Adolescents | Parenting Teens Blog

November 3, 2009

World’s Strictest Parents

Filed under: addiction,ADHD,adolescents,drinking,Parent Support Groups,parenting teens,smoking,Teen Depression,Teen Drug Abuse,Teen Health,Teen Help,Teen Pregnancy,teen safety,teen sex,violence — Tags: ADD, ADHD, avoiding teen pregnancy, drugs, family, Parent Support Groups, parents, Teen Depression, teen drug use, Teen Pregnancy, teenagers, World's Strictest Parents — admin @ 11:09 am

Mom and Dad struggling with their sons behavior

The World’s Strictest Parents is a television series conceptualized and brought into fruition by Twenty Twenty Television and was originally broadcasted by BBC. The United States’ Country Music Television (CMT) and Australia’s Channel Seven both came up with their local versions of the hit TV series.

The primary concept behind the show is that two “unruly” teenagers are sent packing by their parents to live overseas with a strict host family for an entire week in an attempt to modify their heedless behavior. During the week they would receive an impact letter from their birth parents with a list of issues that they should try to correct.

In the United States, it takes on the format of a reality TV show with a running time of one hour. It was originally slated to be aired by MTV and the pilot episode was broadcasted on April 18, 2009. CMT eventually took over the show which is currently on its second season. Unlike the original series, the teenagers remained in their country and their parents came for them to evaluate their stay with the host family. In Britain, two teens leave their own family each week and lives for ten days under the roofs and rules of some of the World’s Strictest Parents. The series ventured on different locations – from Accra to Alabama, from Jaipur to Jamaica, unruly teenage Brits have experienced the discipline, educational values and uncompromising strictness of parents who have embraced the notion that enforcing firm discipline is the only way to raise a well-rounded teenager.

In the U.S., CMT features the remarkable journey of two unruly teens from different families as they are compelled to conform to the rules and regulations of their strict host parents. As they experience to live under different standards away from their own families, the ill-behaved teens will be subjected to punishment for skipping chores and breaking rules while the strict host parents try to fix their behavior.

The series tries to impart that rearing teenagers and enforcing traditional rules is no easy task. However, over time learning to live with certain limitations and enforced consequences will develop unique emotional journeys and personal turnarounds in teen behavior. Spending some time away from home enables the teenagers to reflect on how badly they treat their parents. The teenagers go through a roller-coaster of emotions and realizations – from culture shock to personal enrichment, from flare-ups and outbursts to heartrending re-unions, the teenagers experience what it’s like to live with strict rules and firm discipline – and learn to feel and appreciate the benefits.

For the second season, an all-new episode of the World’s Strictest Parents premiered on October 10 at 8:00 p.m. The regular timeslot is Saturdays at 8:00 to 9:00 p.m., ET/PT.

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October 6, 2009

The Teen’s Brain

Filed under: abuse,addiction,ADHD,adolescents,Anxiety Disorder,behavior problems,bipolar disorder,body dysmorphic disorder,bullying,Carolina Springs Academy,Cross Creek Programs,Darrington Academy,date rape,depression,drinking,drnking,Dyslexia,eating disorder,emo,Gang involvement,grief,help for parents,Horizon Academy,interventions,Ivy Ridge Academy,learning disability,Majestic Ranch Academy,Midwest Academy,obesity,Obsessive compulsive disorder,oppositional defiant disorder,oral hygiene,Parent Support Groups,parenting teens,Red River Academy,Royal Gorge Academy,self-harming,sex adiction,smoking,special education,Specialty Boarding Schools,Spring Creek Lodge,step-families,substance abuse,suicide,teen behaviors,Teen Depression,Teen Drug Abuse,Teen Health,Teen Help,Teen Inspiration,Teen Pregnancy,teen safety,teen sex,tic disorder,tourette's syndrome,Uncategorized,violence — Tags: adolescent, alcohol, brain development, drugs, guns, parenting, risk, sex, teen death, teenagers — admin @ 10:14 am

Today’s teenagers have been stereotyped as adventurous and harebrained individuals. They are generally fond of experimenting with things until they get in touch with drugs, sex, guns, alcohol among others. According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention figures, 16,000 young adults die each year from unintentional injuries and accidents. The most common justification for teenagers’ care-free attitude is that their brains just aren’t developed enough to know better. However, recent research shows that in some cases the fact is just the opposite, the brain matures not too slowly but perhaps, too quickly.

According to a psychiatrist, an adolescent who engages in more dangerous activities have white-matter pathways that seem to be more mature than those of risk-averse youths. White-matter is the brain’s wiring, the neutral pathways that connect the various gray-matter regions of the cerebrum that are independent of one another. Having a mature white-matter is necessary because it allows faster brain processing speed. Nerve impulses also travel faster in mature white-matter. Experiments also reveal that the more mature the look of the brain, the more adventurous the teenager tended to be.
Another possible explanation is that some teenagers whose brains develop more rapidly than others become uncomfortable and a little confused owing to the gap between their biological capabilities and the social norms they must follow as kids. Precocious development of these neural tracts may make some adolescents more susceptible to engage in behaviors that society considers too adult in nature for their chronological age. It is also a common notion that teens make dumb decisions because their brains are immature. In other words, having a more mature brain may actually motivate some teens to try out new and potentially harmful experiences.
For now, these theories are mere speculation, and the researchers concede that the interaction of white and gray matter is so complex that hard conclusions remain elusive. The results of the study are relatively bare and by no means conclusive. The human brain is so intricate in nature, and one has to consider the fact that there are other factors that come into play such as the environment and certain genetic predispositions that are equally complex to study.

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September 29, 2009

Teen Guilty in the Murder of Own Father

Filed under: abuse,adolescents,Anxiety Disorder,attachment disorder,behavior problems,bullying,depression,Gang involvement,grief,help for parents,Parent Support Groups,parenting teens,step-families,teen behaviors,Teen Depression,Teen Help,violence — Tags: adolescent, death, family, father, gangs, justice, juvenile, Murder, social, teen, teenagers, violence, young adults — admin @ 11:18 am

Just recently, CNN reported a heart-breaking news about a Berkeley teen who was convicted in the murder of his father. The victim was raising three kids on his own when one of them, for reasons unknown, murdered him with a gunshot to the head. The judge handling the case found the 16-year-old teen guilty of first-degree murder with an enhancement for using a gun in the death of his 40-year-old father.

When the teen was sentenced, the judge could have him locked up in the California Division of Juvenile Justice until he reaches the age of 25. He could also face a variety of other sentences, including being placed on probation and sent home, being sent to a group home or placed in minimum security reform centers. Regardless of what happens, a life was lost and the life of the teenager and those of his siblings are put in jeopardy with the uneventful passing of their father who is supposed to guide them in today’s chaotic environment.

Teen violence is increasingly becoming one of the most serious problems of modern society. It is a curse not only for the victim but for his/her family and the entire society as well. It is also responsible for thousands of deaths every year around the world. This kind of violence alienates the victim from his/her family, friends and loved ones. Teenagers who engage in violence, generally try to keep themselves away from everyone. Psychologists explain that they do so for the sake of getting away from social embarrassment. Teen abuse lawyers advocate that the victim must get proper legal support at such delicate phase of her/his life.

Young adults are complicated, inquisitive, and filled with potential. Once left unchecked, they can blow up in a million pieces, causing problems resulting to irreparable damage or even death. This is precisely the reason why parents are endowed with the moral obligation to guide their teens during this crucial stage in their lives.

Oftentimes teenagers find their peer groups to be more significant to them than their parents. This being the case, it is as if parents are handling over the life of their teen to the type of group he/she may belong to. With this change come different expectations. This is why friends are such a key developmental and influential factor in the teenage years. Many teens who get involved in gangs are simply trying to live out their new group’s expectations rather than their parents’. Adolescents are all on an equal plane when it comes to violent behavior. Regardless of background, almost all adolescents become significantly more violent after puberty and it drops off again somewhere in their mid-20s.

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September 25, 2009

Which High School Students Are Most Likely to Graduate From College?

A recent research discovered distressing signs that demographic factors such as gender, race, and parental education play significant roles in ascertaining a student’s fate, no matter how studious or hardworking the particular student may be. Those from families with below-average earnings or whose parents didn’t finish college, are the ones failing college at disproportionate rates, even when distinguished from students with similar grades and test scores. Well to do undergrads earn 11 percent more degrees from flagship universities than comparable students from the poorest income quartile. White men are six percent more likely to graduate than black men with similar grades and scores. Women earn degrees at much higher rates than men. The findings about the actions that parents, students, and politicians should and shouldn’t take to fix the problems are already creating controversy.
High school grades are among the best indicators of how well a student will do in college. They typically manifest qualities of motivation and perseverance, good study habits and time management skills that tell us about their chances of completing a college program. Students who attend wealthier high schools do seem to enjoy a slight edge in enrolling in college and elite high schools appear to help the very best students succeed at the most selective public universities.
Students shouldn’t settle for less in a college. They have a better chance of graduating if they go to school with other students as talented as they are. High school grades are extremely important as indicators of success in college. It will not do for high school students to believe that ‘just getting through’ is enough, students have to work, they have to achieve. If they do, they have a better chance of succeeding in college and later in life.
Research has shown the influence of inspired and determined peers, who are not always present in community college classrooms. Many community college students also have expressed concerns over the years about the inability of their schools to direct them to classes that will count as transfer credits. In addition, many students are certainly put off by complexities in transfer processes.
Cash is another factor, it absolutely helps but is not a cure-all. More generous scholarships, or lower net tuition fees, can raise graduation rates by 5 to 10 percent. In addition, putting together enough aid with extra support services for students and parents does even more to guide and assist students through to graduation.
There is some hope though. The graduation rate success of students involved in experiments shows that graduation rates can be increased substantially if enough resources and creativity are put to work.

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September 24, 2009

How to Talk to Your Children About 9/11

Filed under: ADHD,adolescents,Asperger's Syndrome,attachment disorder,behavior problems,Gang involvement,grief,help for parents,parenting teens,violence — Tags: 9/11, anxiety, children, loved ones, media, parenting, people, shield children from information, talking, teens, to children, tragic, yound adults — admin @ 8:09 pm

If we can only get rid of memories of traumatic events maybe it can diminish distress especially among our children and young adults. Such is not the case because we are not programmed to do so. Remembering what transpired on 9/11 can be a lot more difficult and painful especially among those who lost a loved one or for those who were directly impacted by that tragic day when terrorists struck fear and anxiety into the hearts of people from all corners of the globe. Moreover, media coverage commemorating the events in a detailed manner may heighten distress or indifference among our children.
So the question is, how can parents explain something so gruesome and traumatic to their children? Parents can’t shield their children from acquiring information about what is so significant about 9/11. It is a thing of the past but it definitely left an indelible mark in history and on the eight anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center, as publication of news and photos of that tragic day find their way to our newspapers, television screens and the Internet, parents are dumbfounded about the manner on how they can explain to their children this hard and complex subject.
There are certain tips which may help all concerned parents on this particular issue. The first thing to do is to try to relax while discussing the topic. You have to consider the fact that talking about violent acts won’t increase your children’s fear any more than harbor anxiety about the unknown. Try to determine and feel what your child already knows about the event so you can somehow gauge the impact of the information you want to discuss thereby establishing the parameters of the subsequent conversation.
Try to be as transparent and honest as possible although you can opt to refrain from providing detailed information. Children are generally smart, they can sense when they are being lied to or when you’re withdrawing something from them. It’s not appropriate to eliminate your children’s fear but a thorough explanation should be given to assure them somehow that there is nothing to be afraid of as government authorities are trying to find ways to protect the nation’s citizenry against another horrible event. Just make sure that your children are interested about the flow of the conversation, otherwise it’s better to drop the topic. Your children may not yet want or need to discuss the event at this particular period but they will certainly bring it out sooner or later.
Parents ought to be very careful when discussing traumatic events to their children and young adults especially those with acts of terrorism such as 9/11 because you are not certain how they will interpret and react on such sensitive subject matters.

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