Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Family, Life Course, and Society Commons™
Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
-
- Medicine and Health Sciences (137)
- Public Health (137)
- International Public Health (136)
- Demography, Population, and Ecology (127)
- Gender and Sexuality (84)
-
- Education (62)
- Disability and Equity in Education (46)
- Gender Equity in Education (46)
- Women's Health (36)
- Maternal and Child Health (31)
- Medicine and Health (22)
- Civic and Community Engagement (19)
- Inequality and Stratification (9)
- Community-Based Learning (8)
- Migration Studies (7)
- Sociology of Culture (6)
- Domestic and Intimate Partner Violence (5)
- Indigenous Education (5)
- Arts and Humanities (3)
- Community Health and Preventive Medicine (2)
- Economics (2)
- Indigenous Studies (2)
- Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies (2)
- Work, Economy and Organizations (2)
- Behavioral Economics (1)
- Development Studies (1)
- Education Policy (1)
- Publication Year
Articles 121 - 150 of 214
Full-Text Articles in Family, Life Course, and Society
Evidence To End Fgm/C: Research To Help Girls And Women Thrive [Arabic], Population Council
Evidence To End Fgm/C: Research To Help Girls And Women Thrive [Arabic], Population Council
Reproductive Health
[In Arabic] This factsheet describes a new Population Council–led research program, funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, which will join the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on FGM/C: Accelerating Change and the Girl Generation in the Campaign to End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) within One Generation. The program will generate high-quality evidence to influence strategic investment, policy, and programming to end FGM/C. This five-year program will work in 6–9 sub-Saharan African countries to dramatically expand the body of evidence on the most effective approaches to ending FGM/C. The research program will be organized around four themes: building the picture …
Evidence To End Fgm/C: Research To Help Girls And Women Thrive, Population Council
Evidence To End Fgm/C: Research To Help Girls And Women Thrive, Population Council
Reproductive Health
This factsheet describes a new Population Council–led research program, funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, which will join the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on FGM/C: Accelerating Change and the Girl Generation in the Campaign to End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) within One Generation. The program will generate high-quality evidence to influence strategic investment, policy, and programming to end FGM/C. This five-year program will work in 6–9 sub-Saharan African countries to dramatically expand the body of evidence on the most effective approaches to ending FGM/C. The research program will be organized around four themes: building the picture of where, …
Considerations On The Use And Interpretation Of Survey Data On Fgm/C, Bettina Shell-Duncan
Considerations On The Use And Interpretation Of Survey Data On Fgm/C, Bettina Shell-Duncan
Reproductive Health
This technical brief was written as an addendum to the trends presented in the “State of-Art-Synthesis of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: What Do We Know Now?” published in October 2016. This brief describes important sources of reliable data that have been generated in recent years, to provide accurate information on FGM/C practices and attitudes. The majority of these data are derived from cross-sectional survey research, and the brief notes the strengths and limitations of this research approach which should be borne in mind when using and interpreting these data. Table 1 summarizes nationally representative data on FGM/C available from a number …
Health Impacts Of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: A Synthesis Of The Evidence, Samuel Kimani, Jacinta Muteshi-Strachan, Carolyne Njue
Health Impacts Of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: A Synthesis Of The Evidence, Samuel Kimani, Jacinta Muteshi-Strachan, Carolyne Njue
Reproductive Health
The Africa Coordinating Centre for the Abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, with support from the Population Council, sought to synthesize the evidence on the health impacts of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), identify recommended interventions, and compile and analyze the existing reference materials. The goal of this review is to inform the development of a comprehensive set of training guidelines and materials for frontline healthcare providers so they can manage the care of women and girls who have undergone FGM/C, prevent the practice at the community level, and accelerate abandonment of FGM/C practices. This analysis underscores the health impacts associated with …
Curriculum On Adolescent-Friendly Health Services And Health Voucher Mechanisms: Facilitator's Training Manual, Population Council
Curriculum On Adolescent-Friendly Health Services And Health Voucher Mechanisms: Facilitator's Training Manual, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) in rural and urban Zambia aims to build social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls. A safe spaces component is at the core of AGEP. Girls groups, under the guidance of a female mentor from the same community, provide a safe and supportive learning environment. The meetings are critical in building social assets for vulnerable girls—including friendships, self-esteem, trusting relationships with adults, and social support. The training content over the course of the year varies from sexual and reproductive health and life skills to financial education and nutrition training. Girls in AGEP receive …
Education, Numeracy, And Literacy: Baseline Findings, Population Council
Education, Numeracy, And Literacy: Baseline Findings, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) is a program for girls ages 10–19 in rural and urban Zambia that aims to find the best ways to improve their social, health, and economic resources. The program involves over 10,000 girls participating in weekly girls’ group meetings, receiving health vouchers, and opening savings accounts. Over 5,000 girls, unmarried at baseline, are enrolled in a randomized, controlled trial and are being followed over four years—including the two years of the program and two years after. This brief describes the characteristics of these girls at baseline. Of the girls who are currently in school, …
Sexual Behaviors And Biomarkers: Baseline Findings, Population Council
Sexual Behaviors And Biomarkers: Baseline Findings, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) is a program for girls ages 10–19 in rural and urban Zambia that aims to find the best ways to improve their social, health, and economic resources. More than 10,000 girls participated in weekly girls’ group meetings, received health vouchers, and opened savings accounts. More than 5,000 girls, unmarried at baseline, were enrolled in a randomized, controlled trial and followed over four years—two years in the program and two years after the program ended. This brief describes the characteristics of enrolled girls at baseline.
Abriendo Oportunidades: Guía Curricular Integrada 2015, Cecilia Garcés, Paola Broll
Abriendo Oportunidades: Guía Curricular Integrada 2015, Cecilia Garcés, Paola Broll
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
El programa Abriendo Oportunidades tiene como objetivo apoyar a las niñas indígenas en Guatemala para alcanzar su máximo potencial y superar el ciclo de la pobreza. Esta es la tercera versión de la guía curricular basada en activos, diseñada para ser implementado por mentores de la comunidad. Su objetivo es fomentar la reflexión y el diálogo, la hermandad y el pensamiento crítico entre las adolescentes. La guía curricular se basa en el enfoque de respetar y promover los derechos humanos y la equidad de género. Esta guía es una herramienta valiosa para los programas que buscan integrar la educación integral …
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Program Overview, Population Council
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Program Overview, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
Many adolescent girls in Kenya face considerable risks and vulnerabilities that affect their education, health, and general well-being—including early marriage; teenage pregnancy; early, unprotected, and/or unwanted sexual activity; violence; social isolation; and HIV/STIs. For the most part, very young adolescent girls who live in risk-prone environments have not yet experienced these negative outcomes. It is critical, therefore, to intervene early and increase girls’ capacity to overcome these risks before the challenges result in outcomes that may be irreversible. Research has shown that single-sector interventions are not adequate to obtain the range of outcomes needed to help girls enter into adulthood …
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Baseline Report, Karen Austrian, Eunice N. Muthengi, Taylor Riley, Joyce Mumah, Caroline W. Kabiru, Benta Abuya
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Baseline Report, Karen Austrian, Eunice N. Muthengi, Taylor Riley, Joyce Mumah, Caroline W. Kabiru, Benta Abuya
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
Many adolescent girls in Kenya face considerable risks and vulnerabilities that affect their education status, health, and general well-being. The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya (AGI-K) will deliver multisectoral interventions for over 5,000 girls aged 11–14 in two marginalized areas of Kenya: the Kibera slums in Nairobi, and Wajir County in Northeastern Kenya. Implemented by Plan International in Kibera and Save the Children in Wajir, these interventions will be implemented for two years and will comprise a combination of girl-level, household-level, and community-level interventions. A randomized controlled trial will be used to compare the impact of four different packages of interventions to …
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Financial Education Curriculum, Wajir, Population Council
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Financial Education Curriculum, Wajir, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to prepare adolescent girls for the financial responsibilities of adulthood. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available for training. The guide contains step-by-step descriptions of the learning activities as well as background information.
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Health And Life Skills Curriculum, Wajir, Population Council
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Health And Life Skills Curriculum, Wajir, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to increase adolescent girls’ knowledge of reproductive health and sexuality; reinforce and promote attitudes and behaviors that will lead to a better quality of life; and instill skills among adolescents to enable them to overcome the challenges of growing up and becoming responsible adults including communication skills, decision-making, assertiveness, setting goals and resisting peer pressure. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available …
Abriendo Oportunidades Program: Integrated Curriculum Guide (8 To 17 Years Old)—Two-Year Cycle, Cecilia Garcés, Paola Broll
Abriendo Oportunidades Program: Integrated Curriculum Guide (8 To 17 Years Old)—Two-Year Cycle, Cecilia Garcés, Paola Broll
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Abriendo Oportunidades program aims to support indigenous girls in Guatemala to reach their maximum potential and overcome the cycle of poverty. The program created safe spaces for girls at the community level, reaching adolescent girls with an asset-based curriculum implemented by community mentors. This is the third version of the curriculum. It was designed to foster reflection and dialogue, sisterhood, and critical thinking among adolescent girls. The first two versions focused on reproductive health, nutrition, hygiene, communication skills, and financial education. Several of the initial topics, as well as some activities from these previous versions, are included in the …
Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep): Program Overview, Population Council
Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep): Program Overview, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
For Zambian girls, social isolation, economic vulnerability, and lack of appropriate health information and services are critical problems that prevent a healthy transition from girlhood to womanhood. The challenges that girls are confronted with—high rates of gender-based violence, unsafe sex that puts girls at risk for unwanted pregnancy and HIV infection, school dropout, lack of economic resources and income-generating options, lack of agency and participation—are linked together through their root causes. Therefore, the solutions must be interconnected as well. Through the Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP), the Population Council and partners are implementing a social, health, and economic asset-building program …
Participatory Research Results From Training With The Mabinti Tushike Hatamu Out-Of-School Girls Program: Tanzania 2015, Kelly Hallman, Ilan Cerna-Turoff, Neema Matee
Participatory Research Results From Training With The Mabinti Tushike Hatamu Out-Of-School Girls Program: Tanzania 2015, Kelly Hallman, Ilan Cerna-Turoff, Neema Matee
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Mabinti Tushike Hatamu (Girls let’s be leaders!) program is designed to test and evaluate strategies for reducing the vulnerability of out-of-school adolescent girls in Tanzania aged 10–19 years to HIV/AIDS, pregnancy, and unfavorable life outcomes. MTH is led by the Tanzania AIDS Commission, implemented by Restless Development, and supported by UNICEF. The Population Council developed a strategy for Restless Development to capture the richness of its activities. The Council designed a training session and a companion toolkit in participatory action research for community volunteers, aged 19–23 years, to use within their girl groups. This report describes the findings from …
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Financial Education Curriculum, Kibera, Population Council
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Financial Education Curriculum, Kibera, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to prepare adolescent girls for the financial responsibilities of adulthood. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available for training. The guide contains step-by-step descriptions of the learning activities as well as background information.
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Health And Life Skills Curriculum, Kibera, Population Council
Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Health And Life Skills Curriculum, Kibera, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to increase adolescent girls’ knowledge of reproductive health and sexuality; reinforce and promote attitudes and behaviors that will lead to a better quality of life; and instill skills among adolescents to enable them to overcome the challenges of growing up and becoming responsible adults including communication skills, decision-making, assertiveness, setting goals and resisting peer pressure. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available …
Is Agep Building Assets For Vulnerable Girls In Zambia? Preliminary Research Findings, Population Council
Is Agep Building Assets For Vulnerable Girls In Zambia? Preliminary Research Findings, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) is a randomized controlled trial that evaluates a multisectoral program intended to increase girls’ social, health, and economic resources. AGEP involves over 10,000 vulnerable girls aged 10–19 in Zambia. The girls participate in weekly girls’ group meetings (safe spaces), receive vouchers for health services, and open savings accounts. AGEP operates in ten sites—five urban and five rural—across four provinces in Zambia. The AGEP evaluation is based on the randomization of girls to participate in one of four arms of the program: 1) safe spaces only, 2) safe spaces + health voucher, 3) safe spaces …
Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Livelihoods, Population Council
Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Livelihoods, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
There are few income-earning opportunities for adolescent girls in the Bangladeshi Association for Life Skills, Income, and Knowledge for Adolescents (BALIKA) study area, and livelihoods opportunities vary considerably by economic status and education. The ability to acquire livelihood-relevant skills, networks, and work experience during adolescence can be an important predictor of productive capacity later in life. However, across the study districts, the proportion of adolescent girls who are working is low. Most girls work as tutors or are engaged in the agricultural and poultry sector. Better-educated girls are more likely to be engaged in paid work. This BALIKA “Highlight on …
Nutrition Education Curriculum For The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep), Population Council
Nutrition Education Curriculum For The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep), Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) in rural and urban Zambia aims to build social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls. A safe spaces component is at the core of AGEP. Girls groups, under the guidance of a female mentor from the same community, provide a safe and supportive learning environment. The meetings are critical in building social assets for vulnerable girls—including friendships, self-esteem, trusting relationships with adults, and social support. The training content over the course of the year varies from sexual and reproductive health and life skills to financial education and nutrition training. This collection is focused …
Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Schooling, Population Council
Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Schooling, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
School attendance is universal in the Bangladeshi Association for Life Skills, Income, and Knowledge for Adolescents (BALIKA) study area, but the persistence of early and child marriage leads to high dropout rates among girls. Compulsory primary education is free in Bangladesh, and policies to improve access to schooling are generally credited with universal schooling at young ages. Only 1 percent of 12–15-year-olds have never attended school compared to 9 percent among 15–18-year-olds in the study area. The recent expansion of educational opportunity presents new challenges. Bangladesh is unusual by global comparison in the high proportion of girls who are married …
Enhancing Livelihood Opportunities For Young Women In Rural Upper Egypt: The Neqdar Nesharek Program, Nada Ramadan, Nahla G. Abdel-Tawab, Khaled El Sayed, Rania Roushdy
Enhancing Livelihood Opportunities For Young Women In Rural Upper Egypt: The Neqdar Nesharek Program, Nada Ramadan, Nahla G. Abdel-Tawab, Khaled El Sayed, Rania Roushdy
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
During the 30+ years that the Population Council has been operating in Egypt, Council researchers have examined many facets of young people’s lives, including conducting nationally representative surveys in 1997, 2009, and 2014. This research has documented the marginalization of Egyptian women in the public sphere, including the labor market, as well as gender inequities in mobility and access to schooling. Neqdar Nesharek is a social and economic empowerment program that evolved in response to this research and from the Council’s experience over the last few years working closely with out-of-school girls in Upper Egypt via the Ishraq program. The …
Adolescent Girls Empowerment Programme: Research And Evaluation Baseline Technical Report, Paul C. Hewett, Karen Austrian, Erica Soler-Hampejsek, Jere R. Behrman, Christine A. Kelly, Dela Kusi-Appouh, Fiammetta Bozzani, Barbara Mensch, Minyoi Maimbolwa
Adolescent Girls Empowerment Programme: Research And Evaluation Baseline Technical Report, Paul C. Hewett, Karen Austrian, Erica Soler-Hampejsek, Jere R. Behrman, Christine A. Kelly, Dela Kusi-Appouh, Fiammetta Bozzani, Barbara Mensch, Minyoi Maimbolwa
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The theory of change behind the Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) posits that adolescent girls are empowered by acquiring social, health, and economic assets. Girls can draw on these assets to reduce vulnerabilities and expand opportunities, thereby increasing their likelihood of completing school, delaying sexual debut, and reducing the risk of early marriage, unintended pregnancy, acquisition of HIV, and so on. AGEP serves vulnerable adolescent girls in Zambia aged 10–19 in two age cohorts: 10–14-year-olds and 15–19-year-olds. AGEP operates in ten “master sites,” five urban and five rural, in four provinces of Zambia. The three core components of AGEP in …
Building The Assets To Thrive: Addressing The Hiv-Related Vulnerabilities Of Adolescent Girls In Ethiopia, Annabel Erulkar
Building The Assets To Thrive: Addressing The Hiv-Related Vulnerabilities Of Adolescent Girls In Ethiopia, Annabel Erulkar
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
Despite decades of investment and dramatic progress against HIV, adolescent girls remain at disproportionate risk of infection. Population Council research shows that the best way to protect girls and young women from HIV and other bad outcomes is to reach them early—before they experience irreversible events like HIV infection or unintended childbearing—and with enough health, social, and cognitive assets to make a measurable difference in their lives. This book is a comprehensive review of three programs launched by the Population Council and the Ethiopian government. Two of the programs work to reduce Ethiopian girls’ HIV risk by providing out-of-school adolescent …
Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Girls' Social Lives, Population Council
Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Girls' Social Lives, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
In Bangladesh, in addition to schooling, work opportunities, and family-building patterns, social networks, mobility, and civic participation are important dimensions of young people’s lives. Previous studies have suggested ways in which the seclusion of Bangladeshi women by purdah exerts a strong influence on girls’ lives. This Bangladeshi Association for Life Skills, Income, and Knowledge for Adolescents (BALIKA) fact sheet, “Highlight on Girls’ Social Lives,” concludes that school enrollment plays a positive role by affording girls greater mobility and access to clubs and institutions, and by promoting social interactions. Adolescent girls in rural Bangladesh are usually socially isolated, and have restricted …
Safe And Smart Savings Products For Vulnerable Adolescent Girls In Kenya And Uganda: Evaluation Report, Karen Austrian, Eunice N. Muthengi
Safe And Smart Savings Products For Vulnerable Adolescent Girls In Kenya And Uganda: Evaluation Report, Karen Austrian, Eunice N. Muthengi
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The decision to engage in the development of girl-friendly savings accounts was made as part of the Population Council’s work with adolescent girls in Kenya. In June 2008 the Council and MicroSave Consulting started the Safe and Smart Savings Products for Vulnerable Adolescent Girls. Based on the market research and prior experience with developing programs for adolescent girls, a product concept for a group-based savings account was developed, in which the group model was used to address the legal constraints of minors not being able to hold individual accounts. In Kenya and Uganda, two financial institutions were identified, and the …
The Ishraq Program For Out-Of-School Girls: From Pilot To Scale-Up [Arabic], Mona Selim, Nahla G. Abdel-Tawab, Khaled El Sayed, Asmaa Elbadawy, Heba El Kalaawy
The Ishraq Program For Out-Of-School Girls: From Pilot To Scale-Up [Arabic], Mona Selim, Nahla G. Abdel-Tawab, Khaled El Sayed, Asmaa Elbadawy, Heba El Kalaawy
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
In response to the needs of adolescent girls in Egypt for improved schooling, health, and livelihood prospects, Ishraq (sunrise)—a multidimensional program for 12–15-year-old out-of-school girls—was launched in 2001 by the Population Council in collaboration with CEDPA, Save the Children, Caritas, and local nongovernmental organizations. The program combined traditional tested program elements (literacy, life skills, nutrition) with more innovative ones (sports, financial education). It focused on building a multilayered platform to support and institutionalize the program by educating and mobilizing communities around issues of importance to adolescent girls; forging partnerships between international NGOs, government institutions, and local NGOs; and building capacities …
Financial Education Curriculum For The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep), Population Council
Financial Education Curriculum For The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep), Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) in rural and urban Zambia aims to build social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls. A safe spaces component is at the core of AGEP. Girls groups, under the guidance of a female mentor from the same community, provide a safe and supportive learning environment. The meetings are critical in building social assets for vulnerable girls—including friendships, self-esteem, trusting relationships with adults, and social support. The training content over the course of the year varies from sexual and reproductive health and life skills to financial education and nutrition training. This collection of learning …
Health And Life Skills Curriculum For The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep), Population Council
Health And Life Skills Curriculum For The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep), Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) in rural and urban Zambia aims to build social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls. A safe spaces component is at the core of AGEP. Girls groups, under the guidance of a female mentor from the same community, provide a safe and supportive learning environment. The meetings are critical in building social assets for vulnerable girls—including friendships, self-esteem, trusting relationships with adults, and social support. The training content over the course of the year varies from sexual and reproductive health and life skills to financial education and nutrition training. This curriculum aimed to …
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program: Lessons Learned From The Pilot Test Program, Karen Austrian, Natalie Jackson Hachonda, Paul C. Hewett
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program: Lessons Learned From The Pilot Test Program, Karen Austrian, Natalie Jackson Hachonda, Paul C. Hewett
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
Adolescent girls in Zambia face a range of risks and vulnerabilities that compromise their healthy development into young women, and lack the social, health, and economic assets to mitigate these risks. The issues that girls are confronted with include high rates of gender-based violence, unsafe sex that puts them at risk for unwanted pregnancy and HIV infection, school dropout, lack of economic resources and income-generating options, and lack of agency and participation. The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) has three major components: safe spaces groups in which girls meet once a week over the course of two years for training …