E.C.L.I.P.S.E PROGRAM

Education and Co-operation Through Learning and

Inspiration, a Personal Self-change Experience

WHAT IS THE E.C.L.I.P.S.E. PROGRAM?

Was first introduced in 1999 in Ottawa A school-based prevention program that combines group work and basic learning of Judo techniques and its nonviolent philosophyAn innovative approach that combines resources from the school and the communityA 10 to 12 week program consisting of 2 group and 2 Judo sessions per week

PHILOSOPHY OF THE ECLIPSE PROGRAM

Youth experience the physical and mental challenges of the gentle art of judoYouth discover their leadership qualities, gain self-discipline and enhance their social skillsYouth discover themselves and their values, gain awareness of their choices while participating in groups

PROGRAM OBJECTIVESTo be proactive in helping students cope with the challenges of their daily life by:

Promoting self-awareness and alternative options in dealing with feeling of anger

Enabling students to strengthen their communication skills

Empowering youth to make better choices and enhance their problem solving skills

TARGET POPULATION

Youth who are 12 to 15 years of age who need to develop skills to help them handle conflicts and power imbalances with peers, teachers,

family members and the community

FEEDBACK

“This is definitely a positive and valuable resource for our students. In fact, we NEED this program.”

(School Principal)

FEEDBACK continuing

“The program is teaching me that there are other ways to express myself when I get angry. I walk away from a situation if I’m angry and give myself time to calm down and then I can deal with the issue.”

(ECLIPSE participant)

FEEDBACK continuing

“He used to answer back rough and now it’s completely different, knows how to answer back without yelling or talking back, he used to keep too much inside and now he is able to talk to us about it … a lot of things.”

(Comment from a parent)

HISTORY

The ECLIPSE program started in the Ottawa-Carleton region in June of 1998 under a partnership between the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa-Carleton (YSB), Judo Canada (JC) and local school board (SB). The roots of the ECLIPSE program originated in an anti-violence program called VIRUS that began at a high school in Buckingham, Quebec in 1996. The VIRUS was positioned as an alternative physical therapy program for adolescents that had been involved in delinquent behaviour.

HISTORY continuing: Over the 10-12 week duration of the ECLIPSE program, participants are required to attend two cognitive group counseling and two judo sessions per week. Each of the three partners contributes equally. The YSB (REACH – youth worker in our area) provides the expertise for the group counseling sessions, JC provides the Judo expertise and the SB provides access to the schools within which the ECLIPSE program operates.

In addition, each participating school provides at least one resource person to coordinate the counseling and Judo sessions throughout the ECLIPSE program.

The ECLIPSE program was designed as a crime prevention tool to help “at-risk” youth to manage their anger and aggressiveness by :

Improving their self-esteem and self-confidenceIntroducing them to disciplineEncouraging them to be accountable for their actions Helping them make better decisionsHelping them learn about respect and co-operationBuilding their communication skills

KEY COMPONENTS:

Judo Training: A Martial Art

steeped in Japanese tradition and literally means “the gentle way”. It is a defensive martial art that uses opponent’s force to throw or immobilize them.

Group Counseling: Focuses on anger

management, cognitive behavioral therapy and real life problem solving strategies.

JUDO COMPONENT:

The Judo Component reinforces the objectives of the ECLIPSE program by emphasizing the aspects of Judo dealing with such attributes as participation, respect, discipline, self-control, co-operation, team work and hygiene. During the process, participants will be introduced to the Judo customs of mutual respect and discipline.

Judo was recognized by the Olympic Committee and broke into the Olympic Games in 1964 held in Tokyo. The tradition of Judo is unique as there is only one governing body and style practiced in over 182 Countries. Judo attire, bowing and posture will be fundamental aspects of training. Participants will also learn about the history and basic principles of Judo as developed by the sport’s founder, Dr. Jigoro KANO (1860-1938), a Japanese professor of Physical Education. Throughout the program, Judo instructors will be referred to as “sensei”.

JUDO COMPONENT continuing:

The sensei plays a key role in each session by: creating an atmosphere that is safe for practice; ensuring that participants remain co-operative and respectful of themselves and others; and; teaching techniques with emphasis on controlling emotions and strength.

Note: It is imperative that the Judo component of the ECLIPSE program be delivered under the supervision of a sensei recognized by Judo Canada as a black belt holder.

THE BESIC JUDO COMPONENT OF THE ECLIPSE PROGRAM

Number of weeks: 10-12 weeks

Number of sessions: 2 per week

Length of sessions: 1 hour

Max number of participants: 10-12 per instructor

Necessary equipment: 1 judogi per student1.5 tatami/student (“Tatami” is Japanese for “mat”) In some cases tatami may be substituted for wrestling mats supplied by the school.

GROUP CONSELLING

Through dialogue, role interactive exercises and discussions, youth are introduced to group dynamics and exercises designed to enhance communication skills, assertiveness, group cohesion, and strategies to prevent aggressive behaviour via anger management.

In the cognitive behavioural sessions, youth learn when they are headed for trouble before it happens and to take preventative measures by examining and understanding the connections between their thoughts, feeling, beliefs and attitudes.

Finally, as result of the problem solving sessions, youth are better equipped to explore alternative courses of actions and choose appropriate responses in real life situations where they face stress and conflict.

GROUP COUNSELLING continuing:

A social agency, social worker, youth worker, psychologist or equivalent from the school provides a facilitator to run the groups. In each school there is a school-based co-ordinator who manages referrals of youth to the program; liaises with the sponsoring agency, parents and school staff; plans and organizes special events; helps publicize the ECLIPSE program; troubleshoots; and, provides follow-up with the participants. The school also designates staff to co-facilitate groups and participate in the judo sessions. The group counseling sessions are designed to be run by two facilitators.

Note: It is imperative that the school based co-ordinator and facilitator are involved with the Judo teacher at the beginning of the program.

OBJECTIVES OF THE ECLIPSE GROUP PROGRAM:

Building better communication skills like; listening better, communication our needs respectfully, and finding more effective ways of solving problems with other people.

Making better choices; examining what kind of thinking leads us to getting into trouble and learning what kind of thinking leads us to make better choices. We learn about the role of thinking in creating our feelings and in shaping our actions. This makes us better at solving our own problems because we practice looking at the consequences of our thinking and behaviour.

Learning about the anger and how it can be expressed. We learn about when it is best to intervene so that our anger does not escalate out of our control. We also explore some of the things we can do to calm ourselves down so we can handle the situation better. We learn how we can use our anger to solve problems in constructive ways.

WHO MUST BE INVOLVED IN THE PROGRAM?

Grand Erie District School Board (GEDSV) - co-ordinator and facilitator and facilityHaldimand – Norfolk R.E.A.C.H. (Resource, Education and Counselling Help) – facilitator – group counsellingJudo Canada – certified Judo instructor

WHAT MUST BE INVOLVED IN THE ECLIPSE PROGRAM?

Tatami – mats, wrestling mats could be used;

Judogi – uniform for each student – kimono and a belt

COST:

There is no fee for the students to participate

There is a cost for the uniform – approximately $40.00 each (the uniform can be re-used by the students)

INSURANCE:

Each student and parent/legal guardian has to sign a consent form in order to participate in the program;

The school board is responsible for the insurance – same as phys-ed class

STUDY

ERIC - the Education Resources Information Center - is an online digital library of education research and information. ERIC is sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of Education. ERIC provides ready access to education literature to support the use of educational research and information to improve practice in learning, teaching, educational decision-making, and research.

STUDY continuing:

ERIC continues to explore new approaches to enhancing and expanding services to the user community. Through collaborative efforts and with feedback provided by the ERIC user community, the ERIC program continues to enhance online services, expand access to full-text materials, and increase the number of journal and non-journal sources indexed in the Collection.

ERIC study # ED468017, April 2002:

Title: Alternatives to School Suspension: An Intervention for At-Risk Students:This report describes the Eclipse program, which was developed for middle school students with school-behavior problems. The program combines group counseling and judo training, a non-violent sport that promotes social, psychological, and physical development. During the program, groups of approximately 15-20 students participate for 1 hour each day in alternating sessions of counseling and judo over a 10-week period. Since 1999, Eclipse has been offered in 6 different schools in the Ottawa region. An evaluation of the program was conducted in a high school with special programming for youth with academic difficulties. The school had integrated Eclipse into their grade 9 curriculum, meaning all grade 9 students (n=50) were required to participate.

ERIC study # ED468017, April 2002 continuing:

Students with higher than average aggressive tendencies upon entry to Eclipse reported reductions in their aggressiveness at program completion. In addition, students who began the program with a tendency to attribute responsibility for personal experiences to external factors reported a shift toward taking more personal responsibility for their actions over the course of the Eclipse program. In contrast, students of average or low aggressiveness and students with an internal locus control at the beginning of Eclipse did not report any systematic pattern of change on these variables.

Thanks so much,

Natalya McCourtProvincial Constable # 9965Ontario Provincial Police, Norfolk County,School Resource Officer519-426-3434, Natalya.McCourt@ontario.ca

Black Belt in JudoCanadian Certified Coach – Level I