1. Peer Training Designed to Empower Learners
2. Join the Peer Resources Network and Receive Information Bonus
3. Attend any of 16 Peer Conferences or Training Events
4. Use Research and Resources to Strengthen Peer Practice
5. Create a Code of Friendship for Peer Assistance
6. Subscribing, Unsubscribing, Distribution and Copyright

PEER TRAINING DESIGNED TO EMPOWER LEARNERS

In a recent teleconference on "Mentoring Around the Globe," sponsored by the Center for Global Workforce Excellence, mentoring experts from Canada, the USA, and the United Kingdom described the cultural foundations for peer mentoring in their respective countries. While each expert identified different cultural conditions that impact peer mentoring work, they expressed a remarkable consensus with regards to best practice principles.

One of the those principles was the importance of placing the partner (or protege or mentee) in the mentoring relationship in the driver's seat. Each expert saw effective mentoring as being partner-driven with the role of the mentor being a catalyst, facilitator, and listener. Being the driver in the relationship is also a valued role for most peer assistants.

But what happens when it comes time to train peer mentors and peer assistants in the skills they need to be effective? How can the trainers model the driver role while at the same time acting as instructors, teachers or trainers? How can training reinforce, demonstrate, and support the trainee taking charge of the training when the trainers have so much content they want to deliver?

David Gibson of Eureka! Learn the Natural Way has created a model that enables trainers to drive the content while learners drive the process. He calls this model "Design With The Learner In Mind."

According to David, "The traditional approach to training is to focus upon our presentation skills." He challenges this approach and suggests that "we re-focus training to point directly at our learners, while we take a 'back seat' during the learning process. If training is the correct intervention to bridge a performance gap due to learners' lack of skill or knowledge, then the only way they will bridge this gap is to practice using the skill or applying knowledge - not by hearing about it."

David has created what he refers to as the "4P's" model. He says that for each piece of content you need to: "Prepare the learner for the content, present the content, practice or have the learners play with the content, and observe learners performing the skill or applying the knowledge."

Although the natural flow would seem to be Prepare, Present, Practice, and Perform, David "likes to start with Prepare then move into practice." For example, the trainer might ask, "How can I get learners 'playing' with this content?" David adds, "This means all I need to do with the Presentation phase is fill-in-the-gaps that learners aren't able to uncover for themselves, that is, design the experience to make learning implicit before explicit." Such a design leads to stronger "aha!" moments. When the trainer actually facilitates the module, he or she may need to offer a little content, then let learners play with it before moving on to the Performance stage.

How it works
Starting with a behavioural based objective, the trainer describes the task learners will be able to perform. Next, the trainer prepares the learners for the experience. The trainer assists the learners to identify the WIIFM (what's in it for me) component from the learner's perspective. In other words the trainer and the learners collaborate on how it will help the learners in their everyday work, such as enhance their communication with others. Sometimes, David cautions, "organization needs sit underneath the WIIFM, but to be honest, do learners really care about the health of the organization or are they really focused upon their own needs?"

Preparation Example (Help learners uncover the content)
Form small groups of 4-6. Ask learners to discuss a time when they didn't have any idea what their goal(s) were and list the pluses and minuses associated with their experience (that is, tap into their current experience).

After a few minutes collect key points from each team. Then ask the participants to discuss a time when they did have a clear goal(s) and list the key elements that made it so worthwhile.

After a few minutes collect key points from each team. Ask the teams to brainstorm what effective goal setting should look like. When the teams have been able to identify a number of principles or ideas, then distribute your own five-part goal setting model and ask the teams to compare this with their best experiences and note anything that is different or they were surprised to see.

Practice Example (Encourage participants to 'play' with the content)
In teams, ask the learners to write/draw the key stages of goal setting on a flip chart paper (one point per sheet), and then lay the sheets out on the floor in order.

Ask each team member to walk through the process and explain what must happen and how it's done at each stage (the team can help if a team member forgets something).

Performance Example (Observe participants applying what was stated in the initial objective)
Form teams of 3-5 learners.

Ask each team to develop a 'difficult' goal-setting situation/scenario. Go around the room, and ask team 1 to outline the situation to team 2. Team 2 has 2-minutes of prepare to take team 1 through the goal-setting process so that both sides are happy. Team 3 acts as the adjudicator for the exercise. Continue this until all teams have challenged another team and all teams have demonstrated that they can handle the situation. (You could add to this by then asking teams to create a 'Dummies' guide to goal-setting for others.)

While not included in David Gibson's "4P" system, we have added a fifth "P" to strengthen the application of the learning.

Post-Session Example (Enable participants to integrate their learning in a 'back-home' setting)
Ask participants to pair with each other and discuss how they can use what they've learned about goal-setting to (1) improve their their work as peer mentors or peer assistants, or (2) apply to an existing situation they are experiencing.

Call to Action
When designing your next peer mentor or peer assistant training, start with the objective and then jump straight into the practice phase. David Gibson says that "by keeping 70-80% of the module time in practice, you cannot help but bring dry material alive and keep participation high." When participants experience an active role in the training and they observe how you have placed them in the driving position, it will be much easier for them to transfer this model of interaction to their own peer work.

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"If you trust Google more than your doctor, maybe it's time to switch doctors."

~ Jadeir and Christina Cordova ~
(Who is this?)

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JOIN THE PEER RESOURCES NETWORK AND RECEIVE A BONUS

Do you know someone who could benefit from becoming a member of the Peer Resources Network? Although you are receiving this free newsletter every 45-60 days, members of the Peer Resources Network receive a monthly newsletter, the Peer Bulletin, with additional information, practical tips, announcements, mentor program descriptions, funding opportunities and job openings in mentoring and mentoring research summaries every month.

Do the quotes placed in this newsletter intrigue you? Would you like to know more about the people quoted or read more of what they have to say? Members of the Peer Resources Network receive links and more details regarding each quote when they receive the monthly Peer Bulletin.

In addition Peer Resources Network members receive toll-free coaching and consultation for all peer program development issues as an additional benefit of membership. Members also receive print versions of Compass: A Magazine for Peer Assistance, Mentorship and Coaching. This magazine has become the only advertising-free, professional, peer-reviewed publication on peer coaching and peer assistance, and is filled with timely articles and practical suggestions from experienced peer program leaders.

The Peer Resources Network is a non-profit organization and is sustained through memberships. The low fee for a one-year individual membership is $75.00 and the fee for an institutional membership, which allows up to five people to share a full membership, is $140.00 for a year. We even have a student rate of $32.10/year. For more details on the benefits as well as a secure online form to sign-up, go to http://www.peer.ca/PRN.html.

As a bonus for readers of The Peer News who become members of the Peer Resources Network during October-November, 2006, we will send you at no additional cost a CD that contains the three past issues and the current issue of Compass: A Magazine for Peer Assistance, Mentorship and Coaching as well as the past 12 months of the Peer Bulletin. This CD is free to PRN members and will be sent by postal mail at no cost to any individual category member or the group leader of any institutional membership.

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"The best place to find a helping hand is at the end of your arm."

~ Grey Owl ~
(Who is this?)

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ATTEND A PEER CONFERENCE OR RELATED EVENT

First National Conference on Mentoring for Youth with Disabilities
September 13-15, 2006
Hilton Boston Logan Airport, Boston, Massachusetts
www.pyd.org
(617) 556-4075
mgallagher@pyd.org

Peer Support for Health Communities: An Information and Networking Fair
September 21, 2006
555 Seymour Street (BCIT), Vancouver, British Columbia
www.selfhelpresource.bc.ca
(604) 733-6186

Mobilizing New Mentors Through Faith- and Community-Based Collaborations
September 24-27, 2006
Hotel Monteleone, New Orleans, Louisiana
www.mentoryouth.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/training.about
(877) 500.MENTOR
agrable@nnym.org

Peer Ministry Training for Adult Facilitators
September 27-30, 2006
Zumbro Lutheran, Rochester, Minnesota
www.peerministry.org
(877) 239-2492

Peer Mediation/Conflict Resolution Teacher Training In-Service
September 27-29, 2006
St. Andrew's College, Dublin, Ireland
www.peermediation-marisela.com
01-288-2785
peermediation-marisela@hotmail.com

Peer Helping/Peer Counseling/Peer Education Workshop
September 28-29, 2006
Mardi Gras Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada
www.peerresourcetraining.com
(415) 282-5298
peersira@aol.com

National Training Institute for School-Based Mentoring
October 10-12, 2006
Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Kansas City, Missouri
mentormap.org/documents/Traininginstituteinfo.pdf
(816) 842-7082

Minnesota's Mentoring Conference 2006
October 16, 2006
Carleton College, Sayles-Hill Campus, Northfield, Minnesota
www.mentoringworks.org
(612) 370-9180
mentor@mentoringworks.org

Michigan's Mentoring Conference
October 25, 2006
Michigan State University, MSU Union, East Lansing, Michigan
mentormichigan@michigan.gov
(517) 373-4200
vasilionk@michigan.gov

Minnesota's Mentoring Conference 2006
October 26, 2006
Holiday Inn, Duluth, Minnesota
www.mentoringworks.org
(612) 370-9180
mentor@mentoringworks.org

National Association of Peer Programs Annual Conference
November 8-10, 2006 (Training Institute)
November 10-12, 2006 (Conference)
Sheraton Hotel, Providence, Rhode Island
www.peerprograms.org
(877) 314-733
LcharleyNAPP@aol.com

International Recovery Perspectives (with Peer Support)
November 16-17, 2006
Hart House, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario
(416) 285-7996 ext 227
bmckinnon@iprimus.ca

Peer Coaching in the Workplace
December 1, 2006
www.peer.ca/trng.html
(800) 567-3700 or (250) 595-3503
rcarr@peer.ca

3rd National School-Based Mentoring Conference
June 13-14, 2007
Kansas City, Missouri
www.mentormap.org
(816) 842-7082

Advanced Training for Certified Peer Trainers (First Nations, Diversity)
July 7-8, 2007
University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia
www.peer.ca/trng.html
(800) 567-3700 or (250) 595-3503
rcarr@mentors.ca

Comprehensive Training for Peer Program Development (First Nations, Diversity)
July 9-13, 2007
University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia
www.peer.ca/trng.html
(800) 567-3700 or (250) 595-3503
rcarr@mentors.ca

For additional peer conferences, training workshops or events as well as to learn about what you missed, go to http://www.peer.ca/peerevents.html.

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"Friends ask you how you are and wait for an answer."

~ Grey Owl ~
(Who is this?)

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RESEARCH and RESOURCES TO STRENGTHEN PEER PRACTICE

Peer Resources continually scans the professional and popular published literature to find articles of interest to people involved in peer assistance. In some cases the complete article is available; however, only Peer Resources Network members have access to the full article. Three of several hundred recent additions to the searchable, annotated bibliography at http://www.peer.ca/SearchB.html are:

Black, D., Foster-Harrison, E., Tindall, J., Johnson, J., Varenhorst, B., and Moscato, S. (2004). Key information from selected peer resource literature. Gladstone, MO: National Association of Peer Programs. [Online] (Retrieved May 24, 2006 from http://www.peerprograms.org/publications/)

This article summarizes key findings and pertinent points found in published literature relevant to peer assistance. The information is organized according to four questions: Why are peers important? Why is a peer resource training program important? Why are peer assistance programs an effective prevention strategy? and How do peer assistants help? The last question is further divided into subheadings: cross-cultural; smoking; alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs; violence prevention through conflict mediation; mentoring peer athletes; health education; HIV/AIDS education; community and family; tutoring; and peer ministry. The points summarized are intended to provide a profile of the benefits of peer assistance and of peers as change agents, the efficacy of peer interventions, and the diverse application of peer assistance. This information is intended portray how peer assistance continues to evolve and mature as a field. The document can be very useful for organizations seeking evidence-based information to provide to stakeholders.

Dennison, S. (2000). A win-win peer mentoring and tutoring program: A collaborative model. Journal of Primary Prevention, 20, 3, 161-174.

Presents a peer mentoring and tutoring project, the Big Buddies' Program of Forsyth County, North Carolina. Goals of the program included preventing school dropout, increasing youths' interest in volunteerism, and expanding real-world learning experiences for undergraduate students in social work. Issues arising during the initial year of operation included program set-up, participant selection, schedule and location of buddy time, content of mentor-tutor training, program coordination, use of materials with plans, and program evaluation design. 25 3rd- and 4th-grade Little Buddies were paired with high-school 11th- and 12th-grade honors students. Results of a program evaluation show positive but not significant increases in self-esteem, attitudes toward school, and on-task classroom behaviors. 16 of the 25 children improved 1 grade level in the academic subject in which they received tutoring from their Big Buddies. Self-esteem and other-directedness increased with Big Buddies.

Fetter, C. (2006). You go girl! Kansas City peer program teaches girls benefits of sports. Peer Perspectives Newsletter (National Association of Peer Programs, 20, 1, 3).

A description of the Won by One program sponsored by the Kansas City Sports Commission that pairs high school female athletes with grade five and six girls at various locations in the city. The peer mentors attend a three-hour training program and typically meet weekly for about eight weeks with their student peers. Meetings start with discussions about issues such as self-esteem, decision-making skills, and body image, and then the pairs engage in a particular sport or interactive game. For contact information about this program, go to http://www.sportkc.org/win_for_kc/programs.htm

Ganguli, I. (June 30, 2006). Mice show evidence of empathy. The Scientist: Magazine of the Life Sciences, 20, 6, 18. (Retrieved July 7, 2006 from http://www.the-scientist.com/news/display/23764).

Mice who watch their peers in pain are more sensitive to it themselves, a Canadian research team at McGill University concluded. This appears to be the first evidence of empathy between adult, non-primate mammals. The mice used in this study were raised in Canada and a comparative group of mice raised in another country, but not named in the article, did not appear to show the same empathy. The researchers thought that empathy may be deeply ingrained in Canadian nature. However, the method that the researchers used to conduct this study (injecting an acid into a mouse causing the mouse to writhe with pain) appeared to indicate that the researchers themselves fell somewhat short on the empathy scale.

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"Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose."

~ Zora Neale Hurston ~
(Who is this?)

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CREATE A CODE OF FRIENDSHIP FOR PEER ASSISTANCE

While peer assistance (peer mentoring, peer coaching, peer mediation and peer helping) and professional helping are different in many ways, one thing they have in common is the importance they place on compliance with a Code of Ethics. While not all peer services will have a code of ethics as a foundation for their service, many will just duplicate or borrow elements from professional codes. After all, peer leaders, say, "Why re-invent the wheel?" This article will not only detail why such reinvention is essential, but will also provide a set of experiential activities that create a code and increase the likelihood of compliance. (Note that I will use the terms "Code of Behavior" or "Code of Friendship" instead of "Code of Ethics." Although I want peers to be extremely serious about their code, I do not want to taint their volunteerism with any professionalizing term.)

The Importance of Re-Inventing the Wheel
There are several reasons to "reinvent the wheel." First, when an important document such as a code is created by a peer group, the peer trainer is seen as trusting that the group can create the document. Also, there is less likelihood of members becoming defensive and resistant to the document than if they perceived the code as being dictated to them. Second, peers will be more likely to take personal responsibility for following the code if the code is a group endeavor rather than an outsider’s. Third, if the peers create the code in their own vocabulary, there is more chance that they will all understand what the individual points of the code mean. Fourth, if experiential activities are used to formulate the code, the peers may more dramatically understand the impact of the code, and the session will be more consistent with the experiential framework of the other training sessions.

Some trainers may be concerned that, if the peers were left to create their own code of behavior, they may not address or even agree with some major ethical considerations, such as confidentiality issues. We want the peers to experience ownership of the code. Yet, like the rest of us, they must also work within parameters established by the community. There are ways of circumventing this dilemma. If there are some basic (minimum) rules which the peers absolutely must follow, make certain that they are aware of those rules when they apply to become peer helpers. When they are working on their code of behavior, remind them of your personal and professional point of view. Set up role plays where they can experience some of the ethical issues they need to address.

Often trainers will leave discussing issues like a code of behavior (and referrals) until the end of the peers' basic training when the trainees are probably more ready to deal with creating a code. However, peer volunteers do not mystically become peer helpers on the last minute of the last hour of their training. As early as during the application process, the volunteers are on their way to being peer helpers. Every skill or awareness to which they are introduced becomes a part of their potential repertoire of behaviors. Therefore, peers-in-training need to be introduced to a basic code of behavior from day one of their training onwards. In part this is accomplished by establishing training group norms and by discussing some of the bottom line rules for being a peer assistant. The introduction of concepts connected with ethical issues and of values discussions and exercises throughout the training will support and enhance the completion of the code at the end of the training. The peer trainees will be more prepared to discuss issues surrounding their code of behavior.

The peer group must address the issue of consequences for breaching a code of ethics. The best time for this discussion is while they are creating the code. In this way, the consequences are seen as objective, logical and meaningful. A byproduct is that those peers who developmentally may need a tangible consequence attached to the code to give it additional meaning to them will have that information.  

Once a group code of behavior has been constructed and the consequences have been described, the peer group can display this code to their community. The visible code provides information to the peers’ potential clients, as well as credibility to the program. The code symbolizes sanctuary in trust, competence in parameters.

What follows is a seven-part experiential activity using the Peer Resources Experiential Learning Cycle (ELC) to implement this rationale. This module could be the nucleus to a retreat or workshop where the participants work on all exercises over an uninterrupted period of time (half/whole day, weekend) or the exercises could be used over two or three separate sessions, each session being introduced by Unfinished Business and a Warm-up exercise and completed by some form of Closure. The time frame within which this module is offered will depend on the group’s time and energy constraints, the availability of suitable space, and the developmental level of the participants.

The purpose of the sequence of exercises is to systematically facilitate the participants' reflection concerning friendship behaviors in the context of being peer assistants.

1. Unfinished Business (10 minutes)
Ask the group if there is anything left over from the preceding day's activities or anything that has come up for any of the members since the last session.

2. Warm Up: Say 'Yes', Say 'No' (25 minutes)
This exercise is intended to set the stage for further sharing and to introduce the idea of self-image. The facilitator asks the participants to choose from forced choice sets of words which the facilitator reads to the participants. Choices might include: tortoise/hare, branch/root, jungle/desert, pro/con, hello/goodbye, Bugs Bunny/Elmer Fudd, banana split/one scoop vanilla, hush/clatter, Alaska/Florida, sand/snow, bright light/amber glow. In one column each participant lists under 'yes' the words from the forced choice pairs with which they identify most strongly. The other word is to be placed in the 'no' column. One word from each pair must go under either 'yes' or 'no'. After several opportunities to make forced choices, the facilitator encourages the participants to look at their 'yes' list and their 'no' list and reflect on what their choices suggest about them and their self-perceptions. The participants are then asked to find a partner with whom they will eventually exchange lists. First, though, each partner guesses the choices that the other made. Then the participants tell their partners their choices, and what meaning each of the words has for them.

The facilitator then encourages group discussion by using the following processing questions:
1. Any reactions?
2. When you discussed your choices with your partners, did you share similar views of what your choices represented or did you make your choices for different reasons?
3. How did you go about making your choices? 
4. What do these choices say about us?
5. Many of these choices represent ways we have of looking at ourselves or 'self image'. Self image is not something that we are born with like hands or feet or heads. Self image is built from the first day of our lives. What are some of the ways we create and build upon our self image?
6. Did your partner's input alter your interpretations of what your lists mean? How do others influence our self-image?

3. Someone Special (40 minutes)
This exercise is intended to begin the process of looking at helper behaviors and characteristics which may be used later to build the peer assistants' Code of Friendship. Ask the participants to relax and close their eyes, if that helps them to concentrate. Have them recall a specific person in their lives, either present or past who has been special to them and who has helped them to feel good about themselves. Group leaders may want to model this exercise for the participants by sharing something from their experiences. This modelling could be done at this point or during debriefing.

The facilitator leads the group through the following instructions:

1. Recall the person. Remember their face; the way they talked; how they felt to your touch. Recall specific odors to them or their clothing. What does their clothing look like? 
2. Recall a specific occasion where this person, through their words or actions, helped you to build your self-image. If a specific occasion doesn’t come to mind, remember what it was about them that caused you to feel good about you. Try to remember examples.
3. Imagine this person in front of you right now. They are sitting close to you and you have an opportunity to tell them what you are recalling and you have a chance to thank them. What would you say to them?
4. In a moment, I’m going to ask you to come back to the group. Before we do that, I’d like you to reflect on what parts of this exercise, if any, you would like to share with the rest of the group: the person, the experience, your feelings and thoughts, how they affected your self image, your statement of thanks.

When debriefing, the leader should attempt to prompt for information concerning the special person's behaviors and their effects. As the group may respond spontaneously or cautiously, the leader may either have to lift information from each person's story or ask questions of the group concerning the special person. One way of facilitating sharing is to move around the group and ask each person what they would like to share from the exercise.

4. A Friendship Coat-of-Arms (40 minutes)
This exercise is intended to help the participants to reflect on their helper values and to become more articulate about them. Give each person a sheet of paper and ask them to create a shield which contains five separate areas. The outline of the shield should resemble a medieval shield. Within the outline, two horizontal lines should cut across the shield dividing the shield into three equal areas. Then, a vertical line should be drawn down the shield cutting the top two-thirds of the shield in half.

Once the group members have constructed their shields, have them fill in the five areas in the following manner. (Note: give them only one area to fill in at a time - this is a building exercise):

1. Top Left area -The word or phrase that describes the behavior of the special person I imagined in the last exercise;
2. Top Right area - How I help others to feel good about themselves;
3. Middle Left area - The quality or characteristic I need to perceive in another person before I am ready to share something really personal;
4. Middle Right area - A personal quality or characteristic I possess that contributes to someone else feeling comfortable about sharing something personal with me;
5. Bottom of Shield - The image or metaphor which best describes the peer helper I would like to be (The facilitator might want to choose more concrete words like 'animal' or 'something out of nature' to help to stimulate their imaginations).

This exercise is to be done by each individual. Once they have completed their shields, they can either form teams of two and then four to combine their shields, or they can each share their shield with the whole group and have each person's individual shield built into a huge group shield chart to be posted on wall in a public area. If they are partnering to share, conclude the exercise by bringing the whole group together and asking them to react to the exercise and to share one element of their shield with the group. If the whole group is combining their shields, be certain to include all members and to encourage the group members to question one another and show interest in each others' shields.

5. A Code of Friendship (30 minutes)
This exercise is intended to provide an opportunity for the group to build and to discuss a peer assistance code of conduct. The previous exercises, particularly the Coat of Arms exercise, should lend themselves to the group constructing its code.

Notes:

1. The group facilitator should attempt to keep the words used in the code as informal as possible (such as rather than using a term like 'confidentiality', use a phrase like 'keeping a secret').
2. Facilitators must be clear as to their own professional ethics and legal obligations so that they can discuss them with their participants.
3. Stay away from abstract language. Help the participants to clarify what they mean.
4. Issues like: 1. when keeping a secret is and isn't appropriate, and 2. when and how to refer clients. will need considerable work and clarification. Typically peer helpers are expected to report any issue in which potential or actual physical or emotional abuse is occurring, for example. These occasions must be clarified and entered onto the code of friendship.

The facilitator then encourages group discussion by using the following prompts and questions:
1. As a group of peer helpers, our common purpose is to help others as best as we can and to avoid occasions where we might unintentionally hurt or be unhelpful to those we help.
2. A Code of Friendship is a term which might describe our code of conduct. Can anyone explain why 'Code of Friendship' might apply to us?
3. What are some aspects of conduct and friendship which we’ve discussed today that might fit into our Code of Friendship?
4. What other things might we want to include into our code?
5. Are there areas in our code that are more important than others?
6. Are there areas in our code where, if the peer assistant doesn’t follow the code, they should face specific consequences? (If so, what should the consequences be?)
7. Where should we place this code? (Many programs have placed their Code of Friendship in a public area, on pamphlets, in a newsletter, or sent copies around to referral sources and administrators.)
8. Who will make sure that the code is posted (or copied, etc.)?

6. Tug-of-War (30 minutes)
This exercise is intended to promote a discussion about the areas in the Code of Friendship that may cause individual members difficulty. Sensitizing the members before the difficulty arises may lessen some of the associated stress.

1. Have each participant find a partner and an area where they can move around.
2. Place a piece of masking tape across the floor to divide the area between each partnership. Have the participants move four feet away from the tape.
3. Ask them to imagine that they are competing against one another in the World Title Tug-of-War Contest. You will time them for one minute and they have to try to pull their opponent across the line while not being pulled themselves. Give each partnership a piece of rope (a heavy piece of stretch waistband material reduces the 'competitive' urges). Begin.
4. After three minutes, ask them to discuss the experience with their partner. Ask them to discuss thoughts and feelings they had during the process.
5. Ask them to gather together as a group.

For the group discussion the facilitator asks the following questions:

1. What were your thoughts and feelings about the exercise? Was it hard? Easy? What made it hard or easy?
2. Has anyone ever been in a real tug-of-war? Tell us about it.
3. A tug-of-war can provide us with an image of people struggling with one another. Can anyone suggest examples?"
4. We each have our own personal struggles or tug-of-wars. Sometimes the tug-of-war is between two people and sometimes it’s within one person - like making a choice or making a decision about something. What struggles have you experienced?
5. As peer assistants who are trying to live by a Code of Friendship, we all may face a tug-of-war from time-to-time. As you read our code, try to pick out one area from the code that might cause a tug-of-war inside of you.
6. To each peer assistant: - "What is the area of the code? What would be your tug-of-war? What can we do to help you? What can you do to help yourself?"
7. Look for themes in the discussions, as well as apparent areas for further discussion or work. Continue to use the image of the tug-of-war to facilitate discussion and suggestions. For example, if I’m having a hard time on my end of the rope, adding one or more supporters either to help me pull or to cheer me on might help. Letting go of the rope until I’m in better condition might help. Increasing my leverage (with training or consultation) might help.

7. Closure
1. "What one thing have you learned about you, as a peer helper, as a result of today’s session?

About the Author:
Dr. David deRosenroll is a Vice-President and Director of Training for Peer Resources. He is a former member of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Peer Programs (previously known as the National Peer Helpers Association). He exercises regularly and eats his vegetables. Normally he only reads the quotes in between the various articles in the Peer Bulletin. He can be contacted at david@peer.ca

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SUBSCRIBING, UNSUBSCRIBING, COPYRIGHT AND DISTRIBUTION

The Peer News has been provided by Peer Resources. All items in this publication are written by Dr. Rey Carr unless otherwise indicated, and are copyrighted by Peer Resources. Subscriptions are free and can be obtained by sending an email to info@peer.ca. To become a member of the Peer Resources Network and receive a similar monthly publication as well as a print magazine on peer assistance, mentorship and coaching, visit http://www.peer.ca/PRN.html or call 1.800.567.3700 in North America or 1.250.595.3503 outside of North America. To be removed from this mailing list send an email to peernews@peer.ca. Please feel free to pass this newsletter on to a colleague.

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