People in various organizations work with young people who need nurturing and assistance to realize their potential. It is a challenging responsibility requiring staying current on social issues, workforce development, community relationship building, generational differences, neurodiversity and much more. Building a team of youth workers who maintain current knowledge is crucial to successfully building engagement with the young. Online training for youth workers enables team members to regularly update their learning to be the most effective while reinforcing the right mindset.
Differences in Thinking Processes
Youth workers today must have knowledge of the things impacting a youth’s brain development, like Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, exploitation, early addiction to powerful drugs, mental and physical abuse at home, and social experiences like exclusion during adolescence and criminality. Research has found the ability of teens to connect thinking and emotions to decision-making is not fully developed. They process information in the emotional part of the brain called the amygdala. Their thinking process is different from that of an adult who uses the rational part of the brain called the prefrontal cortex.
Team Training on Relevant Issues
Youth workers’ success depends on staying relevant to understand how their clients process thoughts and judgments, whether it concerns school, family relationships, social performance or employment. Things change fast today, making liveonline training for youth workers the most efficient way to deliver up-to-date information on relevant topics. Each youth and youth group has unique needs, as do youth workers and teams. The Certification for Working with Youth lays the foundation for continuous relevant learning through online training.
