Why Do We Need Teen Mentors? Teen Mentors can play some of the most important roles in our society today—without a doubt. The teens who need mentors are those who do not already have positive adult role models in their lives to listen to them, to guide them or to give them advice, or perhaps they only have one positive adult role model in their lives who is working her or his ‘fingers to the bone’ to provide basic necessities for that teenager and any additional siblings; therefore, any additional positive adult role model can prove to be miraculous. Most of our U.S. population perceives that these Teen Mentors are needed only in school districts that are “poor” or “underprivileged”; however, that concept is NOT true. One can look at ANY school …show more content…
Adults who want to be teen mentors find out a child’s district, and when it is one that is considered privileged, many prospective Teen Mentors immediately brush those kids off as not needing them or anything else at all. This denial of support and care for these kids is not only tragic, but it is also compounded by the fact that every day they are surrounded by a majority of their peers who get everything they want and beyond. They watch their classmates get spoiled beyond belief, yet the adults who want to be Teen Mentors do not volunteer to mentor teens from that particular district, because they believe the stereotype that everyone from that district is wealthy and has all of the resources most at-risk teens do not …show more content…
Since that time, Rachel’s father began the program in the name of his daughter to spread warnings about teen bullying and to promote teenagers and adults to make small differences in each others’ lives that can grow into bigger differences that will eventually make a greater impact. I attended one of the “Rachel’s Challenge” programs in the winter of 2007 along with a group of kids who were trying to make a difference in our school to stop bullying and promote acceptance among one another. My kids came back inspired to make a difference in every person’s life in our
As Pollock states, “Equity efforts treat all young people as equally and infinitely valuable” (202). This book has made me realize that first and foremost: We must get to know each of our students on a personal level. Every student has been shaped by their own personal life experiences. We must take this into consideration for all situations. In life, I have learned that there is a reason why people act the way that they do. When people seem to have a “chip on their shoulder”, they have usually faced many hardships in life. “The goal of all such questions is deeper learning about real, respected lives: to encourage educators to learn more about (and build on) young people’s experiences in various communities, to consider their own such experiences, to avoid any premature assumptions about a young person’s “cultural practices,” and to consider their own reactions to young people as extremely consequential.” (3995) was also another excerpt from the book that was extremely powerful for me. Everyone wants to be heard and understood. I feel that I owe it to each of my students to know their stories and help them navigate through the hard times. On the other hand, even though a student seems like he/she has it all together, I shouldn’t just assume that they do. I must be sure that these students are receiving the attention and tools needed to succeed,
Mentors and mentees each benefit from successful relationships with one another due to the newfound success for the mentee and the the satisfaction reward for the mentor by seeing a person they guided make an achievement. Success from one of these relationships was found in a study conducted during 2015, where 1,139 students from 11 years and above in different school districts served as subjects. In the study, half of the adolescents received mentors while the other half would receive one following the study. After students with a mentor spent time with them, the students were provided with a survey in which students who reported their relationship with their mentor was “close” or “somewhat close” had widespread academic improvement. As a result of the experiment, it is evident that a significant number of students benefit from a mentor being by their side. If the mentee sensed an emotional connection with the mentor, that was all they needed to succeed in school, even though academic-related tasks may not have been on the agenda for the mentors and mentees during their time together
Aside from the ineffectiveness of bullying programs, “Targets of bullying behaviors are more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, and loss of self-esteem” (Domino, 2013). Not only are schools being ineffective with their programs, the students are facing the effects of this. “Research has advocated that individuals must work together to effectively reduce bullying practices within schools” (Jones and Augustine, 2015). By creating a kindness program, students will be taught to work together to solve problems, and, in end, create a better
This is a website page edited by Sue Alford, the Editor and Director of Public Information Services for Advocates of Youth, a nonprofit organization in Washington D.C. This advocacy group promotes efficient sexual education and is dedicated towards STI and HIV/AIDS prevention. Alford contrasts comprehensive and abstinence-only education through a descriptive table that lists how they differ in curriculum, methods of teaching, and attitudes towards sexual activity in adolescents. This source will help me see the distinctions between the two methods of education, allowing me to interpret the pros and cons of each.
Lola demonstrated the disparities of our school system, as she is from an impoverished neighborhood with a school that hindered the progression of her education. Lisa demonstrated how community influences individuals and impoverished communities often cause young members to perpetuate their parents socioeconomically situation. However, some influences, such as church communities, can have strong positive impacts on their lives. Both girls demonstrated the importance of guidance and advocate in one’s life. Lola through her troubles in the school system, and Lisa through receiving guidance through the church. Both girls have been greatly influenced by their parent’s socioeconomic status and restricted from their full potential, causing them to fall into only slightly better situations than their parents. They are prime examples of the cycle of issues in our society, and the reason that we need to make a
Inner-city elementary age kids face many challenges in and out of the classroom. These challenges range from education day in and day out, as well as, sometimes growing up in an impoverished family and community. Factors also include peers which these kids come into contact with at school, in the streets and at home. Kids today need more than ever an extra push of positive motivation from mentors. I believe that this constructive mentoring begins with after school programs. After school programs give kids the opportunity to work one on one with an adult to reinforce encouragement and teach more than just text education. Because I have participated as a volunteer at an after school program, I have seen first hand the positive impact such programs can generate among elementary aged kids involved.
The Rwandan survivor, Paul Rusesabagina, once said, “If we want to change things, we must first change ourselves. If we want to play-- if we want to change the world-- we must first show up on the field to score”. Kids are constantly being mean to each other, whether it is verbally, physically, or through their phone screen. As Rusesabagina said, if people want to make a positive change, it is important to make the effort to make the change. According to dosomething.org, over 3.2 million students are victims of bullying each year. Approximately 160,000 teens skip school every day because of bullying. 17% of American students report being bullied 2 to 3 times a month or more within a school semester. These numbers are way too high, and schools need to find a way to reduce them. Students who are victimized are not receiving enough help from the people who are supposed to be the most influential people in their
A major risk factor as to why many teenage mothers live in poverty is because they drop out of high-school, “fewer than 38 percent get a high school diploma and another 19 percent get a GED, and only 5% of young teen mothers complete at least two years of college by age 30 and less than 2% obtain a college degree.” (Stewart Ng and Kaye, 2012a, p.1; Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy, 2008, p.10) ". Therefore, these mothers will not get a well-paying job to raise their child.
With this issue the teens tend to earn less money than those who have graduated and have went to college. This causes the children of the teen parent’s to struggle to keep up with their school peers. Teen mothers face the struggle of earning less money than those who waited to have their babies at a later time. It is found that teen mom’s, who have had babies at the age of seventeen or younger, make twenty-eight thousand dollars less after fifteen years of giving birth. In the next generation, the daughters of the teen mothers are three times more likely to become teen mothers themselves. Also in this generation, only forty percent of teen mothers who give birth at the age of seventeen or earlier actually finish high school; and twenty three percent of the younger moms go on to retain a GED ( A Baby Changes Everything: The True Cost of Teen Pregnancy’s
America is a very self-fulfilling economy and class matters after all in this so called “American Dream.” When did teenagers become any different. Last time I checked we were all equal. John M. Bridgeland in First, Help Today’s Struggling Youth. states that yet every year in America more than one million youth drop out of high school, crippling their chance at the American Dream.” John also states; “Nearly one in six, between the ages of sixteen to twenty four years old, is disconnected from the two structures that offer hope for their future.” These are school and work. This is where we need to promote growth and provide teens with any tools necessary to achieve. We need to be open to any ideas that this generation foresees in the future. John is a strong believer in the Youth Build program. In the third paragraph of First, Help Today’s Struggling Youth., he says that with a track record of success, Youth Build offers a holistic program of education, job training, personal counseling, community service, leadership development, placement in college or jobs, and follow-up support afte...
Some children have normalized the bullying culture and can no longer recognize what is and isn’t bullying. By adding anti-bullying programs schools, including administration and parents, will be aware of all forms of bullying and what they could do to help the cause. There are many forms of anti-bullying programs said to be built for the many different forms of bullying. There are programs that find the parents to be the source of the solution. This includes schools sending guides to the parents homes to teach how to deal with bullying, and to begin a discussion on how to talk about bullying with their child, which often leads to therapeutic talks. Programs that only involve schools are filled with anti-bullying messages throughout the school year that reinforce positive behavior. There also are programs that include both forces, parents and schools. These programs according to Elizabeth Lawner and Mary Terzian in “What Works for Bullying Programs: lessons from experimental evaluations of programs and evaluation” say “Five of the six programs that involved parents and implemented a whole-school approach worked for at least
...ne another’s vulnerabilities, boundaries and you will not take the relationship for advantage. There will be happiness or feeling of contentment when you are together and you are easily able to enjoy one another’s company. You are able to express yourselves with ease and express exactly what you are feeling. You will want to be together and will be happy to spend time in each other’s company. With regards to romantic relationships you are able to show physical affection with ease as well as in front of others, this will show that you are both comfortable in the relationship. There will be a feeling of equality for both sides. These are all signs of a well-balanced relationship.
On the afternoon of April 9, 2010 I found myself in a meeting with Kerri Evans, the assistant principal of Pleasant Ridge Middle School, and my son Nicholas. I was there because my son had become a victim of verbal abuse. It was shocking to learn that bullying has become such an epidemic in our school system. “Nearly 1 in 3 students is involved in bullying” (Hertzog, 2010). In a perfect world there would be no bullying. Kids wouldn’t get shoved into lockers, and they wouldn’t be beat up in the hallway. Students wouldn’t talk about another student behind their back because of their shape, size, race, or religion. In a perfect world this wouldn’t happen, but at that moment in our imperfect world it was happening to my son. The question is, why does it happen and what can we do to stop it? “According to a 2009 federal survey of school crime and safety, 32 percent of middle and high school students said they'd been victimized during the academic year, compared with 14 percent in 2001” (Tyre, 2010). Bullying was making its way into my home and affecting my life. It was then that I realized that bullying was a problem that needed to stop. Bullying in schools is escalating and becoming a bigger and bigger issue, and we must take action to eliminate it.
The guiltiest people of abusing and overusing the phrase, “I love you.” As well, they are the people with the worst reputation for relationships. Not only that, but no one ever believes the relationship will last, except for them. Teens being so adolescent are the reason they have a bad name with relationships. They bring their own reputation upon themselves. Almost all teen relationships are looked down upon because of the way majority of them work.
Teens today face a lot of pressure. Many students deal with difficult life situations that hinder them from focusing on their futures. This can lead to a loss of interest in school and school events, such as a sports, clubs, or after school programs. Teens start to prioritize other things over their education. Every year, over 1.2 million students will leave school without earning a high school diploma in the United States alone (“11”). That’s a student every 26 seconds – or 7,000 a day (“11”). The United States, which used to have the highest graduation rates of any country, now ranks 22nd out of 27 developed countries (“11”). Students may not realize that by dropping out of high school they are more likely to commit crimes, become parents at a young age, use and abuse alcohol and drugs, and live in poverty (“Drop”). Dropouts make up the majority of those