Saturday, February 7, 2009
Middle School and Changes
From what I can remember, Middle School was definately a weird and awkward time for everyone I knew. After reading Chapter 2 I have learned more in depth of the pubertal changes occuring at this time. It is mentioned throughout the chapter that often these changes are embarrassing and often ignored by parents. If more education was put in place to explain these changes before and while they are happening and made students more comfortable with these changes, would it be such an awkward time? I think it is an important issue that needs to be addressed because it has been shown that after these changes is when issues such as eating disorders and anger problems can begin and can continue on. This chapter has made me realize most that it is important for educators to understand what the student is going through at this age and may help explain some of their actions. I think it is partly the responsibility of the schools to make sure that these changes that are normal are addressed. If it wasn't such an uncomfortable subject to talk about would we still have all these awkward and weird middle schoolers or would they be able to see what is happening to them is a normal thing.
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If students were better educated, I think it would make them feel more comfortable about what they are going through. Unfortunately, since our society has frowned upon this for such a long time, it will take quite a while before this becomes the norm. Although schools can take steps to better incorporate sex education, it really comes down to the parents. Parents have the option of barring their child from this education and then it is up to them to talk to their child about it. If they choose not to, or if they do a poor job, the transition is probably going to be difficult for the child. I think what we really need to concentrate on is parent education.
ReplyDeleteI agree that parents should be the driving force behind their kids sexual education. Primarily for the fact that they know their child best and thier comfort level and how to communicate with them. However, some parents are uneducated on this topic and may not adequately be able to answer questions their child may have. This is where schools come in, as a back up if nothing else. Some parents may not want to talk about this with their children because it may be uncomfortable, and while I think that is a bit irresponsible, some parents would actually prefer if their child learned this information from thier school instead of from them. Then there are some parents who dont want the schools to have any involvement in this topic. I feel as though all children need to be educated on this topic so that they can make safe decisions as well as have a more clear understanding of the changes they are going through.
ReplyDeleteLindsay, You brought up a really good point about addressing the issues of eating diorders and anger. At least in the middle school that I attended, these were NEVER addressed and yet almostall the girls had one or both of these. They are serious issues that only get worse over time if not confronted. Thanx for bringing it up.
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