Some [adults] are plain old strict, fearing our fun will lead to trouble. They scare us by telling us not to get too close to boys, not to dance like that—but then how will we look cool to the kids? How are supposed to gain experience? How will we learn when to say no, and when not to? It seems as though adults are afraid of our sexuality and give us no credit for having good sense and self-control. Some kids may need to be restrained, but most of us know when to stop. (Appleton, 2007, 149)

After reading this passage, I remembered the many conversations my friends and I used to have about our parents when we were still in high school. Just like the girl in this article, we would always complain about how over-protective they were and how they seemed to have forgotten what they were like when they were younger. Now that several years have passed and I have a younger sister who goes to the same high school I student teach at, I completely understand my parents’ reasoning, and I am actually grateful that they protected me like they did. As an adolescent, I had the wrong definitions for “cool” and “popular” and I am thankful that my parents tried to make me realize that I had to redefine these concepts in order to have a positive high school experience.Although it is true that adolescents have a mind of their own and should be able to make decisions (right or wrong) in order to prepare themselves for adulthood, like the adults in these children’s’ lives, I think it is our job to guide them and teach them how to protect themselves even if they don’t like us for doing it. I am sure they will thank us later, and if they don’t, we at least know we did it with the best intention.