high school developmental project - developmental areas

7/30/2019 High School Developmental Project - Developmental Areas

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ADOLESCENT

DEVELOPMENT

HIGH SCHOOL

Northeast Leadership Academy Cohort IIElizabeth Moran . Amy Pearce . Kendrick Alston . KristaFasoli


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Teenage growth and development marks a period of mid-

adolescence. By this phase, the majority of girls and boys have

experienced drastic physical changes to their bodiesa stage

known as puberty.

A national trend is that the growth spurt in puberty ishappening earlier in the lives of young males and females.

While the causes of this secular trend are not conclusive,

research suggests a multitude of factors including healthcare,

nutrition, or increased toxins in the environment.

By the end of puberty, both girls and boys have an adult shape.

Characteristics marking maturation for girls are developed

breasts and hips. For boys, an adult shape is marked by a

developed penis and broadened shoulders. Both girls and boys

will have lower, more adult voices as well as nearly full adultheight and shoe size. While both boys and girls gradually grow

taller until age 25, girls reach their adult height by 15 or 16

years, whereas boys will not reach their adult height until the

19 years. As seen in Figure 1, the rate of maturation may lead

to physical, social, and emotional effects on teens.

Possible

Advantages

Possible

Disadvantages

Early maturing

boys

Popularity with peers Increased depression,

delinquent behavior, risk

for substance abuse

Late maturing boys As adults, more

creative tolerant, and

perceptive

Lower self-esteem

Early maturing

girls

Few advantages Depression, anxiety,

eating disorders, lower

academic achievement,

substance abuse,

unplanned pregnancy,

suicide, greater risk of

breast cancer later

Late maturing girls Fewer problems Increased anxiety

Fig. 1: Possible Advantages and Disadvantages of Early and Later Maturing

for Boys and Girls

While the physical development of teens varies based on

ethnic, racial, and gender differences, by the time these

students reach high school, most have undergone or are in the

later stages of puberty. This variability in individual

maturation leads to an awareness and often times obsession

around physical appearance during the adolescent years.

Physical Development

Body Image: An individuals

dynamic perception of his or

her bodyhow it looks, feels,

and moves.

Body image might be an

evaluation of the whole body,

or of certain parts, such as

hair, legs, chest, or face.

50-88% of adolescent girls

feel negatively about their

body shape or size.

85% of youngwomen worry

a lot about how they look;

twice as many males as

females say they are satisfied

with their appearance.

For girls, the way I look is

the most important indicator

of self-worth; for boys, self-

worth is based on abilities,

rather than looks.


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The trademark of adolescent language and literacy is the

development of a personal life story. In the life stories,adolescents see themselves as consistent across situations

and timethus they form their own identity. Forming and

communicating their life stories is in part a cognitive process

requiring three main aspects:

An ability to use language and memory to create a

coherent story that explains who you are

The ability to be metacognitiveto reflect on situations

and behavior and ask, Why did I do that? or Why did

that happen?

A theory of mindunderstanding that you and others

have thoughts, feelings, and personal histories

During high school, as students communicate narratives

through venues such as autobiographies, interviews, admission

essays, and dating, they form their own identity.

Aside from connecting past experiences, thoughts, and feelings

to solidify their own identify, teens also communicate with one

anothercreating a separate language.

Adolescents connect with each other through their own

register, or way of speaking that fits specific social situations.

These ways of speaking may include special vocabulary,

different word usage, and varied pronunciations. This

communication also varies based on cultural influence as well

as technology.

Language and LiteracyDevelopment

Limited English

Proficient (LEP)

Students

By 2030, about 40% of the

students in pre-kindergarten

through high school willspeak limited English (2012).

In the adolescent years,

limited proficiency in English

often means lower academic

achievement and poorer job

prospects.

How should we teach LEP

students?

Speak slowly & clearly

Provide background

knowledge and

vocabulary

Minimize lecture,

verbal, and whole

class instruction

Use literature that

features students

culture and language

Encourage students tomaintain first language

at home and in the

community

Dont assume a student

has special needs just

because he or she is

struggling

academically

http://www.rethinkingschools.org/


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Peer relationshipswhether friendships or romantic play a

large part in the life of an adolescent. Most adolescents belongto a peer group that inevitably has a peer culture, or expected

ways of behaving. A peer culture can elicit either positive or

negative behaviors. Adolescents may belong to cliques, small-

friendship-based groups with common interests or crowds,

less intimate and organized, but reputation-based. Teens may

be part of several of these groups depending on their social

status and popularity.

Teens rely on friendships for social and emotional support and

affirmation. Girls are interested in closer, more intimatefriendships than boys. However, girls also tend to have shorter

friendships often laced with conflict.

Romantic relationships, like friendships, provide teens with an

elevated self-esteem and sense of self-worth. While these

relationships are associated with positive outcomes, teens

involved in romance experience more conflict and more severe

mood swings than their non-dating peers. Part of this conflict

may be attributed to opposing purposes for dating among boys

and girlsboys tend to date for sexual reasons whereas girls

are looking for a close and intimate relationship, and are oftenuncertain about their involvement in sexual activity.

Face-to-face friendships and romances are not the only ways

teens are connectingmost adolescents are involved in online

relationships through various social media venues such as

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and texting.

This social networking can be beneficial if teens are using

online and cellphone communication responsibly, however

there is a national issue around cyber bullying and sexting.

Cyber bullying has long-lasting effects as it allows theperpetrator to remain anonymous while also reaching a larger

number of peers. For victims, the bullying often ruins

reputations and causes emotional and psychological harm.

Sexting is the act of sending sexually explicit content via

internet or text message. This is illegal and can have serious

effects on all involved parties.

Peer Relations and MoralDevelopment

Social Motivation

(Peer Pressure)

The influence peers have on

ones attitudes and

behaviors, includingattitudes about school,

clothing and hairstyles,

movies, and music.

Selection is the process by

which adolescents choose

friends and peer groups.

Once selection is made,

socialization begins and

attitudes and behaviors are

modeled and reinforced.

Deviancy training occurs

when peer groups talk

favorably about breaking

rules and engaging in

delinquent behavior.

Peer pressure is strongest

during early and mid

adolescence when teens arefiguring out their identity and

trying to separate from their

parents identities. The

pressure weakens as they

establish autonomy and

confidence in their decisions,

attitudes, and behaviors.


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During adolescence, high school aged students are forming

and changing identities based on their experiences and self-

concept.

Who Am I?

During adolescence, teens form their personal narrative to

answer this question. At early stages of adolescence, children

are testing and trying different roles and often partaking in

risky activities in a quest to develop their personal story.

However, as they grow closer to adulthood, teens worry less

about what others think and become more certain about

themselves and are therefore able to develop an identity.

Throughout this period, most teens experience varied levels

of stress and anxiety around who they are and who they want

to be. However, for some, this extreme stress can lead to

personality and behavioral issues, such as depression,

substance abuse, delinquency, and suicide.

How Do I Like Myself?

Whereas children tend to describe themselves in terms of

five domains, including cognitive ability, athleticism,

behavior, social competence, and physicalappearance, adolescents further differentiate their

descriptions of cognitive abilities to include scholastic

achievement, intellectual abilities, and creativity, and

their benchmarks for social competence to include close

friendships, romantic relationships, andjob

competence (p. 530).

During adolescence teens are pre-occupied with determining

who they really are, as this can change based on different

contexts, social pressures, and sometimes, familial pressures.

They are also combatting the gap between their views of selfversus their ideal view of self.

When the gap is large, self-esteem problems are likely to

emerge. Note that self-esteem is the subjective, evaluative

sense of self. Positive evaluations of self are likely to yield

positive outcomes including popularity, achievement, and

happiness whereas negative self-esteem leads to failure/

dropout, delinquency, early sexual behavior, and substance

abuse.

Self-Concept and IdentityDevelopment Eriksons Theory of IdentityFormation (1950)

Exploration: process

by which adolescents

consider and try out

alternative beliefs,values, and behaviors

in an effort to

determine which will

give them the most

satisfaction

Commitment:

Individuals choices

concerning political

and religious beliefs

Marcias Theory of IdentityFormation, based on

Eriksons Exploration and

Commitment (1966, 1993)

Identity achievement:

result of healthy

exploration and

decision making

regarding identities

involved in

occupations, political

and religious

affiliations, and

relationships

Identity foreclosure:

when adolescents

make commitments

without exploring

options

Identity diffusion:

state in which

adolescents are notexploring identity

alternatives, or

making commitments

Moratorium:

adolescents who are

actively exploring

identity alternatives

but have yet to make

a commitment

high school developmental project - developmental areas

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