Teaching Adolescent Development

Abstract

Courses on adolescent development have changed considerably over the past 25 years, mirroring changes in the fields of psychology and human development. The course on adolescent development is particularly suited to illustrate cohort differences and the impact of sociohistorical context on individual development. Students tend to be personally involved in the content of the course, affording instructors special opportunities for effective teaching. It is possible to use students' direct experience in adolescence and their familiarity with the cultural images of adolescents to facilitate their intellectual development away from overgeneralized personal experience toward more relativistic thinking. The value of empirical studies and an objective scientific view can be brought directly to students' awareness. Active strategies such as free writing, journals, autobiography, case studies, and projects help connect the course content to students' own experiences.

References

Barbour, J. R. (1989). Teaching a course in human relationships and sexuality: A model for personalizing large group instruction. Family Relations, 38, 142-148.

Belenky, M. F. , Clinchy, B. M. , Goldberger, N. R. , & Tarule, J. M. (1986). Women's ways of knowing. New York: Basic Books.

Belsky, J. , & Steinberg, L. (1990, March). Toward a biosocial theory of pubertal timing. Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence, Atlanta, GA.

Evangelauf, J. (1990, January 17). Few colleges offer good educational programs for nontraditional students, report charges. Chronicle of Higher Education, pp. A33, A35.

Fulwiler, T. (1980). Journals across the disciplines. English Journal, 69, 14-19.

McGovern, T. V. , & Hogshead, D. L. (1990). Learning about writing, thinking about teaching. Teaching of Psychology, 17, 5-10.

National Institute of Education . (1984). Involvement in learning: Realizing the potential of American higher education (GPO Stock No. 065-000-00213-2). Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office.

Palmquist, W. J. (1988, March). Connecting the research-oriented course to students' own experiences. Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence, Alexandria, VA.

Perry, W. G. (1970). Forms of intellectual and ethical development in the college years. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.

10.

Peskin, H. (1967). Pubertal onset and ego functioning. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 72, 1-15.

11.

Prescott, S. (1984). An evolutionary model applied to teaching. Teaching of Psychology, 11, 198-202.

12.

Shelton, L. G. (1988, March). Twenty questions to ask before teaching adolescent development. Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence, Alexandria, VA.

13.

Young, A. , & Fulwiler, T. (1986). Writing across the disciplines. Upper Montclair, NJ: Boynton/Cook.