Our chapter 8 reading this week defines adolescence as a time of life marked by physical transitions like puberty, body image perception, and stages of cognitive development. During adolescence there is an increase in hormone flow, growth spurts, and secondary sex characteristics. Further into the reading, we see perspectives and theories of psychologists that illustrate an adolescent’s journey towards a fuller sense of self.
Erik Erickson outlines adolescence as the fifth stage in his psycho social theory of development. Erickson says that adolescence is the time a person makes major decisions regarding their identity. He goes on to say that adolescents experiment with a variety of identities in order to become individuals. I agree with Erickson because when I think back, I can remember changing my identity like clothes.
On the first day of school I met Courtney. Immediately, I thought she was one of the sweetest girls I’ve worked with. Definitely the sweetest out of some of her rough and tough classmates. She signed up for the every club in the school and told us how she managed to walk on her own to her first day of school that morning because her parents had overslept. Recently, Courtney has started talking to the older girls in her class. Some of these older girls wear make up and have cellphones and talk to boys. Just last week, Courtney started wearing makeup to school like the other girls. Her face looks like it’s been painted on with chalk. Noticing the changes in Courtney’s look, we had a staff meeting about how to deal and react with the new and not so improved. We decided to go along with Courtney’s identity seeking process until it affects her behavior or performance and participation in class. Courtney’s identity crisis is just a natural part of her adolescence.
Last school year, one of my students was coming to school with big hickies on her neck which alluded that she was engaging in some sort of sexual behavior after school hours. Based on her home life, we knew that sex probably wasn’t a prohibited practice and she probably hadn’t been taught the consequences and risks of intercourse. Despite being at the age of consent, she had the reading and writing abilities of a third grader. Believe it or not, a good curriculum catered towards special education sex education is hard to come by so my students just don’t get taught the birds and the bees. I think this is wrong, but it is next to impossible to teach this in the classroom to this specific population of adolescents. I want my students to be as informed as they possibly can when making decisions, but I also know that they would never take Mr. Tommy’s sex Ed talk seriously.
Yeah , that is sad how there is no sex education for special education students. I never thought about that and you are right, there should be. I am not sure what type of disability she might have, but if students are high functioning, they should be able to attend sex ed when given. I am not too sure if your students are in a regular high school, in where they can get pulled for services, or are they are separated completely by another building? I think that you can be the voice to bring along a difference in your school. Maybe you and other teachers can help by advocating for sex education for special needs students. You along with other coworkers can express your concerns and the need for it, and see if your school can approve.
ReplyDeleteI agree, children are not taught anywhere near as much as they should be on sex education and proper protection for sex. It is the curiosity combined with the lack of knowledge of the risks and consequences that produce teen pregnancy. Something that I believe we can seriously decrease if we are able to have those uncomfortable conversations with children about the birds and the bees. Unfortunately, most parents and educators are too shaken by the idea of a very beneficial conversation, which leads to teenage ignorance and teenage curiosity, and unfortunately sometimes teenage pregnancy.
ReplyDeleteI had chaperoned a high school prom my last year of coaching since many of my athletes that were graduating asked if my husband and I would attend the prom. I had not been to prom since my own which at that time was 10 years ago. It was interesting watching the teens interact and to see some of the dress choices. There were my athletes, who have parental structure and adult support, that were dressed in beautiful gowns that fit the style that year. The girls were stunning, confident and happy. There were other girls, that I did not know, but were dressed very provocatively and it made me wonder if their parent(s) approved of the dress. I saw girls with just enough fabric to cover the important areas or others that demonstrated she was not wearing undergarments. These girls had a different attitude about them which was not confidence and were led around by their date. It upset me because it made me think they don't respect themselves. It is hard as an adult to watch youth take chances or risks but we just hope they are not irreversible.
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