1. Puberty Not the same as adolescence Puberty is the beginning of adolescence Puberty begins a cycle of physical maturation

2. Puberty Is not A single sudden event Noticeable physical changes Difficult to pinpoint when it begins and ends

3. On average the peak growth spurt occurs Two years earlier for girls around (11 ½) Than for boys around (13 ½)

4. According to research male pubertal characteristics Increase in penis and testicle size Appearance of straight pubic hair Minor voice change First ejaculation (which normally occurs from masturbation or a wet dream.) Kinky pubic hair, onset height and weight, hair in armpits, more detectable voice change and finally growth of facial hair.

5. Female characteristics Breast enlarges or pubic hair appears Hair in the armpits Growth in height Hips wider than shoulders First menstrual No voice change by the end of puberty Girls tend to outweigh boys till age 14 boys surpass girls.

6. Behind the puberty of girls and boys There are a flood of hormones, power chemicals substance secreted by the endocrine glands and carried through the body by the bloodstream.

7. The brain is also changing Researchers discovered that twice as many synaptic connections, which are the pairing of homologus chromosomes one from each parent during early meiosis are made than will ever be used. The connections that are used are strengthened and survive while the unused are replaced by other pathways or they simply disappear. As a result from the disappearing by the end of adolescence years individual have fewer, more selective and more effective neuronal connections than they had as a child. The disappearing of the synaptic connections indicates that the activities the adolescent choose to engage in and not to engage in influence which neural connections will be strengthened and which ones will disappear.

8. Recently discovered by scientists adolescents brains undergo major structural changes. The corpus callosum, is the location where fibers connect the brain’s left and right hemispheres, which is thickened in adolescence and this improves adolescents ability to process information more effective. Moreover, the amygdale is responsible for our emotions such as anger and matures earlier than the prefrontal cortex which is the region in intense emotions, but does not finish developing until emerging into adulthood. According to scientists they have yet to determine whether the brain changes come first or whether the brain changes are the result of experiences with peers, parents, and others. Once again we encounter the nature verse nurture issue that is so prominent in an examination of development through the life span.

9. Issues in Adolescent Health “Many of the behaviors that are linked to poor health habits and early death begin during adolescence”

10. Nutrition/Exercise 12-19 yo overweight increased Adolescents-decreased intake of fruits and veggies Regular family meals in adolescence  healthy eating habits 5 yrs. Later Exercise: Positive effect on weight – Low Levels  adolescents more depressed Increase computer/TV use, decrease in exercise

11. Sleep Patterns 31% US adolescents had <8 hrs. sleep/night and decreases with age <8hrs. Sleep leads to many problems Older adolescents have change in biological clocks due to change in melatonin Mary Carskadon Experiment – Later start times

12. Leading Causes of Death 1.Accidents2. Homicide3. Suicides 15-24 yo Deaths  50% unintentional Injuries  75% MVA (Risky driving habits, not lack of experience) -50% MVA with teenagers, driver had BAC.1 -Homicides: AA males more likely -Suicide Rates have tripled since the 1950’s

13. Substance Abuse Males engaged in Binge Drinking more than females Cigarettes: Peak in 1997, has been declining Pain Killers: Main Source parents medicine cabinet Roles of Development: Parents and Education

14. Anorexia Nervosa “Eating disorder that involves relentless pursuit of thinness through starvation” Three Characteristics: 1.Weight <85% considered normal 2.Intense fear of gaining weight 3.Distorted image of body shape Most white, middle/upper class/income families 10x more likely in females than males Most effective treatment is Family Counseling

15. Bulimia Nervosa “Individual consistently follows binge-and- purge pattern” Happens 2x/week for 3 months Fall within normal weight range which makes it difficult to detect Affects 1-2% US Women/90% Female Binge usually started by dieting and somewhat overweight before onset

16. Adolescent Cognition

17. Piaget’s Theory Piaget created the cognitive developmental theory which focused on different developmental milestones in an individual’s life. At the third stage of his theory is the concrete operational stage: when children can reason logically about concrete events and objects, makes gains in the classification and relationship between classes and objects.

18. The Formal Operational Stage This is the fourth and final stage of Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory. This stage occurs around the age of 11. In this stage thought is more abstract: Things like love become important, personal ideals, enhanced imagination, hypothetical thinking comes in to play, and logical reasoning. At this stage in development children began to think more of them and are occupied with their own thoughts. Problem solving skills move away from trial and error to a more scientific approach. Such as devising plans to solve problems, systematically testing solutions. Hypothetical- deductive reasoning- involves creating a hypothesis and understanding the possible outcomes of an event.

19. Evaluating Piaget’s Theory Criticism More individual variation then he thought: About 1 and 3 adolescents are formal operational thinkers, many American adults never become this type of thinker Culture and education have stronger influence then Piaget maintained Cognitive development is not as stage like, children can be trained to reason at a higher level. Some abilities emerge later then thought others earlier.

20. Evaluating Piaget’s Theory Contributions He is the founder of present field of cognitive development Concepts such as: assimilation, accommodation, object permanence, egocentrism, and conservation and be attributed to Piaget The idea of children being active and constructive thinkers

21. Adolescent Egocentrism Which is the heightened self-consciousness of adolescents. Two key components of adolescent egocentrism Imaginary Audience- the belief that others are as interested in them as they themselves are, and attention getting behavior. Ex. If a 9th grader walks in the classroom they think all eyes are on them. Personal Fable- is a sense of uniqueness and invincibility. Ex. No one understands me especially my parents. Ex. Of invincibility that won’t happen to me or I won’t get hurt.

22. Information Processing According to Kuhn it is important that adolescents improve Executive Functioning- which is higher order cognitive activity such as reasoning, making decisions, monitoring thinking critically, and monitoring one’s cognitive progress. Improves: Effective learning Allocation of attention Make decisions and use critical thinking Decision Making Adolescent thinking has a dual-process model- One is analytical and the other experiential.

23. The Transition To Middle Or Junior High School At this stage adolescent experience the top-dog phenomenon – moving from being the oldest, biggest, and most powerful student to being the youngest, smallest, and least powerful. Some positive aspects: Feeling grown up More subjects to select from Spend time with peers, find compatible friends Increased independence, challenge by academic work

24. High School In the late 20th and first several years of the 21st century U.S. high school dropout rates declines. In the 1940 more than half of 16-24 years olds dropped out of school by 2006 the figure decreased to 9.3 percent. The dropout rate for Latinos remains highs, but is highest among Native Americans. Ways to decrease dropout rates: Early reading programs Tutoring Counseling and mentoring

25. Extracurricular Activities and Service Learning Benefits of Extracurricular Activity Higher grades, school engagement, lower dropout rates More likely to go to college, lower delinquency and substance abuse. Service Learning- is a form of education that promotes social responsibility and service to the community. An important goal of service learning is that adolescents become less self-centered and motivated to help others. Adolescents engage in tutoring, helping older adults, working in a hospital, assisting in child-care, and cleaning up.