“When this development proceeds normally, we get better at balancing impulse, desire, goals, self-interest, rules, ethics, and even altruism, generating behavior that is more complex and, sometimes at least, more sensible.  But at times, and especially at first, the brain does this work clumsily.  It’s hard to get all those new cogs to mesh.”

Reading “Beautiful Brains” was like watching Inception based upon my own teenage years. Despite the fact that I was a relatively mature teen, and now a relatively mature adult (at least in my own opinion) I did many stupid things when I was in my high school years.  What I remember feeling most distinctly about this time: was a distinct sensation of boredom, a deep and almost painful boredom that drove me to do things I knew I shouldn’t do (which I will not enumerate here).   This article really reminded me of the deficit thinking that we talk about frequently in our Educating Students with Disabilities class.  Instead of lamenting the sometimes negativity and restlessness of our adolescent students, I am beginning to think how I can draw upon the inherent desire in adolescents to engage in new experiences and explore.  I have thought about how this principle can be applied to my own student teaching placement.  Based on this theory, adolescent brains would be the most adaptable to learning a foreign language, as foreign language learning requires taking chances, allowing oneself to be susceptible to failure and engaging socially with peers.  I will continue to think about this theory as I plan my future classes and brainstorm how best to engage my adolescent learners.