Adolescent Development
Spencer Dunn
don't fret, you're doing it right
Who would have guessed that Matthew Lewis would grow from awkward little boy into heart-breaking, swoon-inducing, grownup? Well, anyone who knows or has been through puberty themselves, probably. Evidently, puberty brings about significant changes in every one of us and along with these changes comes a new responsibility to care for ourselves. Obviously, contrary to the picture, there is no "wrong" way to do puberty, but there are many decisions to be made during a teen's pubescent years and as an educator, it will be my responsibility to assist them in making healthy choices.​
In order to make healthy decisions, teens need a bit of guidance. They are at a point in their lives where they ear eager to learn and try new things, and as educators, we need to be there to help guide and inform them. One way I will encourage my teens to make healthy decisions is by deconstructing the unrealistic beauty standards imposed on us by, well...everyone.
Regardless of the subjects I will be assigned to teach, I will show the following video. It lasts only 35 seconds, but the impression it leaves can last a lifetime. This video shows how a normal, real-life human gets manufactured into something we would expect to see in a box on the shelf at Walmart (boyfriend with washboard abs sold seperately).
I. Deconstruct the Standards of Beauty
II. Everything in moderation (including moderation)
After watching this, I had to ask myself: "What part of this woman did they not alter? Was her original self so insulting to my eyes that they had to re-touch absolutely every part of her?" Of course, the answer is no. But what happens in this video is common (read: expected) practice among North American media. They do not mention what they intend to sell with this video, but it doesn’t even matter. What the message says is: buy and use our product, and you'll definitely look like her. What many people fail to realize is that how she looks is physically unattainable - it is impossible to look like this woman. Because these techniques are so pervasive, we are in the midst of a body-image epidemic. Teenagers are exposed to unrealistic standards through media, friends, toys, you name it. We have begun to equate thinness with beauty, success, and happiness. We confuse ourselves by thinking: "I bet this woman is really happy. Look how beautiful she is." Sometimes, we internalize these feelings so much that we end up taking drastic actions, some of which result in serious harm to ourselves. In a Canadian study, it was found that one-half of Ontario teenagers (12 to 18 years) felt unhappy about their weight and as much as 66% of teenage girls have attempted weight loss (Jones 2001). During this turmultous time, teens need to be made to feel "normal." That is, they need to know that everyone is going through the same issues that they are. They need to develop confidence in their own bodies, confidence that they are enough as they are. Confidence that tells them they do not need to crash diet until they reach size 00 to be beautiful or successful. By exposing the truth to teens about what they see in the media, we can begin to teach them that what they are told to be does not exist. We can show them that beneath the veil of makeup and photoshop, those people are still people, with all the real human characteristics that come with being a human being, and not a piece of molded plastic. It is my hope that this education will help teens understand that they are faced with an unrealistic expectation of health and beauty. As a side note, our world is so obssessed with body perfection, that a few of us have noted that BitStrips has removed the option for adding pimples to our avatars. So now we cannot even create avatars to our own likeness, because apparently our whole self is undesirable.
Along with this unrealistic expectation of beauty comes an often unrealistic expectation of lifestyle. In order to transform our bodies into anything close to the woman in this video or the man in the magazine, we would have to spend every waking hour at a gym, eating nothing but lettuce while sitting in a chair, obsessing over our makeup. Learning to live in moderation is an incredibly useful and applicable concept. Like this picture suggests, we are often completely interested in something, or absolutely indifferent. Some people are completely enamored by the gym, able to spend an entire day lifting and running. Others would prefer to stay at home and play video games, watch Netflix, or (hopefully) read a book. I want my students to understand and practice the mantra of everything in moderation, including moderation. I want them to understand that staying active is a vital component of a healthy lifestyle, but I also want them to be able to indulge every now and then without feeling guilty. This mantra has helped me in my own life by helping me gain perspective. As long as I stay active in moderation, I can have that cheeseburger or those chips or that chocolate cake. I hope that by internalizing this mantra, my teens will be able to achieve greater balance in their lives, guilt free.
