Lions-Quest Working Toward Peace (OJJDP Model Program Guide)

Office of Justice Programs, Innovation - Partnerships – Safer Neighborhoods

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) Serving Children, Families and Communities

PREVENTION

IMMEDIATE SANCTIONS

INTERMEDIATE SANCTIONS

RESIDENTIAL

REENTRY

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Lions-Quest Working Toward Peace

Intervention:

Lions-Quest developed the Working Toward Peace (WTP) curriculum for classroom teachers to teach anger management and conflict resolution skills to students ages 10–14. WTP contains both primary and secondary prevention strategies to decrease violence and promote positive social behaviors. Based primarily on social learning theory, the WTP curriculum teaches students to a) manage their own anger, b) understand conflict, c) manage conflict appropriately, and d) use problem-solving techniques to resolve conflicts peacefully.

The curriculum concentrates on five key components: a classroom curriculum, a guide to safe schools for teachers and administrators, family involvement, community involvement, and professional development for implementers. The curriculum has 22 core sessions and a Skills Bank with 6 basic life-skills sessions. Multidisciplinary extensions link sessions with other related content areas: art, computer technology, drama, health, language arts, math, music, physical education, science, and social studies. The program is structured to change students’ attitudes about how to interact with others, increase their knowledge about nonviolent techniques, and foster the behaviors that will help young people apply this knowledge. Designed for delivery by the classroom teacher once a week, each lesson is 40–50 minutes long.

Evaluation Methodology:

The WTP program was evaluated with an untreated control-group quasi-experimental design, with pretest and posttest measures. The program was tested in 1994 in 26 middle schools (grades 6–8). Principals from each school randomly assigned classes in their schools into one of three conditions. The first experimental group participated only in the Lions-Quest Working Toward Peace violence prevention program (n=163). The second experimental group participated only in the Lions-Quest Skills for Adolescence (SFA) life skills program (n=151). The third group was the control, and it received no intervention (n=176). Teachers used the curriculum (either WTP or SFA) 1 day a week during the 1st intervention semester. Teachers taught the material twice a week the following semester. Each session was 40–50 minutes long. Each student was asked to fill out questionnaires that included anger management knowledge tests both before the program implementation and after program completion. The school system also collected data on selected academic measures such as grades, attendance, achievement test scores, and teachers’ reports of violent behavior, misconduct, and prosocial behavior. Posttests were given following each semester as well as 4–5 months following the end of the intervention. Finally, teachers were trained by Lions-Quest to rate behavior, such as prosocial interactions, on a daily basis. In addition to objective testing, teachers evaluated portfolio items such as worksheets, notebook entries, television anger logs, and written and oral reports on the biography of a peacemaker.

Evaluation Outcome:

The evaluation findings suggest that students who participated in the WTP program demonstrated the highest increase in knowledge about anger resolution and conflict management. Violent activities decreased among WTP students and remained low for 4–5 months after the intervention, while control group students doubled their violent events. Cases of classroom misconduct among WTP students decreased by 50 percent, and prosocial interaction occurred at twice the rate when compared with control group students. Truancy was more prevalent among non-WTP students. The grade point average of WTP students increased in all subject areas, while the grades of control group students showed no appreciable change.

Other Information:

References:

Laird, Molly, Michael Syropoulos, and Steven Black. 1996. What Works in Violence Prevention: Findings From an Evaluation Study of Lions-Quest “Working Toward Peace” in Detroit Schools. Newark, Ohio: Quest International.

Lions-Quest. 1999. Evaluation Report: The Impact of Lions-Quest Programs. Newark, Ohio: Quest International.

Program Specification:

Current Rating:

Promising

Expected Date of Re-Review:

Spring 2013

Program Type:

Classroom Curricula

Conflict Resolution / Interpersonal Skills

Leadership and Youth Development

School/Classroom Environment

Gender:

Both

Age:

10 - 14

Problem Behaviors:

Aggression/Violence

Risk & Protective Factors:

Risk

Community

Community crime / High crime neighborhood

Social and physical disorder / Disorganized neighborhood

Family

Family management problems / Poor parental supervision and/or monitoring

Family violence

Individual

Life stressors

Poor refusal skills

Victimization and exposure to violence

Peer

Association with delinquent and/or aggressive peers

Peer rejection

Protective

Community

Prosocial opportunities for participation / Availability of neighborhood resources

Rewards for prosocial community involvement

Family

Effective parenting

Opportunities for prosocial family involvement

Rewards for prosocial family involvement

Individual

Positive / Resilient temperament

Self-efficacy

Social competencies and problem solving skills

Peer

Involvement with positive peer group activities

School

Opportunities for prosocial school involvement

Rewards for prosocial school involvement

Student bonding (attachment to teachers, belief, commitment)

Additional Information:

Department of Education

Status:

Program is NOT in operation at this time.

Performance Measures:

Suggested OJJDP Performance Measures for the Program Types(s):

Delinquency Prevention
Leadership and Youth Development
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
School Programs
School/Classroom Environment
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
Delinquency Prevention
Classroom Curricula
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF
School Programs
Classroom Curricula
Logic Model: PDF
Performance Matrix:PDF

Contact Information:

Program Developer:
Greg Long
Lions-Quest
1984 Coffman Road
Newark, OH 43055
Phone: 7405226404
Fax: 7405226580
Email: Click Here
Website: Click Here

Training & TA Provider:
Mark Bularzik
Lions Clubs International Foundation
300 West 22nd Street
Oak Brook, IL 60523–8842
Phone: 6305715466
Fax: 6305715735
Email: Click Here
Website: Click Here

Program Locations:
Greg Long
Lions-Quest
1984 Coffman Road
Newark, OH 43055