"A person cannot grow if some one is telling them not to. Dumbing down subjects and trying to make everything “fun” and “teenish” is only making it worse. Instead of presenting a challenge to teens and trying to encourage them to grow, it’s just telling teens, “It’s okay to be rebellious and we embrace you as such and you can do what is fun and easy and we’ll take care of everything else.” If any one good thing has come from the development of “teen,” it’s that the “teen,” by nature, is constantly looking for adventure and a challenge. We’re done with mediocrity and simplicity and everything easy. We want something deep and challenging, yes, even things that require some work and effort."
It's well worth reading the entire post to hear a refreshing perspective of a teenager who is sick of being treated as an incapable child or as an individual who can't help but make poor decisions.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Refreshing insights from a "teen"
I am so proud to know the author of this piece, a local senior in high school. Sebastian considers the modern notion of the "teenager" and issues a challenge to those working with teens:
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It's all about NOT lowering "the bar" :)
ReplyDeleteThat's exactly what I was thinking when I wrote this post.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who has worked with you for a good bit, this peice is so true. Dumbing things down is the reason why many adults do not know their faith. I myself have been a minister who fell in this trap. To many adults have this get rid of it mentality. If the kids will not get it than we will not teach it. Therefore we have treated them like a broken object. JPII's and John Bosco would not approve of this.
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