The humanistic approach can be applied to the content of courses, the skills taught in courses, and the structure of the school or college itself. As to content, we like to see relevant courses, which have directly to do with the lives of the students or trainees involved, and which they perceive as relevant to them. There might be a course on human sexuality, or a course on substance abuse, or a course about aggression and violence. Values clarification, as taught by Simon and others, is one such approach, emphasising the skills of prizing, choosing and acting. It can be used in a number of different subject areas.
Communication exercises, so useful to adults, are also useful to children.
Parent Effectiveness Training is a way in which the school can reach out to the parents and enrol them in a programme whereby the aims of the schools and the aims of the parents can be better aligned. Group work can be used in various ways to break down the isolation which some children feel. Co-counselling can be taught to children from the age of five upwards, so that children can be emotional resources for each other. Assertiveness training is useful to girls and boys alike, teaching the skills of listening, giving and receiving feedback, handling conflict, etc. The teacher or lecturer becomes a facilitator rather than just an authority figure or a provider.