Monthly Archives: September 2018

Oh, How the Times Have Changed

Biological & Cognitive Development in Adolescence, Reaching Adolescents and How to Respond, Socioemotional and Psychological Development in Adolescence, Urban Adolescents

“As the historical record shows, the social, economic, and cultural aspects of adolescence have varied substantially across successive birth cohorts over the past 30 years in the United States. Young people born during the recessionary years of the early 1980s experienced a booming economy at high school graduation, unlike the experiences of those who were born several years before or later. The scarcity of job opportunities for high school and college graduates today will most likely be replaced by more abundant job opportunities for young people entering young adulthood in the coming decade. These socioeconomic variations tend to leave their mark on the life course as well as on the psyche of young people. The challenge for studies of adolescents in the future will be to incorporate such historical conditions into theoretical and empirical models rather than merely referring to them as contextual background. In other words, we need to directly query how changing circumstances have altered the development of young people.” (Johnson, Crosnoe, & Elder, 2011, p. 279)

I found it really interesting to read how adolescents have developed and are continuing to develop differently in comparison to the generations before them. The New York Times article (Cohen, 2010) highlighted many statistics that really brought to light how cultural and historical circumstances have impacted how quickly and in which way adolescents transition into adulthood. Continue reading Oh, How the Times Have Changed →

12 year olds “then and now” a too-true meme category

Perspectives & History of Adolescence

About a month ago I went with my 12 year old sister and two cousins (14 and 10) to Six Flags. We take a standard selfie, all smiling, and I send the photo to a friend letting her know how much fun we’re having. In conversation when she asks how old they are she is baffled at the fact that they’re not between 18 and 22. Since this day, and so far in my student teaching placement around middle schoolers, I’ve had this burning question:

Why do pre-teens and teens not look like our idea of pre-teens and teens? More specifically black and brown pre-teens and teens.

The MVP passage I chose on p.274 bottom left portion brings up the point but I personally feel like the authors of this piece didn’t go as in-depth as I would have liked or at least enough to more sufficiently answer my question. I understand that this article emphasizes the changes in our world has changed the “ages” at when adolescences begins and ends. But, what I most wonder, sparked by experience and then this passage, is why this is so prevalent in black and brown communities in the US? I don’t understand why the authors would bring up such a specific and important point with such precision and then not refer back to it in the same detail in the larger subdivision that talks about puberty.

Although commonly seen as a meme-worthy joke, this shift has had implications that aren’t humorous at all. Aside from a simple age mix up in a photo, this has often been the cause of violence from law enforcement towards these minors. I see in my school how pre-teen students are spoken to so sternly and strongly because of growth spurts that make them look like adults when maybe they’re just 11 and 12 year olds goofing around.

I need a lot more information and this article leaves me with more questions than answers.

Meme compilation comparing teens from now to teens from before
“Insights on Adolescence From a Life Course Perspective” (2011) p.274

 

I got two at home… in different decades

Perspectives & History of Adolescence

“With the foundation in place, we look forward to the next decade or research, which will deepen our knowledge and understanding of adolescence and of young people in the life course within a rapidly changing world”. (Johnson et all, 2011)
I am a mother of two kids. A boy who’s twelve and a girl who’s 7, so this study, and particularly this ending, was simply a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from be cause I had to find hope. When the decade of research they are waiting for comes (keep in mind the research was published seven years ago), it might be too late to stop whatever it is I’m doing wrong! if there is such a thing. Not so great for a hopeful ending of the article.
Here is what I can connect, though: Whatever my twelve year old is doing, affects my seven year old in ways I cannot begin to imagine, but that I can see every single day, specially because lately, we only have the four of us. If I though it was scary being a teenager in my unmentionable second decade, I had no clue. Watching unstoppable adolescence come on the way of your offsprings and not being able to blink, that’s true suspense. Think about that when you throw harmless conditional sentences about becoming a parent to the air.

MVP#3 Don’t judge if you don’t understand them

Perspectives & History of Adolescence

Social changes over the last several decades have also dramatically changed the transition from adolescence into young adulthood, and such change is reflected in policy discussions about key aspects of this transition (e.g., access to and affordability of higher education, the potential role of nonmarriage in poverty). As the manufacturing sector has given way to a service and information economy, jobs providing steady working-class incomes and benefits have been disproportionately replaced by low paying, unstable jobs without benefits (Morris & Western, 1999). Access to more secure and rewarding careers has increasingly required higher education. Indeed, wages for noncollege graduates have dropped substantially, resulting in rising relative returns to a college degree (Lemieux, 2006). Although adolescents and their parents are keenly aware of this
trend and now almost universally aspire to earn college degrees (Bachman, Johnston, & O’Malley, 2008; Schneider & Stevenson, 1999), college enrollment and graduation rates have not kept pace (Snyder, Dillow, & Hoffman, 2008). That attainment has not increased more dramatically given the rising returns to and aspirations for college degrees reflects, in part, waning public financial support for 274 JOHNSON, CROSNOE, AND ELDER, JR. higher education. Specifically, tuition has risen substantially as tax dollars have paid less and less of the cost of education and the real value of financial aid options such as Pell Grants has eroded (Kane, 2007).

Continue reading MVP#3 Don’t judge if you don’t understand them →

MVP #2 Internal Bias

Urban Adolescents

“Prior to the collection of data, research team members met repeatedly to discuss potential ways in which their potential biases might impact the research they conducted and the eventual data analysis. Throughout these phases of the project, members of the research team discussed the importance of keeping in mind the ethical nature of their work with students and the ways in which their position as researchers were complicated by issues of power, ethics, and politics especially with students from marginalized populations within the school and local community. For example, teachers, at times, made negative comments about the abilities of the immigrant students in the study. As members of the research team we deliberated possible solutions to these negative remarks, considered elements of power and politics as we were researchers external to the school, and wanted to support the students’ access to learning. We felt students would have more opportunity, and we would be more effective, if we stayed at the school site and modeled supportive strategies for high expectations and inclusive educational practices instead of talking directly to the teachers about the negative comments. During the data analysis phases of the project, members of the research team consciously sought to “come clean” and identify ways in which their personal views and perspectives might have affected their coding and thematic analysis of the data” (Roxas, Gabriel, Becker, 11)

This passage stood out to me because I often think about the origins and practices of internal biases we have when working with a diverse group of children. It’s really important to be aware of any biases we may have so that we can overcome them and work with students ethically and analyze them objectively. I grew up in an almost entirely white, affluent school district, and I have to be aware of what internal biases I probably have as a result of that. Though I’m very grateful for my academic experience at that school district, there is a lot about society and the experiences of marginalized groups that I lack an understanding of, as a result of growing up in my school district. I like these researchers’ approach to handling bias by modeling supportive strategies, rather than discussing with teachers about their negative comments. I think that one of the best ways to help students who are treated unfairly is to place emphasis on setting a good example.