Category Archives: Perspectives & History of Adolescence

Pubertal Timing

Perspectives & History of Adolescence

“… family adversity -including instability in parents’ relationships- has been identified as a fairly consistent accelerator of pubertal timing.” (Johnson, Crosnoe, Elder, 2011, p. 4)

              There are a few remarks from this research that I don’t agree with or not convinced by, but they’re usually followed by: “The possibility needs to be studied more explicitly,” or “future research efforts should include…” One comment I strongly agree with from this article is that if there is instability in the student’s parents’ relationship it could accelerate ‘pubertal timing.’ Basically, any or some instability at home that is witnessed by the student can cause consequences in their school career, for example: creating bad habits like poor time management, being unmotivated or unorganized. I can relate to this because my home life affected how I was as a student, from primary school and sometimes even now as a graduate student. I didn’t have teachers that would notice my bad habits and try to help me through them. During my first year of college I had to work on reversing my bad habits, and to this day I’m still working on it. In my future classroom I hope to know what my students home life is like or if they’re going through a tough moment, but there’s that possibility that I may not know what’s going on in their personal life. For that reason, I think as an educator we should all incorporate mini workshops on how to manage time and how to be organized so that we can remind students that it is possible to be on top of their work, and to keep their education first.

Let’s understand to understand

Perspectives & History of Adolescence, Reaching Adolescents and How to Respond, Urban Adolescents

“By doing so, we en- hance an understanding of adolescence, the life course more generally, and the developmental pro- cesses that connect the two. We shouldn’t isolate all of these ages as complete separate chapters of life”. (Johnson, Crosnoe & Elder, 2011, p.274)

As read in the article, it is basic psychology, or at least general knowledge, that all of our experiences can shape much of who we become and what we do in life. Every single person is a product of past encounters along with new ones that allow for personal growth to alter and shift concurrently with time. These shifts are also based on various external influences as well as one’s intrapersonal relationship- which diverges throughout the span of life. Continue reading Let’s understand to understand →

What about…?

Perspectives & History of Adolescence

“Within the complex interplay of biology and environment that sets the start of puberty, family adversity – including instability in parents’ relationships – has been identified as a fairly consistent accelerator of pubertal timing (Belsky et al., 2007). Turning from antecedents to consequences, the many developmental problems associated with early pubertal timing for girls (e.g., risky sex, substance use) are well documented. Included in this phenomenon are a range of academic troubles that, given the highly cumulative nature of the American educational system, have potential to translate short-term behavior disruptions into long-term life course disadvantages.”

This flippant reduction of adolescent girlhood into risky sexual behavior and low academic performance (or at least my interpretation of this reduction) really irked me. While I’m aware that there has been much research beyond this article about the consequences of early pubertal timing for young women/girls, I think it is dangerous to say that just early puberty leads to (insert scary consequence here), without factoring in the whole picture of a person or the society/culture they live within. What about early pubertal timing plus lack of comprehensive sexuality education and lessons on consent leads to risky sexual behavior? Or early pubertal timing plus growing up in patriarchal society leads to risky sexual behavior and poor academic standing? Or how about early pubertal timing plus teachers and principals asking young women/femmes/trans students/black students to change clothing or hairstyle so that they aren’t distracting – what about that all too common scenario as a more acute factor to poor academic standing?

MVP #3 Why Is There A Heavier Burden For Young Adults?

Perspectives & History of Adolescence, Urban Adolescents

“We have not developed and strengthened institutions to serve young adults” Mr. Frustenberg said, “because we’re still living with the archaic idea that people enter adulthood in their late teens or early 20s”

(Cohen, 2010)

This quote resonated with me because it’s the reality. While schooling has increased after high school, the cost of college education has also increased and placed a heavier burden to parents in the middle or low socioeconomic backgrounds. Students in their late teens and early twenties have to pay higher tuitions, look for scholarships, increase their work experience through internships (mostly unpaid) to prepare them for the “real world”. There is a great imbalance on the cost of living for these young adults to become more productive and fetch on their own. There isn’t a balance between having a college education and being eligible in the job market anymore. I think young adults are taking longer to finish their education and become independent from their parents because there aren’t enough social, economic and education programs previous to entering to college or during college to budget for a living lifestyle that welcomes equal opportunities. Despite there being unequal access to education between young men and women prior to the 70s, the cost of living and the payment for a college education was less expensive and more accessible. Currently, there are plenty of opportunities for college degrees and low-paying jobs for young adults, but not equal access to economic resources to attain them and succeed after college.