UNIT 6

ADOLESCENCE
(THE HIGH SCHOOL
LEARNER)

 MODULE 24 – PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

OF HIGH SCHOOL LEARNERS
 MODULE 25 – COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
OF HIGH SCHOOL LEARNERS
 MODULE 26 – SOCIO-EMOTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT OF HIGH SCHOOL
LEARNERS

Submitted by:

KRISTINE ANNE V. FRONDA

TCP
 MODULE 24. PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT OF HIGH
SCHOOL LEARNERS

Defining Adolescence
Adolescence comes from a Latin word adolescere meaning “to grow” or
“to grow to maturity”. Today, the term adolescence has a roader meaning. It
includes mental, emotional, and social maturity as well as physical maturity.
Piaget says :

Psychologically, adolescence is the age when the individual becomes

integrated into the society of adults, the age when the child no longer feels that
he is below the level of his elders but equal, at least in rights.. This integration
into adult society has many affective aspects, more or less linked with puberty..
It also includes very profound intellectual changes.. These intellectual
transformation typical of the adolescents’ thinking enable him not only to
achieve his integration into the social relationships of adults, which is in fact,
the most general characteristic of this period of development.

Adolescence is a stage of human development that coincides with

puberty, a biological development occurring at the average age of 11 for girls
and 12 for boys. There are factors, however, which contribute to early puberty
and delayed puberty. These factors include heredity, diet, exercise, and socio-
environmental influence.

Adolescence is a period of transition in terms of physical, cognitive and

socio-emotional changes. The period of adolescence begins with the biological
changes of puberty. The specific ages for this period vary from person-to-person
but :
(i) early adolescence characterized by puberty may come at the ages of 11 and
12 (ii) middle adolescence may meet identity issues within the ages of 14 and
16, and (iii) late adolescence marks the transition into adulthood at ages 17 and
20.

Physical Development
At puberty, a considerable alteration in growth rate occurs. There is a
swift increase in body size, a change in shape and composition of the body, and
a rapid development of the gonads, or sex glands – the reproductive organs and
the character signalling sexual maturity. Some of the changes are common to
both sexes, but most are sex specification.
It is at the beginning of adolescence, the years of greatest growth, that
developmental differences between girls and boys become most evident. Girls
generally reach puberty ahead of boys. They embark on the adolescent growth
spurt at an average age of 10 ½ as against 12 ½ for boys. Although the intensity
and duration of this spurt vary widely from one youngster to another, it usually
lasts for 2 to 2 ½ years in both sexes. The growth and transformation that occur
in this short period of time are enormous, second in magnitude only to those
that take place in the womb : as nine months of pregnancy turn an egg into a
human being, so the years of adolescence turn a child into an adult, capable of
performing all the biological functions of maturity.
Through the growth spurt begins earlier in girls, it is during this period
that boys outstrip them in development.
Factors affecting development
Hormones are powerful and highly specialized chemical substances that
interact with bodily cells. Hormonal changes in the hypothalamus and pituitary
glands signal the entire process of sexual maturation. The process entails :

i. Secretion of gonadotropic hormones by the anterior pituitary at the base

of the brain near the geometric center of the head ;
ii. Gonads which are the ovaries for the female and the testis for the male
are then stimulated by the gonadotropic hormones, in turn stimulating
their own hormones;
iii. This stimulation causes the secretion of testosterone in the male sex
organ and estrogen in the female ovary.

The Secular Trend

The secular trend is a phenomenon of more rapid physical maturation
during this century. It is ascribed to varied factors such as: interaction of genetic
and environmental influences, improved health care and living conditions, and
control of infectious diseases. Observably, the secular trend in industrial
countries appear to be levelling off while the experience of secular trends is just
starting in peasant economies of the world.

Sexual Identity
Adolescents are concerned about their body image sexual attractiveness
how to do sex and the future of their sexual lives. Most adolescents manage to
develop a mature sexual identity but a number go through it with much
confusion.
An adolescent’s sexual identity involves sexual orientation, activities,
interests and styles of behaviour. Sexual orientation is a person’s tendency to
be attracted to people of the same sex (homosexual orientation), of the opposite
sex (heterosexual orientation) and same sex (bisexual orientation).
In terms of sexual identity, adolescence is the period when most
gay/lesbian and transgenders begin to recognize and make sense of their
feelings.

Self-esteem
Self-esteem is defined as one’s thoughts and feelings about one’s self and
identity.
Girls enjoy self-esteem through supportive relationships with friends or
others who can provide social and moral support. In contrast, boys are more
prone to assert independence in defining their relationships deriving self-esteem
from their ability to successfully influence others.

Body Image and the Adolescent

Consciousness about body image is strong during the adolescent period.
The physical features of the human body (facial looks, body size, color of skin,
etc.) depend on the genetic heritage which must be respected. However, there is
more to body image than physical looks and these concern good habits on
relation to:
 Cleanliness and grooming
 Proper wearing of clothes according to current styles
 Erect body posture
 Eye contact while communicating
 Decorum (good form and confidence) and decency
MODULE 25. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT OF HIGH
SCHOOL LEARNERS

Changes in thinking patterns are marked by the acquisition of new

cognitive skills due to the brain’s increasing in weight and refining synaptic
connections (technically known as corpus collosum) which join and coordinate
the two hemispheres of the brain. Another brain development is the process of
correlated temporal and parietal areas (technically known as myelination). This
second development covers the brain systems whose executive functions relate
to attention, verbal fluency, language and planning.

Piaget’s Formal Operational Thinker

a. Propositional Thinking – making assertions outside visual evidence, and
stating what may be possible in things not seen by the eyes.
b. Relativistic Thinking – subjectively making an opinion on facts -
involving one’s own bias, prejudice of distortion of facts which may be
either right or wrong.
c. Real versus possible – examining a situation and exploring the possible in
terms of situations or solutions

Siegler’s Information Processing Skills

Robert Siegler views the influence of environment on thinking, In his
experiments, he used rule models in relation to balance, weight, distance,
conflict-weight, conflict-distance, and other conflict balance problems. He
examined the correct and wrong answers to each of the problems and drawing
out rule models in thinking and knowing.
Thereupon, adolescents may show:
 a. Speed in information processing, coupled with greater awareness and
control and acquired knowledge base – a more efficient kind of thinking
compared with that of the child.
b. Complexity by way of considering longer-term implications and
possibilities beyond the here-and-now
c. Increased volume of information processing coupled with longer memory
span.

Metacognition
Metacognition is the ability to identify one’s own thinking process and
strategies inclusive of perception, memory, understanding, application, analysis,
assessment and innovation. The adolescent is able to state “I know that” among
the memory data stored in his mind; also able to state “I know how” referring to
procedural processes that improves memory recall through the use of mnemonic
device.

Overachievement
The overachieving adolescent may demonstrate superior work habits,
greater interest in school work, more consistency in doing assignments, and
more grade or performance consciousness. Characteristics of overachievers are:

1. Positive self- value (self-esteem, confidence, optimism)

2. Openness to authority
3. Positive interpersonal relations
4. Less conflict on the issue of self autonomy
5. Academic orientation
6. Goal Orientation
7. Control over anxiety
Underachievement
The adolescent may perform below the standard set. Withdraws
underachievers refer to those who have a more pronounced tendency to be
passive resulting to being submissive and docile. They follow the path of no
resistance, not reacting to given assignments and school regulations. They do
not participate in class and activities. Aggressive underachievers are those
who tend to be talkative, disruptive and rebellious.

Behavior and adolescent cognitive growth

1. Egocentrism – this is the adolescents tendency to think too much of
themselves, while being too sensitive to social acceptance of their
appearance, actions, feelings, ideas, etc.
2. Idealism – This refers to imagining the far-fetched and less ideal
situations at home, school, and in society.
3. Increased argumentativeness. Teens enjoy learning through the use of
group dynamics including role play, discussion, debate and drama.

Developing occupational skills

Theorist John Holland has identified basic personality factors that match with
attitude and work preference :
 Realistic – prefers practical tasks including those requiring physical labor
and motor coordination and less of interpersonal skills
 Investigative – prefers tasks that are conceptual such as in the fields of
science and technology
 Conventional – prefers structured tasks that cater to the needs of others
 Enterprising – prefers independence and innovation in business and other
enterprises that reflect autonomy and personal initiative
 Artistic – prefers unstructured tasks that shows ability for self-expression
MODULE 26. SOCIO-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
OF HIGH SCHOOL LEARNERS

During adolescence the teen develops social cognition in the context of

family structure, the school, the community and the media. He also manifests
emotions which need to be regulated for success in school as well as for his/her
emotional well-being.

Human Emotions
Emotions are commonly known human feelings that are manifested by
varied unconscious or conscious moods. It is a subjective reaction to internal or
external stimulus that involves physical change, action, or appraisal.

The unique patterns of emotions are:

a. Event that is strong or important
b. Physiological changes in heart pulse rate, brain activity, hormone levels
and body temperature
c. Readiness for action often described as “fight or flight”
d. Independence of the emotion on how the stimulus is appraised or
interpreted.

Positive and Negative Emotions

Positive emotions like interest and joy motivate the individual to
continue his/her behaviour. On the other hand, negative emotions may cause
withdrawal from what may be perceived as bad or dangerous. For Charles
Darwin there are six basic emotions namely interest, joy/happiness, sadness,
anger, disgust, and fear. Other scientist expanded the list to include love, pride,
hope, gratitude, compassion, jealousy, and anxiety.
Social Emotions
Social emotions start to emerge as early as the toddler years comprised
by such feelings as envy, embarrassment, shame, guilt and pride. Observable
emotions during these years may not be accurate but they can be a problem if
not controlled. Emotions affect learning, since learners pay more attention to
things with emotional significance.

Adolescents are seen to tend to emotions from social evaluation such as

feeling embarrassed when being looked at, also being fairly happy most of the
time. An important lesson for high school teachers is: you should not simply
dismiss emotional negativity as normal phase, but should address the needs of
teenagers who are chronically happy or moody.

Implication to adolescent care education and parenting

Emotional skills influence the adolescent learner’s success in class work.
Learners who are able to regulate their emotions tend to be happier, better liked
and better able to pay attention and learn. As the teen is susceptible to peer
pressure, the negative influence of social media, drug use and addiction, early
romantic sexual adventurism, the teacher and the school can conduct
interventions to assist the youths with focus on risky and inappropriate
behaviour while promoting positive development among adolescents.
 QUESTIONS :
1. Adolescence comes from a Latin word ___________ meaning “to grow”
or “to grow to maturity”.
Answer : Adolescere
2. These are powerful and highly specialized chemical substances that
interact with bodily cells.
Answer : Hormones
3. It is a phenomenon of more rapid physical maturation during this century
and it is ascribed to varied factors such as: interaction of genetic and
environmental influences, improved health care and living conditions,
and control of infectious diseases.
Answer : Secular Trends
4. It is a person’s tendency to be attracted to people of the same sex, of the
opposite sex and same sex.
Answer : Sexual orientation
5. – 7. Give at least one example for each of Piaget’s Formal Operational
Thinker.
Answers:
a. Propositional Thinking (for example, whether an unseen object is
red or green, round or flat, big or small)
b. Relativistic Thinking (for example arguing for or against the
superiority of races, whether white, brown, yellow, or black)
c. Real versus possible (for example possible success in
implementing a student project or a school policy)
8. It is commonly known human feelings that are manifested by varied
unconscious or conscious moods.
Answer : Emotions
 9. Enumerate the six basic emotions according to Charles Darwin.
Answer: interest, joy/happiness, sadness, anger, disgust and fear
10. It may cause withdrawal from what may be perceived as bad or dangerous.
Answer : Negative emotions