Psycho-social competence is an individual’s ability to maintain a state of mental well-being and to demonstrate this through adaptive and positive behaviour while interacting with others and with his/her immediate environment. Life skills are defined as “the abilities for adaptive and positive behaviours that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life”. In recent years, the concept of Life-Skills has popularized particularly in the context of Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health (ARSH). In our existing socio cultural settings adolescents have limited access to complete and correct age appropriate information on their reproductive and ‘sexual health. As a result they become vulnerable to multiple challenges in-life- such as early marriage adolescent pregnancy, sexual harassments and such others. The life skills approach is an interactive, educational methodology that not only focuses on transmitting knowledge but also aims at shaping attitudes and developing interpersonal skill. The main goal of the life skills approach is to enhance young people’s ability to take responsibility for making healthier choices, resisting negative pressures, and avoiding risk behaviours. Teaching methods are adolescent cantered, gender-sensitive, interactive, and participatory. India is a young country having 243 million adolescent populations which constitute 22% of the total population. Therefore, it is important to invest in building skills of adolescents for their holistic development. A major part of the adolescence period is spent in educational institutes, and steps have initiated in different parts of the country to have adolescent education programmes in schools and colleges. Evaluation shows that life skills programmes can contribute to the productive and sexual health of young people around the world. Accordingly, the NCERT and UNFPA have taken various steps for introduction of life skills based SRH education in the educational institution in the country.
In the state of Odisha, UNFPA is partnering with the Scheduled Tribe and Scheduled Caste Development (SSD) Department; Government of Odisha for imparting Life Skills based Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) education for adolescents in 2015. The Schedule Caste & Schedule Tribe Research and Training Centre (SCSTRTI) was identified as the nodal agency for implementation of life skills based SRH programme in tribal residential schools across the state education. The Programme Management Unit (PMU) established at SCSTRTI that facilitates implementation and monitoring of life skills sessions in schools as mentioned above.
In 2015 the programme covers students from 8th and 9th grade covering all secondary tribal residential schools across the state. Context specific resource and communication tools on LSE and SRH are provided to schools. In these schools life skills education sessions are organized during fixed periods in the time table through co-curricular approach. Apart from the regular LSE and SRH sessions, creative communication activities were organized from time to time where students had an opportunity to participate in various co-curricular activities and share their learning and experiences on SRH issues. In 2018, partnership established with Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiative (APPI) and a focused life skills education plus programme piloted having anaemia control as a key component. This programme implemented in 395 middle and secondary schools covering students from 5th grade onwards in five TSP districts of the state. Under the intervention self-learning life skills based SRH education communication tools were introduced and convergence established for screening and treatment of Anaemia. Further steps were taken for introduction of IT enabled mobile monitoring tools for strengthening school monitoring.
In 2021, the scope of LSE programme was further expanded. Along with expanding Life Skills Education intervention to all 1157 middle and high schools under ST and SC Development Department, covering around students technical assistance also extended for implementation of School Health Programme (SHP) under Ayushman Bharat in 8456 middle and secondary schools under School and Mass Education Department in 10 asperationl districts of the state covering around number of students.
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