The fact that you have opened the pages of this publication makes it evident at leisure education is an important element in your personal approach to professional development. It is likely that you have been on one or more of the 300 to 400 campuses which provide undergraduate and/or graduate preparation for those who seek to enter the field of what we generally refer to as RECREATION. And, having these interests in both leisure education and the provision of leisure services, it is a given that you support the doctrine that . . . "every individual should have a margin of time for the cultivation of personal and social interests. This leisure, if worthily used, will recreate his powers and enlarge and enrich life, thereby, making him better able to meet his responsibilities. The unworthy use of leisure impairs health, disrupts home life, lessens vocational efficiency and destroys civic mindedness ... in view of those considerations, education for the worthy use of leisure is of increasing importance as an objective." ¹ Although one may not feel comfortable with such a strong statement of values, there is little doubt that the "field" of recreation is made up of professionals, like yourself, who provide meaningful recreational opportunities designed to promote a concept of lifetime leisure education. As recreators we generally feel a sense of pride in having taken the initiative to identify and promote this need for leisure education.

Education and leisure — a partnership

But, if one thinks back to that initial course . . . Introduction to Public Recreation, it may come to mind where the "worthy use of leisure" concept originated. During the 1918 meeting of the National Education Association its members strived to reorganize the goals of secondary education and, to that end, penned and adopted what have come to be known as the Seven Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education. The statement presented in the preceeding paragraph on leisure was among them. Over the 70 years since the adoption of the "principles", the emphasis on education for the worthy use of leisure has been inherited by the recreation and leisure service industry, save possibly Sesame Street and those teachers who have made it a part of their personal philosophy to promote meaningful leisure pursuits.

Providing activities, facilities, and leadership frequently defines the limits of recreation's contribution to leisure education. It is not often that an agency has an opportunity to design a program which addresses the specific task of providing leisure education within a school setting and is directed at the life-time planning for secondary students.

JTPA opens doors of opportunity

Such an effort was conceived and implemented on the campus of Western Illinois University during the summer of 1987 and repeated in June of 1988. Secondary students from schools in the mid-western portion of Illinois were selected for participation in a 3-week pilot JTPA program on the WIU campus. The Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) was enacted in 1986 as Congress mandated funding for summer programs to include goals which would enhance a student's basic educational skills in an effort to improve one's opportunities for gainful employment. The program included academic tutoring in either language or math skills during the day and recreational activities and leisure education during the evenings and on the weekend. The authors, along with Dr. Nick DiGrino and Dr. Frank Lupton, are members of the WIU faculty in the Department of Recreation and Park Administration and wish to share this information with you and encourage correspondence from others who wish to replicate similar programming or who are currently involved in JTPA work.

The program pardigm

The population served, over the past two years, has averaged 85 secondary youth who have qualified for JTPA programs. Ages have ranged from 14 to 21, with the majority of the population 16-17 years old. The students are from economically depressed families and generally reflect low self esteem. They lived in campus residential halls, had library and bookstore privileges and were generally considered as college students during their stay. The recreation staff consisted of three faculty members, 14 undergraduate and two graduate "leaders". One male and one female leader was assigned to each student group; the groups were age stratified and balanced by sex when possible. The leaders were provided 20 hours of training the week prior to the program where activity skills and counseling techniques were shared.

The recreation component of the JTPA program established the following objectives which served to provide uniform direction as well as a basis for evaluation:

1. To enrich participant's lives through enjoyable recreational activities designed for life-long participation;

2. To contribute to a positive increase in participant self-esteem through group interaction and opportunities for group leadership;

3. To enhance the student's opportunities for successful completion of academic training through appropriate releases of energies and emotions during active recreation experiences.

Each JTPA student worked with the recreation leaders to establish personal goals and set measurable objectives. The leaders met with each student nightly to assess progress and to review the day's

During the last week of the JTPA summer program the students and faculty/staff take an evening to skate and join in on rink activities. (Photo by George Fenstermacher)

performance. All of the 85 students started and ended each recreation session as a total group, but the programming was conducted in the seven independent groups with the leaders and students sharing in the planning process and the leadership roles. Each group was given a $5/person budget, along with the resources of the community and the university to plan their recreation activities. Following is a sample of the individual group activities selected: miniature golf, track, swimming, softball, bowling, basketball, new games, and group discussions. Large group activities held included roller skating, picnic, boating, dancing, and a volleyball tournament. After three weeks of daily recreation programming the students presented a three hour program of skits and individual recognition on the final evening of JTPA. Each student received a final evaluation, based on the previously established objectives, and submitted an evaluation of their leaders and the recreation program in general.

Leadership skills improve as self esteem is raised

And what of the objectives established for program guidelines . . . were they met? Just how successful were the leaders as leisure counselors and role models? Data gathered gave support to the intuitive notions that recreation is good for a person's physical and mental well being. There were abundant examples of a student's improved sense of physical self, the need for grooming, awareness of dress and apparel codes, language skills and inappropriate use of cursing. As for leadership skills ... it became clear that the students, although classified academically "below" the level of their peers in the secondary school, possessed a greater than average ability to influence their group's directions in each of the settings — recreation, classroom, residential. Those skills were honed daily as each student was designated "leader for a day" within their individual recreation group. They were given the leader's official staff hat along with the authority to be a coequal with the two staff members to plan and implement activities and leadership for that day. No student failed to accept this role and there were some who have been identified as desired returnees for next year to serve as primary counselors in an emerging concept of peer counseling.

The establishment and enforcement of a strict "no smoking" rule was not popular with the students; many of them had what they have been programmed to believe were "nicotine fits" without their smokes. The academic and residence setting permitted smoking but it was deemed inappropriate to tolerate this behavior in the recreation facilities and during all leisure activities. After two or three days of testing and confrontation, the smokers' peer groups began to put pressure on them and the subject of smoking ceased to be an issue. The recreation staff were delighted, not only at the improved behavior on the part of the students, but also at the confidence displayed by those in the group who demanded adherance to the established rules. There is no doubt that the leadership roles given to the JTPA students in the recreation setting led to elevation of self esteem for many of those individuals.

The last evening of the recreation program focused on an activity which was

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designed as a recognition night. Certificates were awarded to the students. Their group leaders prepared special thoughts about each one of them. The students prepared skits which poked fun at themselves and the JTPA professional staffers. But it was the unplanned and spontaneous remarks of the students which were the joy of all of us that evening. The activity was held in one of the university's theaters and the students received their awards on the stage in front of all their peers and the JTPA staff. Many of the students stepped forward and demanded a moment to share their intimate and personal feeling about the time they had spent on the campus and the changes they had felt during the three week program. Hugs, kisses and tears were plentiful throughout the evening as thanks and good byes were shared. Never before had these students taken the risk of sharing so much of themselves. For those who were able to muster the courage, this must have been an experience of great self appreciation . . . and for what better reason can we promote leisure programs?

Academic skills improve with return of self confidence

The JTPA students experienced greater personal success in their academic efforts; some students raised their math scores as much as five grade levels. In language skills, some students operated a computer for the first time and published a weekly newsletter and a "yearbook". Most students were able to experience at least two new leisure skills and be involved in counseling for life-time leisure pursuits. Statistical evaluations of the direct effect of leisure programming on the academic training conducted during the same time period did not generate significant results. However, those involved in tutoring math and English made specific references to the improved morale and cooperativeness of students and supported the concept that leisure programming seemed to relieve emotional and physical behaviors which might otherwise make learning more difficult. So impressed was Dr. Virgil Howe, Acting University Provost, that he was prompted to comment . . . "recreation is a strong part of our learning process . . . the fourth "R" to add to education's traditional Readin', Ritin', and Rithmatic."

¹ Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education: Report of the Commission on the Reorganization of Secondary Education of the National Education Association, Bureau of Education Bulletin No. 35 (Washington, D.C.: Department of the Interior 1918), p. 10.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS: Sandra Parker teaches in the Recreation and Park Administration Department at Western Illinois University in Macomb, Illinois. She earned a Ph.D. in Recreation from the University of Maryland. Her main area of emphasis is in programming and therapeutic recreation.

George Fenstermacher also teaches at Western and serves as the undergraduate advisor. He teaches courses in therapeutic recreation and recreation programming. Fenstermacher completed a Ph.D. in Health with an emphasis in therapeutic recreation at the University of Utah in 1976.