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Course information

When children’s behaviors become consequence-proof, and where empathy does not seem to heal broken attachments, caregivers begin to feel hopeless and defeated.

NonViolent Resistance therapy (NVR) helps clinicians and caregivers recover their diminished sense of agency facing young and adult children who harm themselves or others, withdraw socially, are addicted to digital media or cannabis, threaten suicide, or reject any kind of help, including therapy.

NVR helps adults reclaim their ability to provide care and promote children’s wellbeing, by augmenting their own presence, rather than trying to change the child’s behavior. NVR goes beyond behavior to a coherent and positive family narrative, that can help children form more secure attachments – even and especially when the young person refuses to engage in therapy.

​​The module may be taken separately, for the sole benefit of enriching your existing practice, or can serve as the first phase of a training process, to be followed by Advanced Level 1 and Advanced Level 2 training for eligible participants.

The course spans four, six-hour study days, or 24 hours in total. The first three days are consecutive and consist of frontal presentations, discussions, and exercises. This part is followed by three months of assignment work, during which participants learn how to integrate various aspects of the NVR approach into their ongoing work, and lead integral NVR interventions. Participants log their learning experiences during these three months; are encouraged to maintain peer-support, and are offered group and individual supervision (for extra charge). At the end of this three-month period, participants attend the fourth study day, during which they reflect on their experiences and discuss cases.

What you will learn

The Foundation Level (Generic NVR) module introduces NVR’s core principles and practices. During the course participants learn:

  • NVR’s core concepts and values as a philosophy of self and care

  • NVR's position in relation to attachment, trauma, and behavior-based approaches

  • How to integrate NVR into their own practices

  • How to manage an integral NVR process based on a didactic, step-by-step, process model of transition from caregiver helplessness to empowerment 

  • How to address typical obstacles to change such as parental despair, parental mistrust, anxiety, guilt, shame, accommodation, protectiveness, fear, trauma; beliefs about the parental role, about parental authority and about adult autonomy

  • Leran about NVR’s tool set, including techniques such as Neuro De-escalation, Announcement, Social Support Gathering, Reconciliation Gestures, Acts of Reparation or Restoration, coping with inter-parental tension, the Sit-in, the Lock-out, and the Move-in.

​Asynchronous learning assignments  

  • Implement intervention steps such as:

    • Practicing De-escalation in role play with clients

    • Supporting a client to draft an announcement

    • Initiate and chair a supporters meeting.

  • Take part of a peer support group*

  • Write a reflective log documenting your experience

* A group supervision course is available separately.

Duration, dates and sequence Let me know when the next course opens

  • The course spans 24 learning hours, divided into 4 days X 6 hours per day.

  • The first 3 days will be delivered consecutivelyץ

  • The 4th day, dedicated to reflective practice learning, takea place 3 months after the third day.  

  • The next course will take place online on July 24-26 + October 24, 2023

Delivery

All trainings will take place via Zoom. 

Group size 

Maxiumum 20 

Instructors

Mary-Jo Land and/or Dan Dulberger

Certification:

A foundation level certificate of attendance will be provided to individuals who attended all four training days.

Fees:

$990 CAD / $815 USD per participant (including exchange fees and commissions)

Eligibility for participation (see also our overall admission policy) 

 

Please note that CNTP's training program is open to participants from the Americas. To applicants from the UK, we highly recommend Partnership Projects UK's programs. They are exceptionally adept and experienced. 

Admission to the NVR foundation level course is open to persons who qualify under criteria 1, 2, or 3 below:     

1. Professional qualification in a social work, mental health or educational profession, with eligibility for membership in a recognised professional association, a provisional or full registration with a recognized provincial regulatory college (in Canada), or a state licensing board (in the USA). Typical professions of this kind are nursing, social work, special needs teaching, clinical psychology, counselling therapy, addictions counselling, educational psychology, psychiatry, systemic therapy. In certain cases we may invite applicants for a chat in order to help is refine our criteria, and/or assess, together, how well the course may be suited to their expectations. 

2. Academic training and/or a diploma or certificate considered by CNTP as equivalent to a professional qualification, in cases where the applicant has worked in public services or NGO’s that offer organizational support such as supervision and practice guidelines, for the duration of at least two years. The individual must not be subject to current disciplinary procedures, nor have a record of misconduct in the execution of their practice.​

To evidence equivalence, we kindly ask three things:

  1. That you send us a full CV, including your work experience

  2. That you attach a cover letter explaining your interest in NVR and the way in which participating in the course aligns    with your goals and future plans.

  3. That you meet with us, on Zoom, for a chat.

Persons who do not necessarily qualify as described above – be they researchers, support workers, teaching assistants, carers in residential services, para-professionals, community leaders, administrators, mentors, social entrepreneurs – are invited to approach us (see below). We will do our best to admit those persons who in our thinking would benefit most from the Foundation Level course, while benefiting others. This open dialog embodies our commitment, as a young organisation, to learn about what people and communities need, that NVR trainings can address. This practice will continue until more general and refined admission criteria can come into being. Please note, that at this stage we are not admitting people who come as parents and are interested in parent training.   

To help us reach the best decision., we kindly ask three things: 

  1. That you send us a full CV, including your work experience

  2. That you attach a cover letter explaining your interest in NVR and the way in which participating in the course aligns    with your goals and future plans.

  3. That you meet with us, on Zoom, for a chat.

The above applies mainly to the Foundation Level Training and not to Advanced levels 1 and 2 eligibility criteria, which currently teach NVR as a therapy.  

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