Growing Minds

REFLECTIONS ON ADOLESCENCE: THROUGH THE AGES

C. Elizabeth Barrette, EDUC 5339 LM8, University of St. Thomas

Perspectives on Adolescence

Adolescence: A stage between infancy and

adultery. ~ Ambrose Bierce,The Devil's Dictionary, 1911
The children now love luxury; they show
disrespect for elders and love chatter in
I would there were
places of exercise. Children are tyrants,
not the servants of their households.
no age between ten
They no longer rise when their elders
and three-and~ Socrates, 4th Century B.C.
enter the room. They contradict their
twenty, or that youth
parents, chatter before company, gobble
I see no hope for the future of our
would sleep out the
up dainties at the table, cross their legs
people if they are dependent on
and
tyrannise
their teachers.
rest; for there is
frivolous youth of today, for certainly
nothing in the
all youth are reckless beyond words...
between
but getting
When
I was young, we were taught to
~ William
Shakespeare,
A Winters Tale (Act III, Scene
iii)
be discreet and
respectful
of elders,
~ Hesiod,
Eighth century,
B.C.
wenches with child,
but the present youth are exceedingly

Perspectives on Adolescence
The young people of today think of nothing but
themselves. They have no reverence for their parents
or old age. They are impatient of all restraint; They
talk as if they alone know everything and what
passes for wisdom in us foolishness in them. As for
the girls, they are foolish and immodest and
unwomanly~inPeter
speech,
behaviour and dress.
the Hermit, 11th Century A.D.

We live in a decaying age. Young people no longer

respect their parents. They are rude and impatient.
They frequently inhabit taverns and have no self
control.

Adolescence is a period of
rapid changes. Between
the ages of 12 and 17, for
example, a parent ages as
much as 20 years.

~ 6,000-year-old inscription on an Egyptian tomb

~ Author Unknown

Perspectives on Adolescence

Adolescents are not monsters.

They are just people trying to learn
how to make it among the adults in the world,
who are probably not so sure themselves.
~ Virginia Satir,The New Peoplemaking, 1988

This generation of teenagers is no more insolent,

arrogant, selfish, lazy, or disrespectful than any
~ Dr. Jamie R. Rishikof, Psy.D., Massachusetts-based child psycholo
other.
Sources: (Shakespeare, trans. 1964, 3.3.82-86; Rishikof, 2015)

Adolescence is

(second to infancy) the most intense period of human physical

and emotional growth (Stages, 2007).
unleashed by a cascade of hormones that produce external
growth and internal changes, including heightened emotions and
sexual desires (Berger, 2014, p. 401).
[characterized by] the instinctual and emotional areas of the
brain develop[ing] ahead of the reflective, analytic areas (Berger,
2014, p. 416).
A short summary of adolescent brain development is illuminating

Brain Development, Ages 5-20

Constructed from MRI scans of healthy children and teens, the timelapse"movie", from which the[following] images were extracted,
compresses 15 years of brain development (ages 520) into just a few
seconds.

Red indicates more gray matter, blue less gray matter. Gray matter
wanes in a back-to-front wave as the brain matures and neural
connections are pruned.

Areas performing more basic functions mature earlier; areas for

higher order functions mature later. The prefrontal cortex, which
handles reasoning and other "executive" functions, emerges late in
evolution and is among the last to mature.

Studies in twins are showing that development of such late-maturing

areas is less influenced by heredity than areas that mature earlier.
(http://www.nimh.nih.gov/news/science-news/2004/imaging-study-shows-brainmaturing.shtml)

Brain Development, Ages 5-20

(http://www.nimh.nih.gov/news/science-news/2004/imaging-study-shows-brain-

Synaptic Pruning

The medial prefrontal cortex is more active in adolescents than in adults and is customized
through synaptic pruning.

(http://www.slideshare.net/nationalsafeplace/adolescent-brain-development-and-its-effects)

Adolescence ~
Definitions and Characteristics

Formal definitions:

The period of life that startswith the biological, hormonal, physical

changes of pubertyand ends at the age at which an individual attainsa
stable, independent role in society (Blakemore, 2014);

A culturally constructed period that generally begins as individuals reach

sexual maturity and ends when the individual has established an identity
as an adult within his or her social context (Stages, 2007).

Primary developmental task: identity formation (Stages, 2007)

Characteristics include being subject to (an):

Invulnerability fable

Invincibility fable

Logical fallacies (http://slideplayer.com/slide/3948261)

Adolescent Development ~ In Summary

10

(Source
forthcoming)

Perspectives
on Adolescence ~
Field Experts
Jean Piaget,

Ph.D.

Child Psychologist and Sociologist

David Elkind,
Child Psychologist

Ph.D.

11

Sarah-Jayne Blakemore,

Ph.D.

Cognitive Neuroscientist

C. Alicia Krouse,

M.Ed.

Educational Diagnostician

(interview subject)

Jean Piaget

12

Geneva, Switzerland (1896

1980)

Created a structure
illustrating stages of
human development
and illustrating
varying degrees of
formal operational
analytic thought
counterbalanced by
intuitive thought

Noted that key

risks in
adolescence are
often related to a
mismatch
between brain
development and
environmental
challenges

(http://www.psychologynoteshq.com/jean-piaget-theory/)

Sarah-Jayne Blakemore

13

Cambridge, United Kingdom (1974 - )

Brain research has shown that the adolescent brainundergoes really quite
profound development, and this has implications for education, for
rehabilitation,and intervention. Different cognitive strategies.

Taking someone elses perspective is still difficult in late adolescence.

Forty percent of teenagersdon't have access to secondary school education. And

yet, this is a period of life where the brain isparticularly adaptable and
malleable.It's a fantastic opportunity for learning and creativity. We have an
excellent opportunity for education and social development.

What's sometimes seen as the problemwith adolescents heightened risktaking, poor impulse control, self-consciousness shouldn't be stigmatized.It
actually reflects changes in the brain that providean excellent opportunity for
educationand social development.
(Blakemore, 2014)

David Elkind

14

Medford, Massachusetts, USA (1931 )

Over the years, Ive observed

how children and adolescents
always mirror, to a certain extent,
the social and cultural environment
in which they grow up.
Elkind, D., Ph.D. (Director). (1999).Adolescent cognition: Thinking in a new key

15

(http://slideplayer.com/slide/3948261/)

C. Alicia Krouse

16

Houston, Texas, USA (1969 )

Reflections of an
Educational Diagnostician
(Personal Interview: March 26, 2016)

Topics addressed:

Please describe your overall strategy in working with todays adolescent.

What are the potential educational consequences of intuitive thinking?

How might you explain this to an adolescent in a developmentally

appropriate way?

Interview Highlights

17

We must take kids where they are just because they are a given chronological
age doesnt mean they fit a given profile of an average person in that age
group; the longer I work, the more I realize those averages are a blurred window,
at best

Two 13-year-olds can have two distinctly different maturity levels.

Every kid is individualhow they process, how they takes things inits all
customized to every child.

How I approach a child is governed by thisI spend time with each child as I work
to find their ideal learning modality. While it is important to know their challenges,
I particularly want to find their strengths and play on those. We look at each
ability then break it down into subabilities that can be used to approach
schoolwork.

I look at whether or not taking a top-down or bottom-up approach plays better

to their strengths. I look at how they approach a problem then teach to that.
Word problems are especially illuminating. Do they tend to look at the problem in
a whole concept or line-by-line manner?

18

One of my favorite exercises that helps me determine the topdown or bottom-up approach involves describing how to make
a peanut butter sandwich.

http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activity-pdf/how-to-make-a-p
eanut-butter-and-jelly-sandwich-35.pdf

Giving clear, concise instructions to others is an important skill

for children to learn. In this game, students will practice using
descriptive vocabulary, communicating ideas to others,
recognizing steps in a process and recognizing the importance of
the use of clear language (Beyond the Chalkboard, 2015).

In summary

In terms of considering the dual-process models of cognition (i.e., intuition

over analysis), my approach with an adolescent is primarily governed by:

Taking (i.e., accepting) a child where he or she is;

Understanding the nature of any learning differences, difficulties or disabilities

that may be present;

Folding in a good understanding of the childs environment;

Being aware of the comparison factors within the family (how they are
compared and connect to siblings, cousins, other close family members); and

Understanding the balance of Nature vs. Nurture they receive in both their
home and school environments.

One of my most primary goals is to help that adolescent find their own
paththe one that provides the most successful and enjoyable (thats
critical!) path to their own achievement.

19

Implications for the Classroom

20

"The principal goal of education in the

schools should be creating men and
women who are capable of doing new
things, not simply repeating what
other generations have done.
Jean Piaget
Piaget, J. (1953) The Origins of Intelligence in Children. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

Implications for the Classroom

21

Teachers must be aware of the shifts in cognitive development that are

occurring and provide appropriate learning opportunities to support
individual students and facilitate growth.

Teachers must also be aware of the challenges facing their students in

order to identify and help to correct problems if they arise.

Teachers often play an important role in identifying behaviors that

could become problematic, and they can be mentors to students in
need.

Source: (Stages,
2007)

References

22

Ages 11 to 18: What body changes develop during adolescence? (2015). Retrieved from
http://slideplayer.com/slide/7987364/
Berger, K. S. (2014).Developing person through the lifespan(Ninth ed.). New York: Worth.
Beyond the chalkboard, A. (2015). How to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.Kids Afterschool.
Retrieved from
http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activity-pdf/how-to-make-a-peanut-butter-and-jelly-sandw
ich-35.pdf
Blakemore, S., Ph.D. (2012, June). The mysterious workings of the adolescent brain. Retrieved from
https://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_jayne_blakemore_the_mysterious_workings_of_the_adolescent
_brain?language=en
Elkind, D., Ph.D. (Director). (1999).Adolescent cognition: Thinking in a new key[Video file]. United States
of America: Davidson Films Inc. Retrieved from
http://fod.infobase.com.ezproxy.stthom.edu/p_ViewVideo.aspx?xtid=44919
Krouse, C. A. (2016, March 26). Interview with a seasoned educational diagnostician [Personal interview].

References,

continued

23

National Institute of Mental Health. (2004, May 17). Imaging study shows brain maturing. Retrieved
from
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/news/science-news/2004/imaging-study-shows-brain-maturing.shtml
Nixon, R. (2011, April 22). Inside the teen mind [10 facts every parent should know about their teen's
brain]. Retrieved from http://www.livescience.com/13850-10-facts-parent-teen-brain.html
Piaget, J. (1953) The origins of intelligence in children. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Psychology Notes HQ. (2016). Jean Piaget and the stages of cognitive development. Retrieved from
http://www.psychologynoteshq.com/jean-piaget-theory/
Rishikof, J. R., Psy.D. (2015). Teens today... Retrieved from http://www.doctorrishikof.com/teens-today-2/
Shakespeare, W., & Furness, H. H. (1964; originally published 1623).The winter's tale. New York: Dover
Publications.
SlidePlayer. (2015). Social emotional development Erik Erikson. Retrieved from
http://slideplayer.com/slide/3948261
Stages of growth child development - Early childhood (birth to eight years), middle childhood (eight to
twelve years). (2007). Retrieved from
http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1826/Child-Development-Stages-Growth.html