Peer Training Program Works
Researchers at Yale University and Princeton University published a 2011 peer-reviewed journal article about the Peer Training Program model and concluded that the Peer Trainers “were significantly more likely to talk about and stand up against bias” and “serve as models of tolerance in their school” (Paluck, 2011). Through the unique combination of instructional and peer influence strategies the program helps students combat name-calling, bullying and harassment, thus creating safer and more inclusive school communities. For more information, read the peer-reviewed journal article, Summary Report or view our one-pager highlighting the evaluation’s results.

The A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Training Program is built on the knowledge that the most important influence on the development of the attitudes and behaviors of young people is the attitudes and behaviors of one's peers. Building on this concept, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL)'s Peer Training Program prepares young people to use the positive power of peer pressure to motivate other students to reflect upon their stereotypes and assumptions and take action against prejudice and bigotry in their schools and communities.

A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Trainers take action against prejudice by leading workshops and interactive classroom presentations and facilitating discussions with their peers about the issues that concern them. Their efforts play a key role in creating schools, communities, and organizations where differences are valued and respected.

History

Following the riots in Crown Heights in 1991, ADL's A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute staff began working with a group of students from Clara Barton High School in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The motivation of this group of young people to take action against prejudice gave birth to ADL's A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Training Program.

Today, the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute Peer Training Program has grown to be an international program operating in 15 countries overseas and at regional offices of the Anti-Defamation League across the United States. More than 7,000 young people have been trained as A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Trainers since the program's inception in 1991, impacting tens of thousands of other young people in their schools and communities. The A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Training Program now serves as a model program for others worldwide.

As A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Trainers, young people assume leadership roles in efforts to create respectful and inclusive schools and communities. An underlying principle of the A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute is that learning about social justice issues is a life-long process. By engaging in this process, Peer Trainers learn how to effectively respond when they hear racial slurs, name-calling, and put-downs in the hallways, lunchrooms and classrooms of their schools. They also develop the skills to lead interactive discussions and workshops for their peers and younger students. The A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Training Program provides Peer Trainers with the training and resources to design and lead interactive programs that promote an environment that is respectful and civil.

Program Philosophy

Created by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the Peer Training Program is based on the following premises:

• Peer groups are among the more powerful influences on the attitudes and behaviors of their members.
  
• When young people come face to face with the realities of intolerance, they are often highly motivated to take action.
  
• Peer Leaders need certain basic skills and competencies to be effective.
  
• This skill development occurs best when Peer Leaders are first exposed to a body of knowledge and then share opportunities to integrate that knowledge into their lives.

In the face of recent incidents of school violence, educators point to statistics that support the contention that schools are safe, however, 60% of secondary students identify prejudice, discrimination, and violence as serious concerns in their schools.

The Educational Process

Training
In order to be effective peer trainers, youth need opportunities to learn about social justice issues and to develop and refine their leadership skills. This process begins with ant-bias training for peer trainers and program coordinators. Facilitated by ADL training specialists, this 2-3 day initial training is interactive, hands-on, and designed to address the specific issues being faced by peer leaders in their schools and communities.

Weekly Meetings
Following this initial training, peer trainers meet weekly as a group. Weekly meetings have three primary functions:

• to increase understanding of social justice and equity;
  
• to continue to develop leadership and facilitation skills
  
• to provide peer trainers with an understanding of their roles in making justice and equity realities in the world around them.

Taking Action . . .
Once this process is completed, Peer Trainers plan and deliver anti-bias workshops for their peers, using A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute training activities. Working together to create unique programs that promote respect in their schools and communities.

INFORMAL INTERVENTIONS: Peer Trainers have developed the knowledge, skills and motivation to effectively challenge the name-calling, put-downs, and insensitive remarks that are all-too-common occurrences in the halls of their schools. And because students have a powerful impact on one another's attitudes and behaviors, the climate of the school and community begins to change.

FORMAL STRATEGIES: Peer Trainers have opportunities to gain the necessary knowledge and skills to facilitate discussions about prejudice and discrimination with their peers. Using interactive A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute training activities, Peer Trainers plan and deliver anti-bias workshops for their peers and younger students that provide a forum for students to discuss school and community issues that concern them.

A few typical activities of A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE Institute Peer Trainers:

ELEMENTARY PROGRAM - Peer Trainers work with elementary school children through age-appropriate anti-bias classroom activities and books that represent the experiences of diverse peoples.

PLAYS and SKITS - Peer Trainers write and perform skits that promote intergroup understanding and respect.

PEER-TO-PEER EDUCATION - Peer Trainers facilitate anti-bias workshops and classroom presentations with their peers.

ADL’s A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute Peer Training Program includes the following components:

• ANTI-BIAS TRAINING

  • 3 days training for potential peer trainers
    
  • 1 - 2 days training for program coordinators
    
  • 1 day training for school or agency staff
    
  • ½ - 1 day training for families (optional)
    

• PRINT AND VIDEO RESOURCES

  • Comprehensive Manual for Site-Based Coordinators
    
  • Manual for Peer Trainers includes training activities, handouts, worksheets, and additional resources
    
  • ADL print and video resources - As one of the nation's largest distributors and publishers of human relations resources, programs have access to outstanding videos and activity guides
  
  
  
• PARTNERSHIP FRAMEWORK
  As an active school-community partner, ADL provides the consultation, support and assistance that contributes to the success of the Peer Training Program

Contact Information

For more information or to schedule a program in your school or community, contact your local ADL Regional Office.