Attributes of Middle Year Learners
The Adolescent Learner: Making a Difference in the Middle
When we know our learners, we can meet them with understanding, compassion and effectiveness.
Intellectual Development
- Highly Curious
- Imaginative
- Argues to clarify own thinking (begins to think about ideas)
Social Development
- peer approval/social acceptance is critical (socially vulnerable at this time)
- testing limits and boundaries
- challenging authority (beginning to develop own ideas)
- need time alone to regroup and reflect on experiences
- social maturity lags behind physical and Intellectual development
Emotional Development
- quest for identity and independence
- self-conscious; prone to lack of self-esteem (vulnerable)
- highly sensitive to criticism
- feel their experiences, feelings and problems are unique
- inconsistent behaviours and moods
Physical Development
- body and brain going through massive changes
- prefrontal cortex not fully developed (thinking/problem solving challenges- planning, reasoning, decision making)
- growth is accelerated and uneven
- experimentation and confusion are common
Moral/Ethical Development
- idealistic
- strong sense of fairness
- aware of flaws in others but not in self
- moving from self-centered perspectives to having consideration for rights and feelings of others