Trends in understanding puberty over the last 100 years and reasons for these trends
Over the last 150 years it has become apparent that the age of puberty onset has drastically fallen especially in females. Some of the factors responsible for this include; changes that have occurred in social structures and improvements in public health. Factors like improved nutrition for children which have led to reduced childhood infections (Bellis et al., 2016). Boys are also developing facial hair and experiencing growth sprouts much earlier than is expected. Due to these changes in puberty onset people have begun to question what the right time is for one to develop; whether these changes should be worrisome or considered normal.
The Effect of Early and Late Onset Puberty on Adolescent Physical Development and Social/Emotional Relationships with Peers
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Children who experience certain stressors are prone to accelerated puberty. Disruptions in the family, increased cases of divorce, single parent families and absent parents all contribute to the stressors that can bring on early puberty. The problem is children are not developing socially at the same level that their bodies are; which increase the gap between social and physical puberty. As puberty approaches children become more curious about sex and increase the rate of risk taking behaviors (Bellis et al., 2016). When children develop faster physically than socially, they are prone to make some very bad decisions. They may make friends who appear to be the same age with them but are actually much older and a lot more mature socially; this could result in one taking advantage of the other.
How Changes in Physical Development Effect Cognitive Processing and Decision-Making
If physical, social and cognitive development are not synchronized this can greatly affect how an adolescent makes decisions and passes judgment on issues. Adolescents grow at different levels and they view the world in their own ways. Physical growth comes with certain emotions, and some adolescents find it difficult to think logically when emotions come into play and this affects how they make decisions. Their ability to consider different options and multiple facts may influence how they make decisions in a negative of positive way. It is important for parents to encourage the sharing of knowledge and ideas with adolescents. Also, adolescents need to be encouraged to evaluate badly made decisions so they can learn from them (Cincinnati Children’s, 2017). It is vital that people realize that adolescents grow at different rates and require enough support and guidance in order for them to develop cognitively and make good decisions.
The Current Role of Technology on Students’ Sense of Interconnectedness. Provide Examples of Some Technological Tools
There is no denying the leaps technology has made in the past years. Technology has become a lot faster, more powerful and cheaper to access which makes it more accessible to people. Technology has made it possible to connect with people all over the world. Students are able to converse and share ideas and information with other students from all parts of the world. According to CHA World School (2017), technology assists in facilitating communication with other students. Research has shown that technology has helped increase interactions in the class and outside. Software and programs like Google docs and other learning software make it possible for students to collaborate and share knowledge. Technology also helps make it possible for students to participate in peer tutoring and mentoring. Technology also greatly helps make two way communications possible and effective.
Ways to Ensure the Use of Technology in Schools and the Classroom Is Safe, Ethical, and Responsible
A lot of criminals have a tendency to target educational institutes. Some of the reasons for this include; a lot of educational institutes share personal information of students. These institutes have massive databases with student information that is personal. These criminals try to get this information and sell it illegally for identity fraud and other fraudulent crimes. Due to this, educational institutions have to find ways to secure student information. According to Open Access Government (2019), these institutions can adopt certain activities to keep information safe. One is through two-factor authentication; this is when the user has to give two forms of identification so as to ascertain that the user is legitimate. Another form is through firewalls; firewalls are an important security feature that all educational structures need to adopt. Educational institutions and students need to be vigilant about security and adopt the relevant applications to assist in making sure whatever they do is secure.
References
Bellis, M. A., Downing, J., & Ashton, J. R. (2006). Adults at 12? Trends in puberty and their public health consequences . Journal of epidemiology and community health , 60(11). https://doi.org/10.1136/jech.2006.049379
Cincinnati Children’s. (2017). Cognitive Development. https://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/health/c/cognitive#:~:text=Adolescence%20marks%20the%20beginning%20development,points%20of%20view%20according%20to
CHA World School. (2017, May 18). The Importance of Incorporating Technology into Student Education from an Early Age. https://chaschool.org/importance-incorporating-technology-student-education-early-age/#:~:text=Technology%20Facilitates%20Communication%20%E2%80%93%20With%20Peers,and%20from%20classroom%20to%20home.&text=Research%20shows%20that%20students%20prefer,other%20instead%20of%20the%20teacher.
Open Access Government. (2019, Mar 29). How can schools and universities ensure their students’ data is safe online? https://www.openaccessgovernment.org/schools-and-universities-students-data-safe-online/61950/
