Reference no: EM132602756

1. How can the teacher support or guide adolescent students in restoring hope and concern for the common good within their community?

Provide examples of how that work would promote student learning and well-being.

2. What are some of the effects that trauma can have on adolescent development (emotionally, socially, and cognitively)? Identify a trauma that an adolescent might face (bullying, death, divorce, anxiety, etc.) and then explain the effects of this trauma on how adolescents develop emotionally, socially, and cognitively.

3. Childhood traumas can have many effects on adolescent development. Some traumas have more impact than others and some traumas may not have that big of a negative impact, if there is a strong support system in place. Bullying is one of the most common childhood traumas and is something that many kids have to go through. Fortunately many schools have anti-bullying campaigns and teach about what to do if you or someone else is bullied. This is a major part of my school's SEL curriculum and by 5th grade my students groaned when they got an anti-bullying lesson because they have heard it so often.

Dolgin defines bullying as, "Repetitive, unprovoked aggression against another" (2018, p. 456). One of the worst parts of bullying is that it can be merciless and consistent. Students who are bullied often don't want to attend school, or they remain very quiet in class because they know the bully will use what they say or do against them. When students are bullied they may not try as hard in school and this could lead to gaps in their education. Dolgin writes that bullying has declined since the 1990s, but it is still something that happens all over the country and the anti-bullying campaign must continue.

4. Trauma can have lifelong effects on adolescence, especially since they are in a stage of development and growth. Each student will react in a different way but there are some commonalities with the effects that they will experience. Bullying is a trauma that many students face whether it be in person or online. Cyberbullying has become a bigger issue because of accessibility to internet and the carelessness that comes with the ability to be anonymous (Dolgin, 2018). Emotionally, bullying is likely to increase the chance of developing anxiety or depression (Dolgin, 2018). This may stem from a student feeling worthless due to the negative interactions they have with their peers. Bullying can also affect the student's social life. If a student is being bullied, they are likely to lose their friends because they have a fear of being bullied due to their association with that student. This can increase the emotional effects because they don't have much peer support. Cognitive development will also be affected because of this trauma. Being a victim of bullying can alter the student's cognitive response to threatening situations (Wolke & Lereya, 2015). These may come in an altered stress response or altered social cognition (Wolke & Lereya, 2015). Although there are policies against bullying at most schools, it is something that is seen as normal because it occurs so often. It is important to encourage students to report bullying when they see or experience it and have an action response to the report. We also need to teach values of empathy and care for others so students can understand that bullying will not be tolerated and to explain how it can have major effects on someone's life.

5. We can support and guide adolescent students in restoring heop and concerns for the common good within their community by building a relationship with the students. Today educators influence students' moral development not simply by being good role models, but also by what they bring to their relationships with students day to day and their ability to appreciate students' perspectives and to disentangle them from their own, their ability to admit and learn from moral error, their moral energy and idealism, their generosity, and their ability to help students develop moral thinking without shying away from their own moral authority. That level of influence makes being an adult in a school a profound moral challenge. And it means that we will never greatly improve students' moral development in schools without taking on the complex task of developing adults' maturity and ethical capacities. We need to rethink the nature of moral development itself (Battistich, 1991). Teachers who weave meaningful service learning into their classrooms help students turn empathy into action by building skills in critical thinking, planning, organizing, and problem solving. When schools and community organizations work together to support learning, everyone benefits. This may be because positive relationships with schools can foster high quality, engaging, and challenging activities, along with promoting staff engagement (Miller, 2005).