TEULE A Group Drumming Intervention For At-Risk Youth It is well documented in newspapers and other media sources around the country that youth in American society are in trouble. Youth violence is on the rise in every U.S. city. A comparison of data collected in two studies demonstrates an increase in gang membership in the U.S. over a ten year period. According to a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice (Needle & Stapleton, 1983), there were approximately 1,000 known gangs with a combined membership of 50,000 operating in the U.S. by the end of the 1970's. In contrast, by the end of the 1980's these numbers increased to approximately 5,000 gangs with an estimated membership of 250,000 (United States Department of Justice, 1994). Research conducted concerning the motivation for gang membership has shown that many young people who join gangs do so not for a desire to commit violent acts or engage in illegal activities, but for the companionship and camaraderie that they perceive as being readily available. (Walker, Schmidt, and Lunghofer, 1993). Inevitably, the gang will become involved in some type of illegal activity and/or violence. In a recent interview Frank Sanchez, Senior Director for Delinquency Prevention for the Boys and Girls Club of America, said, “punishing the guilty is only a quick solution to a problem with deep-rooted causes. The real key is community mobilization and providing the kids the opportunity to work in constructive programs.” The community needs to provide alternative means for youth to meet this need of belonging. Basketball programs and educational programs are two approaches which have demonstrated some success in meeting this need. Group drumming experiences are another activity which can help to fill the social void. Drumming has been woven into the social context of many societies throughout history. Drumming offers a physically challenging, cognitively stimulating, group experience which speaks to the social needs youth in our society are calling out for. In November of 1999 I began work on the development of a group drumming program for adjudicated youth at an alternative high school in the Kansas City area. They had received a Juvenile Accountability Incentive Block Grant (JAIBG) through the U.S. Department of Juvenile Justice. The purpose of the grant was to offer the community the opportunity to build meaningful and healthy relationships with at-risk youth. This grant focused on Fine Arts instruction as a means to encourage development of critical thinking, decision making, and problem solving skills. 15 students were identified by the school staff and administered an interest in the arts survey and a pre participation self-esteem / sense of community measurement tool. The protocol consisted of meeting with the group two times per week for eight weeks. Each session lasted 90 minutes and was video taped. The grant also required a minimum of 10 hours of community service per student. To meet this goal we developed a performance piece to be presented at area elementary schools. The group chose to focus on how the choices we make impact our lives. The sessions were facilitated by myself and a local performing artist, Jaisson Taylor, who specialized in West African drumming traditions. Students were asked to take full responsibility for setting up the room, moving the drums and resetting the room upon completion of the sessions. We began with Yoga or Ti Chi exercises and then did some kind of ice-breaker activity such as a Group Juggle or a Name Game. This enabled us to check in with the group and set the tone for the session. The remainder of the session consisted of traditional West African drumming instruction. We had to begin with hand stroke technique and very simple rhythms. After the first two weeks we began to introduce multiple rhythms in the form of two separate traditional compositions, Lamba and Fanga. Each piece had 3 - 4 different rhythms and were orchestrated using 3 different sizes of Remo Djembes, 3 Djun-juns, and 2 bells. Each composition had a drum call in and a drum call out which required the full attention of each group member to synchronize an orchestrated beginning and end. Because the students had been placed in the program and had not volunteered there were some bumpy days. Several days we took time to discuss different group and personal issues. As their skill level increased we observed less behavior problems and a greater expression of motivation to learn. Students discovered a sense of community, because they had to work together to accomplish a common goal. One student comments, “Drumming is a challenge. It has helped me with my patience. I learned how to be determined and stick things out". Another student was observed making faces and withdrawing during the first several sessions. She stated that she did not see what good this was doing her. After some group processing we offered her the chance to play the Djun-jun, a bass drum who’s part holds the ensemble together. She became our main Djun-jun player and emerged as one of the leaders of the group. Once we had learned the drumming compositions we began to focus on the school assembly presentation. The group came up with a name, Teule, which means Choices in Bantu. Two of the group members designed a logo for a T-Shirt. Each group member received a shirt with the logo and their name on it for the assembly presentations. We also spent several weeks composing a rap titled, “Choices”. We spent several sessions learning how to recite the rap as a group. Our Djun-jun player added rhythm instrumentation and the group put together some choreography. At the conclusion of the 8 weeks we performed the show at 3 different elementary schools. To collect some data, we used a 25 item survey developed by the school district’s art chair and my self to measure Self-Esteem and Sense of Community / Belongingness. It was administered as a pre/post survey four times during the eight week period. Survey items were given a score of 1 - 3 points. Items with a score of 1 indicated low self-esteem / belongingness while a score of 3 indicated high self-esteem / belongingness. In all Self-Check Surveys, the percentage of 3 point rated answers increased after each therapy session. As the weeks progressed the percentage difference in the 3 point ratings had a larger margin of gain from before the therapy session to after the therapy session. If the project could have continued or would have started earlier in the year, the results may have shown a larger and continued gain in the student’s self-esteem and sense of belonging. Collected data from the last sessions of the project show students walking away from the experience with higher confidence in themselves. This was not meant to be a controlled scientific study. Our sample population was inconsistent from session to session due to the strict behavior code at the school. Several students were expelled from school for different behavior infractions and would miss sessions. The numbers do however point to a shift in self concept that could be related to the drumming intervention. We were able to observe a shift in the students on many levels including body language and how they related to us a facilitators. More work needs to be done in the area of at-risk youth. These student’s response demonstrated that group drumming is an activity that can cut through the tough shell many of these kids have developed. It is my hope that more drum facilitators will pursue involvement with this population. REFERENCES: Needle, A., & Stapleton, W.V. (1983). Police handling of youth gangs: Reports of the National Juvenile Assessment Centers, Sacramento, CA: American Justice Institute, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (ERIC Abstract) United States Department of Justice. (1994). Crime in the United States. Washington, DC: Federal Bureau of Investigation. Walker, M., Schmidt, L., and Lunghofer, L. (1993). Youth gangs. In M. I. Singer, L. T. Singer, and T. M. Anglin (Eds.) Handbook for screening adolescents at psychological risk (pp.504-552). New York: Lexington Books.
	• TOP • (913) 888-5517 barry@healthysounds.com P.O. BOX 40304 • OVERLAND PARK, KS • 66204

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