The Adolescent Brain
Written by Jr High Teacher, Mrs. Rachel Hartnell
If you are the parent or teacher of a Jr High student, at some point you may have asked yourself, “Has this child lost their mind?” Adolescents are notoriously emotional, impulsive, and rebellious: a perceived recipe for disaster. As I have developed as a teacher, I’m learning to see these characteristics as a new opportunity for learning. The truth is, they ARE ACTUALLY LOSING THEIR MINDS!
Teamwork and collaboration, which involve decision-making and emotional development, are skills that Jr High students are learning throughout their curriculum.
According to The Power of the Adolescent Brain by Thomas Armstrong (1), the teenage mind is working through the process of becoming more efficient, and in doing so, is deleting unnecessary gray matter in the prefrontal lobe. This causes the impulsive decision-making that is often perceived as rebellious and emotional. According to Strong, this developmental move is vital to give youth the courage and drive to break free from the parental nest and enter into adulthood. We can either fight against it and tell youth they are just hormonal or we could guide them in how to become discerning, independent decision makers. With my students, I am choosing the latter.
So, what does this mean for a teenager? Although they seem emotional, impulsive, and rebellious, they are also becoming self-aware, social beings with creative, independent thoughts. Academy teachers strive to help them understand how their brain functions so they can navigate good decision making. For example, instead of telling a student they're a rebellious teen, I explain that their brain is preparing to make decisions on their own because they are preparing to enter adulthood. Then I give them facilitated opportunities to make choices so they learn how to apply God’s word in their decision making. They are given choices in what they want to learn about, choices in how they will complete homework, sometimes they create their own rubrics for grading an assignment, and even have an opportunity to grade themselves. We then discuss the outcome of their decisions, if it fulfills the intended purpose, or how different decisions would have better fulfilled their intended outcome.
Recently, my students were given the task of holding one another accountable to complete homework, implement the scripture of the week, lead small group discussions, and maintain spiritual conversation in the classroom. They created their own rubrics to evaluate how well they and their classmates were completing these tasks according to what they have learned in the Word. Then, they got to meet with one another and discuss how their evaluation of themselves compared with their classmates. This allowed them to take responsibility for classroom expectations through discussion, implementation, and evaluation. This also challenged them to continuously consider the needs of their class and how to meet those needs as a team.
Teens desperately want independence, to feel heard, and to believe that others see them as valuable. As a teacher, I structure my classroom and assignments in a way that my students feel their voice is valued while also teaching them how to make discerning decisions, and I’m encouraged by their response in the process!
(1) Armstrong, Thomas. The Power of the Adolescent Brain:Strategies for Teaching Middle and High School Students. Alexandria: ASCD, 2016.
