Characteristics of Early Adolescents Notes for EdSe 4120

“A growing body of knowledge shows that what happens to students between the ages of 10 and 14 determines not only their future success in school, but success in life as well.”

Characteristics of Early Adolescence  Physical Changes  Social Changes (Psychosocial)  Emotional Changes  Cognitive (Intellectual)

Human Development  Infancy  Young childhood  Later childhood  PREADOLESCENCE – more change occurs during adolescence than any other stage in life except infancy  Adolescence  adulthood

Physical Changes  Growth Spurts – girls – 12, boys – 14 increase in weight, height, heart size, lung capacity, muscular strength. Bone growth is faster than muscle development – can result in lack of coordination and awkwardness.  In girls, sex characteristics continue to develop with breasts enlarging and menstruation beginning  Glandular imbalances resulting in acne  Fluctuation in metabolism may cause extreme restlessness at times  Ravenous appetites

Social and Emotional Changes

Social (Psychosocial) Changes  Allegiance shifts from parents to peers  Peers become sources for standards and models of behavior  Puppy love emerges  Pre-occupied with themselves  Yearning to be accepted

Three Theories Related to Adolescent Change:  Erik Erikson  Abraham Maslow  Jean Piaget  David Elkind is a Piagetian student of Adolescence.

Psychosocial Changes  They copy and display fads of extremes in clothing, speech, mannerisms, and handwriting; very susceptible to media advertising  Erratic and inconsistent behavior common  Anxiety and fear contrast with reassuring bravado  Students have many fears, real and imagined  Young adolescents believe their experiences are unique and dramatic

Erick Erikson: Identity (1968)  Each stage of life represents a crisis of identity to be negotiated. Success at this determines healthy adult identity.  Adolescence represents best chance to revisit unresolved crises of identity from infancy, early childhood, and elementary years.

Maslow(1967) Self-fulfillmentSelf-esteem Sense of belonging External expectations Security Individual growth Increased responsibility AchievementRecognitionStatus Interpersonal relationships Work performance Rules, regulations Classroom conditions School conditions Home conditions

Intellectual Changes

Piaget  Concrete Operations 7-11 years  Masters logical operations / concrete  Unable to think abstractly  Understands principle of conservation  Uses various approaches  Understands parts to whole  Serializing  Uses sociocentric language / vs. egocentric language  Understands “combinativity,” “reversibility,” “associativity,” “ identity / nullafability”

Piaget  Formal Operations years  Comprehends abstract ideas / ideation and reasoning about the future  Ability to handle contrary to fact propositions, ability to develop and test hypotheses  Substage A – preparatory / approach to formal operations can be cumbersome. Difficulty with systematic proof  Substage B – formulating elegant generalizations; high degree of mastery or formal operations

Cognitive Changes  Prefer active over passive learning activities and interacting with peers  Very curious and exhibit a strong willingness to learn things they consider useful.  Independent, critical thinking emerges from arguing  Gardner – multiple intelligences