Strength Based Resiliency Program
An experiential workshop on the application of the Strength Based Resiliency Curriculum in School Settings with Afroze Anjum, Psy.D., C.Psych, Toronto District School Board
Description:
Positive psychology urges psychologists to ask a deeper and loftier question, about what is right with children and adolescents, in addition to exploring their weaknesses. The presenters will talk about strength-based assessment approach in detail, arguing that such an approach yields useful information above and beyond the information produced by traditional measures of psychopathology. Previous findings have suggested that the frequent use of signature strengths is associated with greater well-being. This assertion has not been tested widely with children and adolescents within schools. Results of three intervention studies which were conducted with students from the Toronto District School Board including one that has demonstrated that a multi-informant approach (i.e., strengths identified by teacher, parent, and a peer) of assessing signature strengths that boosts well-being and social skills will be presented. In addition, practical strategies from the Strength Based Resilience Curriculum for professionals to develop strengths of children and adolescents will be discussed. Without dismissing, minimizing or avoiding negatives, the participants of this workshop will learn various models of school applications of identifying and using positive resources such as positive emotions, fixed versus growth mind set, engagement, relationships, meaning and accomplishment to encounter symptoms and engender well-being. Salient components of the Strength Based Resiliency Curriculum will also be presented as above mentioned studies were based in that program.
www.strengthbasedresilience.com
More about Dr. Afroze Anjum:
Dr. Afroze Anjum, is a School Psychologist at the Toronto District School Board. Dr. Anjum’s expertise includes incorporating positive psychology interventions and character strengths in psycho-educational evaluations and in special education programming.
Dr. Anjum obtained her Doctoral degree from the Fairleigh Dickinson University, New Jersey and completed her post-doctoral training with Drs. Jane Gillham, Karen Reivich and Martin Seligman at University of Pennsylvania where she worked on the Swarthmore Positive Psychology Curriculum study with high school students. Trained as a Penn Resiliency Curriculum facilitator and a happiness coach, for more than a decade, Dr. Anjum has applied positive psychology interventions in a variety of school settings including replicating the Swarthmore study at a High School in Toronto. She has trained teachers in the Strength-based Resiliency curriculum for behavioral problems in multiple inner city schools. Currently her program is being taught by various teachers as well as mental health professionals in various schools. Her work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and in edited volumes
