Cohen’s article “Long Road to Adulthood Is Growing Even Longer” published on NYtimes makes me ponder how outdated my teaching language (TL) is when I taught adolescent learners.

The TL I mentioned here specifically means the way I encourage/persuade students to make something academically. According to Cohen, people between 20 and 34 take longer in schooling and establishing families, which could lead to a phenomenon that students view receiving schooling in academic setting as a transition time before re-entering or entering the society or workplace.

I had been encouraging students to spend as much time on studying as they can for becoming a well-equipped adults; however, I’m thinking I should change another set of language when speaking to my students, among whom the majority of them could be sophisticated young adolescents. What they need is not preparing for dealing with an unexpected society, but how to re-think their life courses based on what they have experienced. In a word, my student population is not merely green young adults anymore; they probably have experienced many turning points in lives. Pushing them to make progress in academic in order for a better life is not a solely optimal way to encourage them; rather, I need to consider their needs and background within an adulthood context, which is a much reasonable way for me and for other high-school teachers.