Adolescenceâ€"beginning with the onset of puberty and ending in the mid-20sâ€"is a critical period of development during which key areas of the brain mature and develop. These changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity mark adolescence as a period of opportunity to discover new vistas, to form relationships with peers and adults, and to explore one's developing identity. It is also a period of resilience that can ameliorate childhood setbacks and set the stage for a thriving trajectory over the life course. Because adolescents comprise nearly one-fourth of the entire U.S. population, the nation needs policies and practices that will better leverage these developmental opportunities to harness the promise of adolescenceâ€"rather than focusing myopically on containing its risks. This report examines the neurobiological and socio-behavioral science of adolescent development and outlines how this knowledge can be applied, both to promote adolescent well-being, resilience, and development, and to rectify structural barriers and inequalities in opportunity, enabling all adolescents to flourish.

This book elucidates the complexities, contradictions, and confusion surrounding adolescence in American culture and education.

Families and schools share a desire for students to succeed but are often perplexed about how to collaborate and support this achievement, especially during the transition to middle and high school. This book will help educators and policymakers identify and implement the most effective strategies to help parents remain involved in their teens’ education. The research in this book looks at diverse families and adolescents from a wide range of backgrounds while considering cultural and socioeconomic contexts. Bringing together multidisciplinary perspectives—including prominent researchers from the fields of teacher education, psychology, and sociology —this authoritative book: Presents new research on family-school partnerships in the unique developmental period of adolescence. Outlines the challenges teachers experience in maintaining communication with families. Offers strategies that reflect academic socialization among African American, Asian American, Latino, and European American families as key factors that promote achievement. Describes how technology can bridge the gap between families and schools in a way that fits with the developmental needs of adolescents. Examines the roles of policymakers, communities, and school districts to highlight developmentally appropriate, culturally sensitive policy solutions.

More children born today will survive to adulthood than at any time in history. It is now time to emphasize health and development in middle childhood and adolescence--developmental phases that are critical to health in adulthood and the next generation. Child and Adolescent Health and Development explores the benefits that accrue from sustained and targeted interventions across the first two decades of life. The volume outlines the investment case for effective, costed, and scalable interventions for low-resource settings, emphasizing the cross-sectoral role of education. This evidence base can guide policy makers in prioritizing actions to promote survival, health, cognition, and physical growth throughout childhood and adolescence.

The Education of Eros is the first and only comprehensive history of sexuality education and the “problem” of adolescent sexuality from the mid-20th century to the beginning of the 21st. It explores how professional health educators, policy makers, and social and religious conservatives differed in their approaches, and battled over what gets taught about sexuality in schools, but all shared a common understanding of the adolescent body and adolescent desire as a problem that required a regulatory and disciplinary education. It also looks the rise of new social movements in civil society and the academy in the last half of the 20th century that began to re-frame the “problem” of adolescent sexuality in a language of rights, equity, and social justice. Situated within critical social theories of sexuality, this book offers a tool for re-framing the conversation about adolescent sexuality and reconstructing the meaning of sexuality education in a democratic society.

“If the cogent messages of this searing and compelling book are heeded and implemented by educational researchers, policymakers, and practitioners, our nation will be greatly enriched by the abundant gifts of young men of color.” —James A. Banks, Kerry and Linda Killinger Professor in Diversity Studies and Director of the Center for Multicultural Education, University of Washington, Seattle “This insightful, theoretically rich, and timely book helps readers understand why many young men turn to gangs and how schools and community-based organizations can counter the lure of the streets to expand opportunities for young men of color.” —Pedro A. Noguera, Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education, New York University, and author of City Schools and the American Dream “This book provides an important testament to the power we have to change lives and to the remarkable resiliency that brings hope in the face of hardship. —Rachel F. Moran, Michael J. Connell Distinguished Professor of Law and Dean, UCLA School of Law In Streetsmart Schoolsmart, two respected scholars present original research on youth gangs and school success to explain why some boys become disengaged and join gangs while others do not. Chapters vividly describe how urban boys from different ethnic backgrounds (Asian, African American, and Latino) approach schooling and identify the sociocultural factors that affect their choices. The authors concentrate on three areas: (1) the role of marginalized communities in the formation of urban gang youth, (2) the role of community-based organizations in reengaging urban youth, and (3) the role of schools in creating opportunities for urban boys to succeed despite disparities in their economic and social circumstances. Streetsmart Schoolsmart points the way toward important changes that can break the cycle of poverty in American neighborhoods and society. It is essential reading for educators and all professionals working with urban youth, and anyone concerned with the success of young boys. Gilberto Q. Conchas is executive director of the Career Academy Support Network (CASN) at the University of California, Berkeley, and associate professor of education at the University of California, Irvine. James Diego Vigil is professor of social ecology at the University of California, Irvine.