School Health Education to Prevent AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) : Teachers' Guide (UNESCO - WHO, 1994, 117 p.): Unit 2. Responsible behaviour: delaying sex: 8 Am I assertive? - Definition of passive, aggressive, and assertive behaviours

School Health Education to Prevent AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) : Teachers' Guide (UNESCO - WHO, 1994, 117 p.)

Unit 2. Responsible behaviour: delaying sex

		(introduction...)
		1 Reasons to say NO - Reasons for delaying sex
		2 To delay or not to delay (a, b) - Case Study - Reasons for and against sex
		3 “Lines” and more “lines” - Pressure to have sex
		4 Guidelines: help to delay sex - Help for delaying sex
		5 What to do? - Case studies on sex for delaying sex
		6 Affection without sex? - Alternatives to sexual intercourse
		7 What’s next? - Ranking physical activities
		8 Am I assertive? - Definition of passive, aggressive, and assertive behaviours
		9 Who’s assertive? - Case studies - types of behaviours
		10 Assertive messages - Four steps to assertive behaviour
		11 Your assertive message (class) - Four steps to assertive behaviour
		12 Your assertive message (individual) - Four steps to assertive behaviour
		13 Responding to persuasion (demonstration) - How to refuse, delay, bargain
		14 Responding to persuasion (class activity) - How to refuse, delay, bargain
		15 Responding to persuasion (individual) - How to refuse, delay, bargain
		16 You decide - Activity on gender differences
		17 Dealing with threats and violence - Case study on violence in dating
		18 Being assertive every day - Take-home activity on being assertive

8 Am I assertive? - Definition of passive, aggressive, and assertive behaviours

Purpose

Being able to describe and recognize verbal and non-verbal aspects of assertive, passive and aggressive behaviour is an important first step in learning how to be assertive oneself.

What the teacher does

1. Decide how to teach this activity.

a) Provide the information sheet for each student. Read the words and demonstrate, using body language, the non-verbal aspects of each behaviour.
b) Put the words “Passive”, “Aggressive”, “Assertive” on the blackboard and ask students to describe verbal and non-verbal characteristics of each behaviour. Write these under each type of behaviour.

2. You might want to demonstrate or have students demonstrate the verbal and non-verbal aspects of each behaviour - using the verbal and nonverbal descriptions on the activity sheet.

3. You could add the following points to your lesson:

Passive behaviour	Assertive behaviour	Aggressive behaviour
Passive feelings	Assertive feelings	Aggressive feelings
· helpless	· you feel better about yourself	· angry
· resentful	· self confident	· frustrated
· disappointed	· in control	· bitter
· anxious	· respected by others	· guilty or lonely afterwards
Passive outcomes	Assertive outcomes	Aggressive outcomes
· you don’t get what you want	· you don’t hurt others	· you dominate
· anger builds up	· you gain respect for yourself	· you humiliate
· you feel lonely	· your rights and others’ are respected	· you win at the expense of others
· rights are violated	· you both win

What the peer leader(s) does

Peer leaders could be very helpful in suggesting additional characteristics of these three types of behaviour; and in demonstrating the three types of behaviours.

Additional preparation

Set up a role-play with your peer leaders that would demonstrate these three types of behaviours.