102081 Adolescent Development and Teaching

Assignment 2: Multimodal Group Work

Intervention for Dylan

1. Cover slide

2. Introduction/ background slides with the following context:

3. Dylan current state:

4. School meeting to get Dylan back on track socially and academically:

5. Ms. Smith: Thank you for coming in today Mr. & Mrs. Jones, I have noted your concerns
about Dylan and invited Mr. Ranieri our School Councillor to discuss Dylan’s issues and what
interventions we can put in place to help him get back on track.
Mr. Ranieri: I have looked over some notes about Dylan and It is evident that there could be
a few reasons that explain why Dylan is behaving poorly:
SECTION A: Identification/ explanation of developmental issues
Firstly, we need to consider some Biological factors to help explain this:
Dylan’s Brain development & late Pubertal timing is most likely key contributors to
his negative choices:
 Research by Steinberg (2005) shows that adolescence is a time of risk
because the teenage brain is prone to emotional reaction over logical
choices and prone to sensation seeking. If Dylan has delayed puberty, his
cognitive development will also be delayed. This means that right now,
Dylan lacks the cognitive ability to analyse his behaviour, solve problems and
evaluate his current situation completely by himself.
 Mussen & Jones (1958) tell us that his high-risk behaviours such as smoking,
stealing and truanting is probably his attempt to overcompensate for being
less popular, perhaps due to his smaller size.
 His late maturation has impacted his sports by not being chosen for the
Basketball team this year and research by Santrock (2014) notes that
because the other boys are much taller and stronger than him, his
confidence and self-image are most likely negatively affected as he feels
rejected.

This leads us to consider some Social factors that help explain Dylan’s current state:

 Dylan has an absence of positive peer groups now. Santrock, (2014) explains
that his choice to associate with anti-social peers and participate in crime
most likely stems from Dylan’s poor self-image/rejection.
 Unsupportive School Environment and feelings of disconnection. Santrock,
(2014) has identified that students like Dylan who truant and engage in
delinquency are most likely disengaged from school and feel like they don’t
belong to the school community and often miss out on getting support from
school councillors and teachers.
  Dylan most likely feels overwhelmed by your unrealistic expectations that he
should be an athlete and feels pressure to be a high academic achiever. We
know that research by Cripps & Zebrowski (2015) reveals that teens tie their
parental approval with their self-worth and well-being.

SECTION B: Intervention strategies in/out of classroom

Ms. Smith: Solutions:

Identity, Wellbeing Belonging.

Understanding that Dylan is feeling disconnected, suffering from low self esteem and is at a stage in
his cognitive development where he needs help building social and emotional skills, it is important to
look at some positive education concepts and incorporate them into his schooling.

We will use a combination of two frameworks to guide our strategy. The first is The Wellbeing
Framework for Schools (DEC, 2015) which mentions three key areas CONNECT, SUCCEED & THRIVE.
These elements improve student Wellbeing, which ultimately improves academic results by helping
students feel happier and more connected at school. (Durlak et al. 2011).

The second is the ACARA Scope of Personal and Social Capability (2018) which says that when
students develop their skills in any one of the elements of Self Awareness, Self Management, Social
Awareness or Social Management; it leads to greater overall personal and social capability that lead
to better emotional understanding and control.

Our strategy to help Dylan feel more connected at school is to improve his social skills and
friendships by offering Positive Peer Support where he will be purposefully placed with pro social
peers, through cooperative learning in small groups in the classroom (Sousa, 2009). The positive
interdependence of the group will him to collaborate with other students to reach a goal (social
management). This will not only promote interaction (building and maintaining relationships) but
encourage individual accountability (self-management). (Cornish & Garner 2009). The group will be
encouraged to reflect and assess their progress (self-awareness) and interaction with each other.
Appealing to Dylan’s previous success in Drama, where group interaction was high, these types of
interactions may really motivate him to learn and simultaneously improve his self-esteem (Santrock,
2014).

We know that the application of character strengths-based exercises in the school curriculum is
useful in increasing life satisfaction and well-being among youths. (Proctor et al. 2011). So, earlier we
got Dylan to fill out a Character Strength Based exercise to identify some of his personal strengths
(self-awareness) that could be used to help his peers (Leadership). This is called a Responsibility
strategy (Sousa, 2009). Dylan identified his previous Basketball skills in team work, Public speaking
from Drama and Mathematic skills as his assets (Thrive). We jointly discussed what ways he could
use these assets to help his school community and came up with the idea that Dylan could act as
assistant coach to the junior basketball team in his spare time and help pass on his expertise. In this
way, not only is Dylan engaged, but he is also cognitively challenged to change his negative view of
his self-worth, but it simultaneously gives him the opportunity to be seen in a positive light by his
peers and therefore help him feel part of the wider school community and create a positive identity
(Building & maintaining relationships & Connect)

We know that research by Cripps & Zebrowski (2015) reveals that teens tie their parental approval
with their self-worth and well-being. Additionally, as his parents, we encourage you to abandon the
unrealistic ambitions of a university scholarship and find an alternative way to fund his education,
Perhaps Dylan may be encouraged to pursue a creative arts degree at a local University where his
interest in Drama can be used to motivate him to get his life together.
SECTION B: Weaknesses of Intervention strategies

SECTION D: Individual personal reflection

References:

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). (2018). ACARA Scope of
Personal and Social Capability. Retrieved from https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-
curriculum/general-capabilities/personal-and-social-capability/

Andersson, T., & Magnusson, D. (1990). Biological maturation in adolescence and the development
of drinking habits and alcohol abuse among young males: A prospective longitudinal study. Journal
of Youth and Adolescence, 19(1), 33-41. Doi: 10.1007/BF01539443

Cornish, L., and Garner, J. (2009). Promoting Student Learning. (2nd ed.). Frenchs Forest, NSW:
Pearson Education Australia

Covington, M.V. (1992). Making the grade; A self-worth perspective on motivation. New York:
Cambridge University Press

Cripps, K., & Zyromski, B. (2015) Adolescents’ Psychological Well-Being and Perceived Parental
Involvement: Implications for Parental Involvement in Middle Schools. Research in Middle Level
Education, 33(4), 1-13. Doi: 10.1080/19404476.2009.11462067

Durlak, J. A., Dymnicki, A. B., Taylor, R. B., Weissberg, R. P., & Schellinger, K. B. (2011). The Impact of
Enhancing Students' Social and Emotional Learning: A Meta-Analysis of School-Based Universal
Interventions. Child Development, 82(1), 405-432. Doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x

Graber, G. A. (2013). Pubertal timing and the development of psychopathology in adolescence and
beyond. Hormones and Behavior, 64(2), 262-269. Doi: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2013.04.003

Johnson, D.W., and Johnson, R.T. (1991). Learning together and alone. (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and
Bacon

Mussen, P.H, & Jones, M. C. (1958). The Behavior-Inferred Motivations of Late- and Early-Maturing
Boys. Child Development, 29(1), 61-67. Doi: 10.2307/1126270

NSW Department of Education and Community. (2015). The NSW Wellbeing Framework for Schools.
Retrieved from https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/wellbeing/about

Proctor, C., Tsukayama, E., Wood, A. M., Maltby, J., Eades, J. F., & Linley, P. A. (2011). Strengths Gym:
The impact of a character strengths-based intervention on the life satisfaction and well-being of
adolescents. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 6(5), 377-388. Doi: 10.1080/17439760.2011.594079

Santrock, J. W. (2004). Life-span development (9th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill

Santrock, J.W. (2014) Problems in adolescence and emerging adulthood. (15th ed). New York:
McGraw-Hill Education.

Sousa, D.A. (2009). How The Brain Influences Behaviour: Management Strategies for Every
Classroom. California: Corwin Press

Steinberg, L. (2005). Cognitive and affective development in adolescence. Trends in Cognitive

Sciences, 9(2), 69-74. Doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2004.12.005

White, R. & Wyn, J. (2008). Youth & Society (2nd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.