Like many other universities across the country, ASU has identified a need to better understand and support students with social communication challenges. Level Up is a program that serves to address that need using the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS®) Young Adult curriculum in group and individual sessions, and by learning about the needs and interests of college students who have social communication challenges. You can learn more about PEERS® here: https://www.semel.ucla.edu/peers/young-adults
Two overarching concepts, social thinking and self-determination, serve as a foundation to support social skill instruction in Level Up using PEERS®. Social thinking, or the processing of social information (e.g., using and interpreting nonverbal signals, understanding others’ point of view, etc.) is an essential framework for success in relationships including those with classmates, professors, employers and others in the college environment. The concept of social thinking is taught in Level Up through explicit instruction, group and individual activities, demonstrations, and video modeling. Self-determination refers to how an individual controls his or her own life. In Level Up, explicit instruction is used to teach strategies to support self-determination through being proactive, establishing goals and maintaining effective habits related to achieving goals.
The group is part of a research study focused on learning about the needs of postsecondary students with social communication challenges as well as effective strategies for intervention and support. During each group meeting, facilitators introduce a specific topic, provide multiple different examples using video clips and demonstration, and provide opportunities for participants to practice through role-play and discussion. Individual sessions are offered to participants between sessions to practice and individualize instructional content.
Topics include:
Two overarching concepts, social thinking and self-determination, serve as a foundation to support social skill instruction in Level Up using PEERS®. Social thinking, or the processing of social information (e.g., using and interpreting nonverbal signals, understanding others’ point of view, etc.) is an essential framework for success in relationships including those with classmates, professors, employers and others in the college environment. The concept of social thinking is taught in Level Up through explicit instruction, group and individual activities, demonstrations, and video modeling. Self-determination refers to how an individual controls his or her own life. In Level Up, explicit instruction is used to teach strategies to support self-determination through being proactive, establishing goals and maintaining effective habits related to achieving goals.
The group is part of a research study focused on learning about the needs of postsecondary students with social communication challenges as well as effective strategies for intervention and support. During each group meeting, facilitators introduce a specific topic, provide multiple different examples using video clips and demonstration, and provide opportunities for participants to practice through role-play and discussion. Individual sessions are offered to participants between sessions to practice and individualize instructional content.
Topics include:
- Making and keeping friends
- Starting and maintaining conversations
- Entering and exiting group conversations
- Appropriate use of humor
- Electronic communication
- Skills related to dating/relationships
- Get-togethers
- Handling disagreements
WHen and where does the group meet?
Level Up meets Friday afternoons at a central location on campus. We are currently recruiting new group members for the 2017-2018 academic year.