Balu and you

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Balu and you
legal form Registered association
Seat Cologne (office) and Osnabrück (association and seat of program development)
founding September 6, 2005

Board Dominik Esch (1st Chairman), Heiko Krauss (Deputy Chairman)
Website www.balu-und-du.de

Balu und Du is a nationwide mentoring program that supports primary school children outside of school. The sponsor of the program is Balu und Du eV with an office in Cologne and the seat of program development at the University of Osnabrück . The association was founded in 2005 and has since developed into a steadily growing network with currently more than 100 independent local locations. Cooperation partners of the Balu und Du eV are educational institutions, local authorities, charities and volunteer agencies . The association has been awarded the Phineo quality recommendation and is recommended by the “Green List Prevention” as a prevention program. The Balu und Du eV is a member of the Federal Association of Innovative Educational Programs.

Goal and concept

The later educational success of children is already in the primary school phase strongly dependent on the social origin and the educational status of the parents. The Balu und Du mentoring program wants to cushion this injustice of opportunities by using the importance of informal learning processes and the effectiveness of voluntary engagement. At the core of the concept is a 1: 1 accompaniment in which a young person accompanies a child of primary school age for a few hours once a week for a year. As a team, they undertake leisure activities together. As part of this individual sponsorship, numerous informal learning processes are initiated in which the child acquires new knowledge and skills that are important for its development. At the same time, the child experiences individual affection through their mentor. His resilience is encouraged. By strengthening the child's personality and promoting social skills, the tendency to violence in adolescence should be prevented . Against this background, the mentoring program Balu und Du also sees itself as a prevention program.

Based on Rudyard Kipling's jungle book, mentors are referred to as baloos and mentees as Mowglis.

Various criteria are applied when selecting mentors and mentees: Mentors are between the ages of 17 and 30 and are mostly pupils or students. They get involved either as part of their school, vocational or university education or purely on a voluntary basis at a location in the welfare sector. As a curricular offer, Balu und Du is anchored either as service learning, project course, seminar subject, differentiation course or optional learning field. The mentors are selected by coordinators at the respective location. A prerequisite for participation in the program is an extended police clearance certificate that is free of entry. The mentors acquire key competencies through their involvement in the Balu und Du mentoring program . As part of the curricular offers, the mentors usually write a written thesis. In this context, numerous empirical research papers on “Balu und Du” have already been carried out by mentors.

Mentees are between the ages of six and ten and attend elementary school. They are suggested for participation in the program either by a teacher from their primary school or a socio-pedagogical employee of the child and youth welfare service. The reasons for registration are wide-ranging. What most mentees have in common is that they grow up in a challenging situation and that they lack support in informal learning. A prerequisite for participation in the program is the consent of the legal guardian.

A mentor and a mentee are matched to form a team on the basis of various login information. For the project duration of one year, a team meets weekly and receives a small pocket money for common leisure activities. The design of the weekly meetings is taken over by the team itself without any specifications in the program. The team learns with and from each other and receives insights into the world of another. Many locations offer their teams group activities in which special leisure activities are undertaken, such as bouldering together, a visit to the zoo or a tour of the local theater. Many teams remain in private contact with each other even after the project has ended.

In terms of quality assurance, the mentors are closely accompanied by coordinators, experienced pedagogical specialists, as part of a blended learning format: the mentors document and reflect on the meetings with their mentee in an online diary developed for the mentoring program. These entries are commented on by the respective coordinators in an advisory capacity. In the accompanying seminars that take place regularly, in which the diary entries are taken up as required, the mentors and coordinators meet for further supervision and peer supervision. Pedagogical inputs, which are worked out by the program development of the association in the form of memos, support the coordinators in the design of the accompanying seminars.

As a visible appreciation of their commitment, the mentors receive a certificate of honorary office and the mentees a Mowgli certificate at the end of their project year.

The mentoring program is free of charge for the participating mentors and mentees. During their meetings, the mentors and mentees have liability and accident insurance through Balu und Du eV.

History and locations

The mentoring program Balu und Du was initiated in 2001 as a model project with the support of the Diocesan Caritas Association for the Archdiocese of Cologne eV and the University of Osnabrück. Since then it has developed into a steadily growing network with currently more than 100 locations in Germany and Austria and an office of the association in Cologne. The association is currently working on a broad-based location expansion in several federal states. In 2019, the association will be supported by the Benckiser Future Foundation, the federal program “People Strengthen People” of the Federal Ministry for Family, Seniors, Women and Youth, and the Lower Saxony State Prevention Council.

Balu und Du eV concludes a cooperation agreement with each location in which the quality standards of the mentoring program are recorded. The respective location remains independent in its organizational structure. Based on the quality criteria, the Balu und Du eV cooperates with educational institutions, communal organizations and organizations in the welfare sector: grammar schools, comprehensive schools, vocational schools, colleges and universities, communal youth welfare organizations, welfare associations and independent organizations. In some cases, there are collaborations between municipalities and schools for the joint implementation of the mentoring program. A detailed list of the current cooperation partners is available on the Balu und Du eV homepage. At educational institutions, the mentoring program is mostly anchored in the curriculum in accordance with the quality standards of the association and local peculiarities, for example as a project course or seminar subject, as a practical module or service learning.

The association coordinates, manages and advises all local locations in a nationwide network. He supports the locations with organizational issues and PR work. As part of the program development, educational materials are designed that are used by the coordinators at the respective location for their work with the mentors. The association makes these and other materials available to the locations on its intranet. In addition, it offers an online diary tool and corresponding tutorials designed for the mentoring program. In terms of quality assurance, the association advises its locations and ensures compliance with the quality criteria. The association promotes the exchange of experiences among the locations within the framework of regional specialist groups and an annual federal conference.

Once a year, the association publishes an impact report in which it presents the further development, methodology and solution orientation of its mentoring program, each with reference to a particular topic. New results of scientific evaluations are presented here in an understandable way. Locations report on their experiences and teams give personal insights into their project year. The association also provides information about its organizational structure as well as its partners and sponsors. The impact reports are available online.

The Balu und Du eV is financed by donations and grants. The association publishes its sponsors in every impact report. As a signatory of the declaration of self-commitment of the Transparent Civil Society Initiative , Balu und Du eV is committed to transparency.

effect

Participation in the Balu und Du mentoring program has been shown to have positive effects on both the mentees and the mentors. The program has been evaluated in terms of its effectiveness since it was founded, with the first work serving to generate hypotheses. Numerous publications are now available in the context of accompanying research.

The mentees benefit in a wide range. The following short-term effects have been scientifically proven: Compared to a control group, mentees show a significantly more cheerful mood, the increasing ability to organize themselves, increased motivation and participation in school, a more realistic self-assessment, increasing ability to concentrate, increased health-related quality of life, a decreased stress level and increased Personal hygiene.

In the medium term, the following effects on the mentees can be seen: During the year after participating in the program, parents describe their children as more autonomous, safer, more open-minded, more relaxed and happier. The improvement in the ability to concentrate could be shown at a significant level up to one year after participation in the program. Further medium-term effects could be proven by the study led by the economist Armin Falk . Since 2011, this longitudinal study has been devoted to the question of the development of cognitive and non-cognitive skills in mentees, especially with regard to prosociality. Mentees with a low socioeconomic status showed an increase in prosociality up to two years after participation in the program, so that they had a similar prosociality to children with a high socioeconomic status. In addition, children with low socioeconomic status were 11 percentage points more likely to attend high school in fifth grade after participating in the mentoring program. The sample and control group (s) were included in the Socio-Economic Panel in 2013.

The mentors also benefit from participating in the program. With regard to key qualifications, they improve their self-discipline, work attitude and communication in difficult situations. Your self-confidence increases. They develop a better understanding of the world of experience of children and of other people and cultures.

For the mentoring program Balu und Du, an SROI analysis (Social Return on Investment) was also carried out, with which the social added value in the form of a longer-term monetary gain for society ( social return ) was demonstrated. A social return of between 4.25 and 8.08 euros can be forecast for each euro invested.

Prizes and awards

  • 2005: German Crime Prevention Award from the Crime Prevention Foundation
  • 2006: LeapFrog Learning Award 2005 2006: "Blue Sky Involve" from Johnson Controls
  • 2006: "Blue Sky Involve" by Johnson Controls
  • 2006: “entimon” program: exemplary project
  • 2006: "Engagement of the Month" - Ministry for Generations, Family, Women and Integration of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
  • 2007: integration competition; State winner NRW - Foundation “Citizens for Citizens” - impulses for civil society
  • 2008: Winner in the nationwide competition "Active for Democracy and Tolerance"
  • 2008: The "Project Futurino" promotes the activities of "Balu und Du eV"
  • 2008: Kiwanis sponsorship award in the state of Bremen to Balu und Du
  • 2008: Fairness Award 2008 - Federal Ministry for Education, Art and Culture (Austria)
  • 2009: Caritas Children's Rights Prize in the Archdiocese of Cologne - certificate of recognition
  • 2010: TOP project integration - the platform for social investors PHINEO recommends Balu und Du
  • 2010: "Growing together" campaign "direct educational sponsorship" - awarded to Aaliyah, Balu and Du Kiel
  • 2010: Main prize of the sponsoring association of Wirtschaftsjunioren Osnabrück eV "OsnaBRÜCKE", awarded on November 11, 2010
  • 2011: Awarded for pioneering commitment as part of "ROBERTBOSCH Taking Responsibility!"
  • 2012: DEICHMANN sponsorship award in the category "Professional development through associations and public initiatives"
  • 2016: AOK Nordost health award for Balu und Du in Rostock

Literature (selection)

  • H. Bartl, S. Drexler, C. Less, H. Müller-Kohlenberg: Study on the sustainability of the effect of the mentoring program "Balu und Du". Osnabrück 2012, PDF .
  • S. Drexler: Resilience promotion of socially disadvantaged primary school children through the mentoring program Balu und Du. An evaluation study on lifestyles and health-related quality of life. Dissertation University of Osnabrück, Fb 3, 2015, digitized .
  • S. Drexler, B. Borrmann, H. Müller-Kohlenberg: Learning Life Skills Strengthening Basic Competencies and Health-Related Quality of Life of Socially Disadvantaged Elementary School Children Through the Mentoring Program 'Balu und Du' ('Baloo and You'). In: Journal of Public Health. Volume 20, No. 2, 2012, pp. 141-149. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-011-0458-7 (This study was reviewed but did not meet Crime Solutions' criteria for inclusion in the overall program rating.)
  • H. Frankenberg, F. Aufhammer: Effects of the mentoring program "Balu und Du" on physical stress regulation with special consideration of personal mentoring skills. Osnabrück 2012, PDF .
  • F. Kosse, T. Deckers, H. Schildberg-Hörisch, A. Falk: The Formation of Prosociality: Causal Evidence on the Role of Social Environment. In: Discussion Paper Series. IZA DP No. 9861, Bonn 2016.
  • H. Müller-Kohlenberg: Manual mentoring for primary school children. Balu and you. 53 modules for theory and practice. münstermann, Ibbenbüren 2018.
  • H. Müller-Kohlenberg: Development-oriented prevention of deviance in adolescence: the mentoring project “Balu und Du”. In: Federal Ministry of the Interior (Hrsg.): Theory and practice of social cohesion. Texts on internal security, social cohesion. 2008, PDF .
  • H. Müller-Kohlenberg, B. Borrmann: Attention, Perseverance, and Stress Regulation in the Case of Primary School Children. How does the Mentoring Program Balu und Du (“Baloo and You”) facilitate these competencies? In: Wanda Slater (Ed.): Mentoring: Perspectives, Strategies and Impacts on School Performance. Nova Science Publishers, Hauppauge, NY, 2015, pp. 1-19.
  • H. Müller-Kohlenberg, S. Drexler: Balu und Du ('Baloo and You') - A Mentoring Program: Conceptions and Evaluation Results. In: Michael F. Shaughnessy (Ed.): Mentoring: Practices, Potential Challenges and Benefits. Nova Science Publishers, Hauppauge, NY, 2013, pp. 107–123, PDF .
  • L. Ohlemann, H. Angermann: The mentoring relationship in the prevention project "Balu und Du": An analysis of the connection between content-analytically ascertained relationship aspects and the change in the cortisol level of the mentees. Osnabrück 2012, PDF .
  • C. Péron, V. Baldauf: What's the point? SROI analysis of the mentoring program Balu und Du. Berlin / Munich 2015, PDF .
  • M. Szczesny, G. Goloborodko, H. Müller-Kohlenberg: Civic engagement as an "additive model" for the acquisition of key skills: Which skills can be acquired in the mentoring project "Balu und Du"? In: E. Müller, H. Küppers, T. Brinker (eds.): SQ-Forum, key qualifications in teaching, research and practice. 1/2009, pp. 111-124, PDF .

Web links

Individual evidence

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  1. ↑ https://www.gruene-liste-praevention.de/nano.cms/datenbank/information
  2. ↑ Hildegard Müller-Kohlenberg: Manual mentoring for primary school children. Balu and you. 53 modules for theory and practice . Münstermann, Ibbenbüren 2018, p. 44 .
  3. ↑ Hildegard Müller-Kohlenberg: Manual mentoring for primary school children. Balu and you. 53 modules for theory and practice . Münstermann, Ibbenbüren 2018, p. 60 .
  4. ↑ Hildegard Müller-Kohlenberg: Manual mentoring for primary school children. Balu and you. 53 modules for theory and practice . Münstermann, Ibbenbüren 2018, p. 16 .
  5. ↑ https://www.benckiser-stiftung.org/
  6. ↑ https://www.bmfsfj.de/
  7. ↑ https://lpr.niedersachsen.de/
  8. ↑ https://www.balu-und-du.de/kontakt/standorte
  9. ↑ https://www.balu-und-du.de/programm/qualitaetssicherung
  10. ↑ a b https://www.balu-und-du.de/ffekt/ffektungsbericht
  11. ↑ https://www.transparency.de/mitmachen/initiative-transparente-zivilgesellschaft/
  12. ↑ https://www.balu-und-du.de/ffekt/publikationen
  13. ↑ Hildegard Müller-Kohlenberg: Development-oriented prevention of deviance in adolescence: the mentoring project “Balu und Du” . In: Federal Ministry of the Interior (Hrsg.): Theory and practice of social cohesion. Texts on internal security, social cohesion . 2008.
  14. ↑ a b c d e f g h Hildegard Müller-Kohlenberg, Sibylle Drexler: Balu und Du ('Baloo and You') - A Mentoring Program: Conceptions and Evaluation Results . In: Shaughnessy, Michael F. (Ed.): Mentoring: Practices, Potential Challenges and Benefits . Nova Science Publishers, Hauppauge, NY 2013, pp. 107-123 .
  15. ↑ FabianKosse, Thomas Deckers, Hannah Schildberg-Hörisch, Armin Falk: The Formation of Prosociality: Causal Evidence on the Role of Social Environment . In: Discussion Papers Series . IZA DP No. 9861. Bonn 2016.
  16. ↑ https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/oekonom-armin-falk-ueber-ungleichheiten-soziale-herkunft.1008.de.html?dram:article_id=375212
  17. ↑ Michael Szczesny, Galina Goloborodko, Hildegard Müller-Kohlenberg: Civic engagement as an "additive model" for acquiring key skills: Which skills can be acquired in the mentoring project "Balu und Du"? In: Müller, E .; Küppers, H .; Brinker, T. (Ed.): SQ-Forum, key qualifications in teaching, research and practice . No. 1 , 2009, p. 111-124 .
  18. ↑ a b c d Clara Péron, Valentina Baldauf: What's the point? SROI analysis of the mentoring program Balu und Du . Berlin / Munich 2014.