Adolescent observation-Mitch

Class/section:	FHS 1500-001
Your Name:	Joseph Meyere
Assignment:	Observation 4

Background Information

Child’s age:	Male Child 14-15 years old
Fictitious name:	Mitch
Location:	Jr High Classroom
Brief Description:	Teen interacts with classmates

Biological Development         

Mitch is a 14-15 year old boy with a slight build, an average trait of his age especially for one who appears to be eating healthy. This could also be from losing weight due to a recent growth spurt, since despite the length of his torso his arms and legs are relatively short (Berger, 2016, p.322). Despite his age, with few changes Mitch could be altered to look like a person much younger, as his face still holds many of the characteristics of a child. Mitch does not show evidence of current facial hair, indicating that he may still be in the prepubescent phase due to his lack of his body hair. While arm hair is present, there is no evidence that he has obtained any other secondary sex characteristics (Berger, 2016, p.323).

While Mitch is supposed to be working on his assignment, he is far more focused on the social interaction around him, specifically with his male friends. This can be another sign that he is still developmentally behind his classmates as he has not yet reached the desire to be exclusively around girls. Mitch is also interrupting his work to drum on his desk and play a game on his phone, showing that developmentally his brain is still on the level of wanting excitement and adventure over wanting to be quiet and work (Berger, 2016, p.327). None of these are causes to worry, as Mitch still will have several more years to develop his body and mind before he is considered an adult. Overall Mitch fits into most of the lower developmental milestones of his age.

Cognitive Development

Mitch’s assignment focuses on man’s impact on the environment, which features examples of extreme pollution and planetary alteration. Mitch has no trouble answering the questions even though he seems to have never been to the places mentioned in the paper. He’s able to picture and understand what environmental impact he might have in the future, which is a model of hypothetical thought (Berger, 2016, p.332). a few years ago Mitch would not have been able to grasp such concepts on his own, much less write a coherent homework piece about them.

One piece that past observers may have not had the opportunity to see is Mitch’s dependence on his phone. Throughout the study he checked his phone several times and responded to messages. The conversation with his friends mainly consisted of their adventures in video games as well as what to message each other later, such as videos and strategy guides. To Mitch the online world is just as much his real world as the classroom he sits in (Berger, 2016, p.337).

Mitch was given a minimal amount of instruction regarding the assignment he was working on during the observation, yet he did not need to ask for help understanding it. This is probably from him being in formal education for over a decade and understanding what is expected of him. The hidden curriculum taught to him through his education that when given work to sit down and do every answer is evident in the fact that the instructor did not have to fight to keep him on task (Berger, 2016, p.343). These skills may seem banal, but they will serve him later in high school and college as much of the same expectations will be waiting for him, as well as when Mitch eventually needs to use them to hold any sort of job.

Psychosocial development

Mitch is extremely comfortable with the group of boys around him, as evidence by him talking about his feelings and worries to them. At one-point Mitch remembered he forgot to do something and was embarrassed by the fact, but used his friends to help him figure out how to correct the problem. While Mitch is not observed outside the classroom, it can be assumed that these or similar peers are a large part of his life outside the classroom (Berger, 2016, p.359). As observed previously, at no time did Mitch interact with any member of the opposite sex. Beyond not being mature enough to want to do so, this could also be evidence of him not having attraction to girls and may instead be romantically interested in boys, though no other evidence supports this assumption (Berger, 2016, p.364). During the observation he does not mention a romantic partner in any form, which can be normal for his age especially if he is not physically mature enough to attract a mate.

Reference List

Berger, K. S. (2016). Invitation to the life span (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.

Reflection

This was the most difficult assignment I had while in this course. It wasn’t because the task was hard at all, since I could write a paper in my sleep, but the subject matter was extremely uncomfortable. Mitch (Name of course was changed) was a student in one of my classes during a substituting job. Normally I have to watch the kids for behavioral problems and the like, but to actually have to focus on one student and evaluate him like a piece of produce felt almost perverse. I know rationally that the process is one that any developmental scientist needs to undertake, and that there was no harm done to the subject, but it still felt like a violation of Mitch’s privacy.

I have noticed that since studying Mitch I can tell the developmental milestones in my students more easily, including without intense scrutiny. Applying what I’ve read about in the textbooks to an actual model, especially one that’s not on video, helped me immensely in applying the text to real life.