BackHome
Refresh: OffView Personal Schedule
Session Submission Summary

Highlighted Session: Part 2, Possibility Development in comparative and international perspective: Possibility mentoring as an application of Possibility Development theory

Wed, April 20, 5:00 to 6:30pm CDT (5:00 to 6:30pm CDT), Hyatt Regency - Minneapolis, Floor: 4, Great Lakes A3

Group Submission Type: Highlighted Paper Session

Proposal

CIES 2022
Panel abstract
Youth Development SIG

"Possibility Development in comparative and international perspective: Part II, Possibility mentoring as an application of Possibility Development theory"

This panel follows from the first panel on theories of possibility development in comparative and international perspectives, and focuses on how the possibility development model, particularly in settings of mentorship and counseling, has been applied successfully in a number of locales and institutional settings around the world.

The research presented below suggests that the possibility development approach can result in a more sustainable, individually fulfilling yet pro-social model of goal achievement in human development.
Though everyone engages in possibility development, most efforts to study and promote it have focused on youth. Possibility projects are initiatives to study, critique, approve and apply possibility development interventions, including mentoring, training and counseling. They are based on a five-step model: imagine, plan, gather support, act and evaluate. Possibility projects are meant to use this process to guide people, especially youth, to and through new possibilities, including those they might not initially see. Project leaders help participants grow in self-confidence and set tangible but aspirational goals for their future. The crucial next step thereafter is for project leaders and Possibility stakeholders to connect youth to real opportunities to achieve their goals.
This panel brings together possibility development researchers and practitioners to discuss possibility projects and what they might help us learn about optimal youth development in comparative international context.
The first presentation will be from Andy Danilchick, founder of the Penn GSE Consortium for Mental Health and Optimal Development. Danilchick established the Consortium with Mike Nakkula in 2018 at the Penn GSE in order to link researchers with Philadelphia-area School districts interested in adopting a Possibility approach to student support, including mentoring. The term for possibility development theory applied to mentoring is Possibility Mentoring. To date the project has reached thousands of educators and students in the Greater Philadelphia area. Danilchick describes the 5-step model for applying possibility development, namely as follows:
(1) Interest Exploration (The What)...What are my interests and dreams?
(2) Prioritizing of Interests (The Why)...Why are my interests important to me?
(3) Making the Plan (The How) ... How can I reach my goals? What are the necessary steps and what would it take to accomplish them? What supports are needed to accomplish my goals?
(4) Taking Action ...What specific actions do I take?
(5) Assessment and Self-evaluation ... How can I monitor and receive feedback on my progress?
The pilot for the Possibility Mentoring program began in 2018, in 3 sites in the Philadelphia area. The focus was Middle school level (6th to 8th grade/10-14 year olds), with 100% of the students on free/reduced lunch. Mentoring sessions would be held weekly and last 30-45 minutes. In 2020-2021, with the pandemic, virtual mentoring was integrated into the pilot at one site. A participatory action research framework was adopted to collect and analyze data from the mentors on the effectiveness of the model's application. Mentors were asked to write descriptive and analytic research memos over several semesters. The study underlined the importance of group mentoring, and the cultivation of empathy, especially among students of diverse national, ethnic, and racial backgrounds.
Sasha Mejia-Bradford will discuss her involvement particularly in the online aspect of the Possibility Mentoring pilot. Mentors studied student progress and their practice through observation notes, research memos, group debriefing, and analysis sessions. A second research team worked independently to analyze the research memos that each of the mentors produced and created a thematic codebook. Findings indicate that mentors: (1) engaged in the process of reciprocal transformation with their students, (2) took diverse pathways and used various scaffolds and multimedia activities to engage their students in possibility development work, and (3) utilized the weekly support sessions to develop essential skills, share their experiences, and receive support for various problems of practice. It suggests that online possibility mentoring can be just as effective as in-person mentoring in certain ways, and potentially stronger in others. More research would need to be completed to sharpen the view on those comparisons and contrasts. Sasha finally relates this online mentoring project experience with her involvement in the Seeds for Progress initiative in Nicaraguan rural coffee farming communities. Local students have learned the workings of the coffee industry, gotten concrete guidance from which to develop transferable skills. Nakkula's possibility development concept was used to study how the students pursued specific goals, and got supports along the way. Sasha highlights similarities and contrasts in possibility mentoring across contexts.
Next, Mikayla Do, Deniz Inanici and Ashwini Maslekar present their comparative study on possibility mentoring for urban high school students in Vietnam and Turkey. They claim that, despite the underlying differences in cultural norms, future educational interventions across the globe should accommodate for a wider scope of youth development, so that students become more purposeful in their career exploration process. What existing support structures were available to students both within and outside of the school system? They qualitatively examined the sources of mentoring available to students so they could carry out what the authors call “possibility planning.” They found differences between the two contexts with respect to systems of support available to students and cultural perspectives related to career development. The authors are interested in building on this study to design personalized mentoring spaces for youths across the globe while capitalizing on online platforms, and alumni networks as an alternative source; this would also involve more parental involvement with school counselors to promote possibility development.
Flavio Serapiao will demonstrate how a Possibility Mindset is applicable to human development at the school level and among adults in the workplace in Brazil. In the workplace, drawing from his experience as Chief People Officer of Lojas Americanas in Brazil, he found that if workers feel included and that they have possibilities they can develop at your company, they will be strongly invested in their work. This shows the international as well as cross-sectoral relevance of the possibility development concept.

Sub Unit

Chair

Individual Presentations