ERIC Number: ED434795
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1999-Apr
Pages: 19
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
New Horizons: An Empowerment Program for Egyptian Adolescent Girls.
Swanson, Julie Hanson
New Horizons is a nonschool program that demystifies and communicates essential information on basic life skills and reproductive health to Egyptian girls and young women aged 9-20. The program consists of 100 hour-long sessions, each including an introduction to a specific topic, review of group knowledge level, discussion around key points displayed on a poster, assessment, and follow-up activity. Topic categories are identity, rights and responsibilities, nutrition, health, first aid, child development, environment, small business projects, and for those over age 12, adolescence, violence against women, marriage, pregnancy, family planning, and sexually transmitted diseases. The program was developed in three upper Egyptian rural governates with low female education and literacy. A diverse group of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) assembled a team of fieldworkers who identified rural girls' problems and needs, chose 17 topics as the foundation of program materials, trained local volunteer facilitators, and evaluated early field tests. Notable program features include a comprehensive assortment of topics, an integrated approach to working with rural parents and communities, cultural and social sensitivity, simple manuals for facilitators, and replicability. Over 100 New Horizons Girls' Learning Centers now operate in four governates. Positive program impacts include changing traditional harmful practices and attitudes, building girls' confidence and status, creating demand for literacy and education, and encouraging girls to share new ideas within the family. Appendices list NGO program developers, program topics, and a chronology of program development. (SV)
Descriptors: Access to Education, Adolescents, Daily Living Skills, Disadvantaged, Empowerment, Females, Foreign Countries, Health Education, Late Adolescents, Nongovernmental Organizations, Nonschool Educational Programs, Out of School Youth, Preadolescents, Program Development, Rural Education, Rural Women, Sex Education, Social Change
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Egypt
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A