Whytalla

Leadership Report

Hello to all in the school community. I am going to explain a little bit about my role here at Edenhope College.

  • I teach Foundation - Year 8 German and VCAL Literacy.
  • I am one of the Leading Teachers here at the college. I work closely with Mr Neall, Mr McClure, Miss Wallace and Mrs Lowe with the day-to-day running of the college, and also the implementation of the School Strategic Plan, and Annual Implementation Plan.  I am tagged with Student Support & Engagement, which means that I oversee student wellbeing, student support, special needs, pathways and transitions here at the college.
  • I assist with the management of student support and wellbeing on a day-to-day basis.
  • I am a member of the School Wide Positive Behaviour Support program team.
  • I arrange referrals to the DET Student Support Services.
  • I am responsible for actioning applications for the Program for Students with Disability.
  • I manage the Student Support Group process at the school.
  • I run staff meetings and arrange staff Professional Learning centred around Student Support & Engagement

 

Rachel Tiddy

Student Support & Engagement 

The Adolescent Brain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLuEY6jN6gY

 

We are, no doubt, all familiar with the age-old trope of the dreaded teenager popularised through a range of media: rebellious, loud, up to no good, lazy, entitled, rude, self-centred, moody etc.  Considering that the ancient Greek philosopher, Socrates, made the following statement in 400BC, this concept is hardly new:

“The young people of today think of nothing but themselves.  They have no reverence for parents or old age.  They are impatient of all restraint.  They talk as if they alone know everything and what passes for wisdom with us is foolishness for them.  As for girls, they are forward, immodest and unwomanly in speech, behaviour and dress.”

 

So what is really going on?

 

Adolescence is one of the phases of human development, following infancy and childhood.  It is the period of physical and psychological development from the onset of puberty to adulthood.  It is during this time that the individuation of self from family typically occurs, as a person starts to work out who they are an individual and how they fit in the world.  A recent study has found that in terms of neurological development, this process typically finishes between the ages of 18 and 24 for females and between the ages of 22 and 32 for males.    

 

Where adolescence differs considerably from the previous two stages of development, is in what is occurring in the brain.  Before we examine this in more detail, let us first take a look at four key parts of the brain: the brain stem, the cerebellum, the limbic system, and the prefrontal cortex.  For the purpose of our discussion here, it may be easier to explain these using the Wallis model of four separate brains, which is based on Perry’s neuro-sequential model of the brain from bottom to top.  The first ‘brain’ is the survival brain consisting of the brain stem.  This ‘brain’ keeps us breathing and our heart beating.  It is also where our fight, flight, or freeze response is centred.  The second ‘brain’ is the sport brain consisting of the cerebellum, and is where our coordination and movement is controlled.  The third ‘brain’ is the mammalian brain and consists of the limbic system.  This is the part of the brain where our emotional responses arise.  The fourth ‘brain’, the thinking and learning brain consists of the prefrontal cortex.  It is this structure in our brains that allows us to reason, undertake higher order thinking, understand consequence, control our impulses, undertake complex planning, and regulate attention and distraction.  This is also the last part of the brain to fully develop.

 

During adolescence, the brain undergoes significant development.  This includes synaptic pruning, or the removal of neural pathways that are no longer needed or in use (basically ‘use it, or lose it’), as well as further development of the prefrontal cortex.  The development of this cortex plays a significant role in maturation, and during the adolescent years this section of the brain is effectively ‘under construction’.  That is not to say that adolescents don’t have functional prefrontal cortices.  Rather, they are still in the process of developing the complex decision-making and planning skills that adults have already established.

 

What this means in real terms is that adolescents do not always respond to or react in the way adults might expect or want them to, when faced with challenging situations.  Instead of operating from their pre-frontal cortex in the way you or I might in a similar situation, they are more likely to operate from their limbic system.  This is in keeping with their current stage of brain development.  In such moments, questions such as ‘What were you feeling?’ may facilitate dialogue than ‘What were you thinking?’.

 

Rachel Tiddy