Support to Youth Identities in Diverse Europe (SIDE). A Course for University Students

Abstract

The curriculum „Support to youth identities in diverse Europe (SIDE)“ is designed as an intensive program for university students, who are interested in interdisciplinary perspectives on youth identity development and well-being. Identity is considered one of the major areas of personal and social development during the periods of adolescence and emerging adulthood. Young people may explore and try out different values, aims, lifestyles, ideas, and memberships and search for meaningful identity commitments. Possibilities and outcomes of these explorations may be shaped by numerous inter- related factors: individual qualities, family characteristics, school and peer-group contexts, as well as broader socio-cultural contexts in which young people live. Constraints, including socio-economic inequalities, limited access to resources, power, civic and cultural participation, as well as experiences of discrimination may be related to difficulties faced by youth during this sensitive period. At the same time, professionals working with young people in schools, universities, civic and cultural organizations across Europe can identify and offer important resources for supporting youth in their identity explorations.