Need Assessment for Life Skills Based Education Among School Going Adolescents in Mysore

Abstract

Adolescence, a vital stage of growth and development, marks the period of transition from childhood to adulthood. Adolescents are intensely influenced by their peers and outside world in general. The evidence shows that one in five adolescents experience significant symptoms of emotional distress and nearly one in ten are emotionally impaired. The most common disorders among adolescents include depression, anxiety disorders and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and substance abuse disorder. Life skills education can be an important vehicle to equip young people to enable productive participation in society. OBJECTIVE To assess the knowledge regarding life skills among adolescents. METHODOLOGY A cross-sectional study was conducted among high school children (adolescents) in Mysore city. Information regarding knowledge of life skills among study subjects was collected by administering the questionnaire to all the students studying in 8 th , 9 th and 10 th standard. Data was entered in an excel sheet and analysed using SPSS software 22.0. RESULTS Among 347 subjects included in the study, mean age of the students was 14.5+2.9 years. Life skills score was low (<397) among 21.5% of the students, moderate (398-437) among 50.7% and high (>438) among 27.8% of the students. 94% of the students felt that there is need for life skills based education in the schools. CONCLUSION Around 1/5 th of the adolescents having lower life skills knowledge scores imply that there is a need for school based life skills education among adolescents.