By Andrew Lines Even though the health and wellbeing of boys is currently receiving a substantial amount of attention, there is little evidence to suggest that this is having a tangible effect on boys' academic and social success. This may be partially due to the lack of symbolic initiation rites and ceremonies that mark a child’s passage into adulthood. In our culture, often the only common rite of passage is getting a driver’s licence. However, a number of programs emerging in Australia, and elsewhere in the Western world, aim to provide symbolic rites of passage for boys. The Rite Journey (http://theritejourney.com.au/) is one such program, created to introduce ceremony and celebration into the lives of Year 9 boys as they begin the transition into healthy adult men. The uniqueness of this program is that it is offered through the schooling system and has the potential to reach vast numbers of boys. The program is based on extensive research on rites of passage, as well as on consultation with Indigenous elders who recalled their own initiation traditions. The program is based on the seven steps of a mythological hero’s journey: the call; the threshold or departure; the following; involvement with a mentor or guide; the challenges; the abyss, including getting lost; the return; and the homecoming. The program has been introduced in coeducational schools, and involves students being divided up into single-sex classes taken by a teacher of the same gender. The curriculum for these classes follows the four themes Relationship with: Self, Others, God and the World, with outcomes of Connection, Consciousness, Communication, Challenge and Celebration. Topics explored include who am I really?; gender identity and construction; how do I get on with others?; love, relationships and sexuality; anger, bullying, depression and violence; is there something more?; stillness, meditation and relaxation; where am I going?; what I have to offer the world. A sense of connectedness is a key to wellbeing for adolescent boys, and a substantial mentoring component aimed at learning a skill was included to cultivate this feeling. The boys were also encouraged to be mentors for young children learning to read. The program is implemented in schools via a 2 day training program which enables the program to be adapted to suit the characteristics of different schools, and students have described it as life-changing. A related program has been developed for girls. "The Rite Journey is one of the most exciting and well conceived ideas in boys’ education for a very long time. There are lots of good programs about, but nothing I have seen that is so comprehensive, sustained over time, and potentially so life changing for the boys involved. That it is accessible for all boys, regardless of income or family circumstance, at what is traditionally a rather uninspiring phase of their schooling is wonderful news. It has potential for wide dissemination, turning a problematic time of life into a force for good." Steve Biddulph, Author Manhood and Raising Boys
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