercultural youth work? YES   NO
  • Are useful resources for intercultural youth work shared with all staff? YES   NO
  • Has your organisation gathered information on cultural and ethnic groups represented in your area? YES   NO
  • Does your organisation liaise with other services in the form of fora, committees or community-based initiatives? YES   NO
  • Has your staff completed training on interculturalism? YES   NO
  • Have your volunteers completed training on interculturalism? YES   NO

Projects featured:

Do you have a youth service, project or club you think should be featured on our ‘Good practice’ site? If so, please contact us at: intercultural@nyci.ie