“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”
― Benjamin Franklin
“Do not train a child to learn by force or harshness; but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each.”
― Plato
Youth mentoring is one of the most under-utilized tools in America for the successful development of intelligent and prosperous young men and women. Young people today need multi-dimensional care in order to successfully mature into well rounded individuals. Unfortunately, a majority of youth today are not receiving the attention they need in order to reach their full potential (Boyle 1). Without proper guidance, these youth are practicing in high risk behaviors, such as substance abuse and violence. When faced with difficult situations, it is easy for a young person to make poor choices. A youth mentor provides an extra outlet for these adolescents when a parent, sibling, or friend is not available, or even able to make the best choices for the adolescent. Youth mentoring is needed now more than ever.
The multi-faceted needs of an adolescent are almost more complex than that of an adult. At such a young age teenagers and pre-teens are trying to understand right from wrong, learning how to take care of themselves, discovering who they are and establishing values. It is necessary for youth to have a strong and stable support system while growing up. Traditionally, parents are expected to fill this role. Today, however, that is not always the case.
The divorce rate in the United States is soaring. Accordingly, as the divorce rate increases, so does the number of single parents. When marriages end, and divorce papers are signed, changes have to be made. One larger household is replaced by two smaller households. Instead of one set of bills, there are two. Visitation rights replace family time. Countless adjustments are inevitable. This type of situation brings about confusion, disappointment, and despair in the lives of young people.
With such a high percentage of teen pregnancies, consequently there is an elevated number of young mothers. When a mother is at a young age when she bears a child, it is exceedingly complicated to appropriately take care of the child while at the same time caring for herself. Teenage moms gene...
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...perous young men and women. This must change.
Works Cited
Boyle, Patrick. “Mentoring Pays Off”. Youth Today. 9 Jan. 2014. Web. 8 April 2015. http://www.youthtoday.org/youthtoday/story1_9_04.html
Kiddler, Rushworth M. “Consenting to Violence”. Institute for Global Ethics. 6 March 2014. Web. 10 April 2015.
http://www.globalethics.org/members/commentary-03-06-00.html
“Kid Notes”. Young Life. 2014 Web. 9 April 2015.
http://www.younglife.org/pages/kidnotes.html#1
“Kids Never Forget a Mentor”. Deparment of Social & Health Services. 8 Oct. 2014. Web. 8 April 2015.
http://www1.dshs.wa.gov/youthmentoring/
“NIDA Infofacts: High School and Youth Trends”. National Institute on Drug Abuse. Dec. 2014. Mar 15 2005. http://www.nida.nih.gov/infofacts/HSYouthtrends.html
“Mentoring in Schools”. Creating Safe and Drug Free Schools. Sep 2014. Web. 5 April 2015.
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSDFS/actguid/mentor.html
“Statistics”. Students Against Destructive Decisions. 2014 Web. 5 April 2015.
http://www.saddonline.com/stats.htm
“Vision and Mission”. Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. 2014 Web. 5 April 2015. http://www.bbbsa.org/site/pp.asp?c=iuJ3JgO2F&b=14581
...is, R. G., & Wise, D. L. (2005). Youth Friends: Outcomes from a school‐based mentoring program. Journal of Primary Prevention Special Issue: Mentoring with Children and Youth, 26(2), 129‐129.
Spencer, R., Collins, M. E., Ward, R., & Smashnaya, S. (2010). Mentoring for young people
‘If a child does not learn the way you teach then teach him the way he learns’ (Chinn & Ashcraft, 1999)
I have spent valuable amount of my time mentoring students from varied socio-economic backgrounds. I have learnt from them just as they have learnt from me over the years. At the moment, I have jointly
“You will find the world in your own eyes, if they learn how to see; in your own heart if it learns how to feel; and in your own fingers if they learn how to touch.” (Dunham 188).
Turner, J. (2006). Coaching and mentoring in health and social care: The essentials of practice
Masci, David. “Preventing Teen Drug Use.” CQ Researcher, 15 March, 2002, Volume 12, No. 10. Accessed October 1, 2003,
YWCA’s Youth Mentorship Program (YMP) is designed to promote positive youth development and leadership while combating issues leading to increased drop‐out rates, teen pregnancy rates, and juvenile detention rates facing the enrolled youth in the program. YMP’s strength lies in its unique family‐oriented atmosphere. Mentors act as role‐models and tutors while interacting with the families of each participant in order to provide the best possible service to each youth. For many of the youth that we serve, that steadying presence over their formative years is the most stable thing in their lives. By providing a structured study environment, enrichment activities, character development, and tutoring we promote success in school, development of
Sikes, A., Cole, R. F., McBride, R., Fusco, A., & Lauka, J. (2009). Addressing the needs of substance abusing adolescents: a guide for professional school counselors. Journal of School Counseling, 7(43),
Having an effective working relationship with a student is an important goal and will underpin all other aspects of mentoring (Walsh, 2014). It is advisable to build this relationship quickly and effectively within the first week of the student’s placement, this is known to be the mentor’s responsibility and allows the mentor to demonstrate to be organised, productive and welcoming (Walsh,
"Learning is the only thing the mind never exhausts, never fears, and never regrets." These
that if I had fun learning, then I would always want to learn. He also helped
Children are still developing their skills and personality, while they cannot get mentored for some things they can get mentored for their skills. There are multiple mentor organizations that work with the youth in the Vancouver area, the particular one I am talking about is Big Brothers Big Sisters. Big Brothers Big Sisters has been around for over a hundred years. There were and are a ton of volunteers from my high school that participate in Big Brothers Big Sisters. They get paired with a chi...
"The important thing is not so much that every child should be taught, as every child should be instilled with the wish to learn."
“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” ― William Arthur Ward