I didn’t find this article interesting because it was a review of my psychology of health class but I think it’s important to know the processes behind puberty and what issues middle school students are facing. It’s also important to educate these individuals to increase their self-esteem and ease the transition into high school. As they are more educated about puberty they begin to realize and understand that their experiences are “normal,” especially when dealing with issues of crisis.
I remember when I was in middle school just feeling like I was going crazy or like there was something psychologically wrong with me and it was really hard to cope when I didn’t know what was happening to me. Not only should students learn of the biological processes of puberty they also need to be informed of its psychological importance. Puberty wasn’t something that was brought up in my house, along with drugs and sex. I really think our society needs to be more open about these issues otherwise we are going to continue to remain awkwardly silent when this comes up.
Puberty is not treated as a rite of passage in this country, instead it’s seen as more of a burden on the adolescent. Because puberty is socially constructed this way we minimize the struggles of youth or blame them for all their troubles. I like reading how differently cultures respond to puberty as a rite of passage. Perhaps our society should have a more positive view of it and consider it a stepping stone to adulthood, maturity, a positive body image, more responsibility in society, formation of identity, etc. Perhaps if we would allow our youth to be more involved politically, socially, academically etc they would confront this part of life with more ease. I think early maturing girls, especially, need to hear this message since they have a harder time with self-image, friends, sex, and identity than late maturers. They can also be more susceptible to early pregnancy and doing drugs than their peers especially when experiencing “depressive and aggressive affects in girls” (p.42).
Also the lack of intimacy in boys is another issue that should be addressed and it often ignored. I didn’t even think about that until after I read this and then I thought how much more beneficial would it be if they had close friendships in which they could disclose their information…then again should we just let boys be boys? These are all issues that I will have to deal with if I become a middle school teacher! Yikes!
Empowering students
16 years ago
3 comments:
I agree with your comments on puberty. It certainly has more of a negative condentation than something that is natural, and a part of life. When I was in middle school, all we talked about was the biological effects of puberty. Not one thing was mentioned about how one should deal with it psychologically.
I also think it's important to talk to girls who reach puberty earlier than normal, and to boys who reach puberty later than normal. I was a late bloomer, and it really wasn't until I was a sophomore in high school that I noticed major changes in my body. It was sad because I often wondered why I am not growing, nor do I have the desire to talk to girls like other boys do. It was kind of depressing because you felt left out.
I could not agree more that schools need to address these issues more so than they currently are. In the chapter, America was compared to Europe (I believe that it was specifically Germany) in the type of sex ed. that was administered and as anybody could guess - America's education was far more conservative. I don't understand why people are so uncomfortable speaking about natural occurances that happen to everybody, - but I suspect that radical religions have something to do with it (however, that is a whole nother conversation).
Also, to speak on your comments about the differnet problems that girls and boys face (specifically the intimacy issue with boys) I believe that the friendship dynamic that boys exhibit - a larger group of less intimate friends as compared to a girls - is just the way that boys are wired and there is really no way of changing that manually. It may be naive, but I just think that is a gender difference - for better or for worse.
I liked that you brought up the issue of other countries. That was probably the most interesting part of the chapter for me. I don't know if our society will ever get to the point of celebrating puberty, but perhaps we can stop pretending it doesn't happen so that students don't feel like something is wrong with them when they are experiencing changes.
Also, this is just a side note, I thought it was funny that when the author presented the story about the mother being angry with the girl for menstruating early that I thought of the movie Carrie. The mother calls her breast "dirty pillows" and views her menstruation as punishment for something sinful she has done. Even though this is an EXTREME reaction (and slightly comical), I think that it does demonstrate our societies negative attitudes towards puberty.
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