In The Adolescent Society, Coleman argues that
educating the youth is one of the fundamental tasks of society; however, with
the changing dynamics of society, the “processes of education” have changed
with the emergence of an industrial society and economic specialization. These
changes force parents to send their children to formal educational institutions
which supposedly offer tools for children to succeed in the modern day society.
However, Coleman argues that the education of children in these institutions has
created a completely separate subculture, one where adolescents become
distanced from the rest of society and seek to identify more with their peers. This
creates a social system where the goals of education become overshadowed by
youth culture and the desire to fit in with their peers. Coleman supports his
argument by presenting surveys of youth that show the shift from the want to
fulfill their parents’ desires to the want to fit in with their peers.
Coleman ignores the fact that
although children spend a considerable time at school with their peers, they
also spend a substantial time at home. The amount of time a child spends at home
depends on a parent’s regulation and monitoring of their child’s activity.
Before a youth turns into an adult, a parent has not only the right but also the
responsibility to enforce these rules. Coleman also argues that “adolescents
have become an important market, and special kinds of entertainment cater
almost exclusively to them”. This relates to the idea of youth-as-consumers and
the idea that youth have not only acquired greater spending power but also the
ability to experiment with these forms of entertainment without adult
supervision. I feel Coleman takes an adult-centered perspective by looking at
the problem of separation of youth from adult society as a problem caused by youths
without taking into account an adult’s involvement or lack thereof. While
parents may not be able to provide formal education such as science or math,
they still have the ability to teach their children moral values which shape
their character and can affect a child’s decision making. Furthermore, it is up
to the parents to regulate the type of entertainment their child is exposed to.
The article “Kids online:
parents, don’t panic” by Danah Boyd offers a different perspective on adolescent
subculture. Boyd argues that social media has simply provided children with an
easier way of talking with a large group of peers due to the limited free time
of young adults who often participate in after-school activities or jobs. Although
social media may contain some “unhealthy interactions” it contains information
which can be educationally beneficial. Furthermore, Boyd observes that parents
spend a great amount of time on their own electronic devices as their children
do. Whether it be constantly checking their phone, or glued to the television,
doesn’t this distance adults from youth?
Link to
article: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/mar/01/young-people-online-parents-dont-panic-instagram-snapchat
While Coleman argues that educating youth is a fundamental task of society, it is also a fundamental task of parents. I agree with Jimmy that school is only a part of a child's learning process. Although the significant amount of time youth spend in schools means that teachers in part become moral instructors, parents should hold more sway in this area.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, Jimmy brings up a good point in that parents are responsible for regulating their children's access to certain media. Although there is a market specifically targeted at youth, it acts under the assumption that parents will allow their children access to this market. If parents believe there are negative outcomes related to a certain form of entertainment, it is their responsibility to limit their children's access to it.
As long as a child is living under their parents' roof, I do not think that we should place them in a wholly separate subculture of their own. Perhaps parents have lost some control over their children due to the "processes of education," but not all of it. Some influence remains, and parents should use it to the best of their ability rather than giving in to the notion that youth are long gone, separated from the adult world by their own subculture.
I agree with Jimmy’s contention that parents ought to play a large role in shaping their children at least morally, if not emotionally or intellectually, even as children spend more time away from home. I also agree that the lack of parental involvement in an adolescent’s life exacerbates the gap between youth and adults. However, while Coleman does describe how youth subcultures have manifested over time, I disagree with Jimmy’s argument that Coleman portrays youth subculture as a problem caused by youths, and I do not think that Colman has neglected to address the role of adults in this issue.
ReplyDeleteColeman contends that youth are increasingly motivated by peer approval in addition to, not in place of, parental desires, and this becomes a problem only when the youth subculture deviates from the standards of the larger adult society (244). Further, Coleman explains that this social phenomenon is a consequence of industrialization and economic specialization (237), rather than the actions of any specific group of people. If anyone could be called the source of the issue, Coleman points out that it would be the parents who were “out of touch with the times” (237) and unable to pass down any vocational skills to their children. Or, if not the parents, the blame would lie with the adult-governed society that developed industrialization, demanded longer school hours and extracurricular activities, and then was forced to face the “unintended consequences” of a segregated adolescent society (239). Thus, Coleman does not seem to describe youth subculture as the result of any inherent fault of or problem with the adolescent, only as an adolescent’s response to the increased exposure to peers, which was a result of adult-implemented regulations.
I enjoyed reading this blog post. The argument advanced is both an interesting and innovative contrast to our readings. This post evaluated how the time children spend at home may affect their development as much as their time spent at school does. In examining what influence adults have on the development of youth, I would also include the adult authority in schools as an important factor. When youth attend school, they are not necessarily constructing a sphere separate from adults. Adults plan, run, and monitor school activity; in this way, while in school, youth are still participating in an adult-controlled world. However, as Thrasher argued, youth can defy adult authority by forming ties and social groups outside of adult-sanctioned extracurricular activities, leading to the formation of gangs. This is an example of youth exercising agency apart from adult influence. But this type of youth-lead social organization is not a phenomenon limited to interactions outside of the home. Youth can similarly defy the rules set forth by their parents as a way to gain agency, or power. Thus, I propose that whether in school or at home, adults have the same effect on developing youth.
ReplyDeleteJimmy does a great job at summarizing the Coleman reading and brings up interesting points about the separation of youth and adult societies. However, I have to disagree with Jimmy’s point about the adult-centered nature of Coleman’s study. Coleman explicitly states that he hopes to study the “ways in which these [youth] subsocieties operate” (244), making it a very deliberate attempt at utilizing a youth-centered perspective. Furthermore, Coleman does not necessarily blame the youth for creating subcultures, but rather lists the reasons being the emergence of an industrial society and the economic specialization of schools segregated by age. Coleman talks about how parents feel like they have lost touch with their youth, because it seems “young people speak a different language.” Here, Jimmy’s point about more effort on the part of the adult to connect with youth is valid. Coleman suggests that there should be a campaign to align youth societies with adult desires (244).
ReplyDeleteI fully agree with what was stated above. Adults tend to attribute any issues to the youth, rather than assessing their own stake in things. Adults are consciously placing their children in schools and activity after activity, in hopes of getting them to places of higher education. A youth’s life becomes fully encapsulated with these things, and it is only natural that they start to become of consequence to the youth. Adults have chosen these arenas, so they should not be upset, if youth begin to heavily invest in them. There should be strides to understand these cultures, rather than attribute all issues to youth. I am a bit surprised that the diminished capacity of youth has not been mentioned as to why youth so crave to fit in. This seems to be the sited reason for most issues regarding youth. Perhaps it is because adults also crave to fit in, but at less obvious rate.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned in the post above, adults do shape the values and morality of their children. They should then trust that they have raised their children well, and that they will make good decisions. In regards to social media, I have learned from personal experience that the connections that youth have are often extensions of their school and activity peers. Parents have had a hand in choosing these, so should be slightly more at ease as to who their children interact with online. Youth also learn from example. If they see their parents online all the time, it is only natural that they too will increase their time spent online.
I agree with Jimmy about the role of adults in the lives of youth. Kids in school spend a lot of time at home as well as school, where they can be influenced by their parent. Another thing I would like to point out is that for the first few years of a child's life they are basically in an environment where the biggest influence in their life is their parents, and the parents have all these years where they can shape and mold them how they see fit. If the goal is to create a economically successful child, then these early years are just as important if not more in shaping a child. Then as children get older and go to school, they have a lot of pressure from their peers to act a certain way, but the parents are still there. I agree with Jimmy when he says that Coleman ignores the facts that children also spend a lot of time at home. I think it is sort of an excuse for failing parents when they see their children acting in certain ways, because they feel like they child was influenced by others. And although that may be true, the parent still has to be a parent, I felt that the role of adults acting as parents was diminished in the Coleman article.
ReplyDeleteJimmy I really liked the stance that you took with Coleman. I honestly believe that in many cases the parents have even more influence than their peers do. Yes it is true that we hang out with our friends and in school for significantly longer than we do at home, but Coleman ignores young children.
ReplyDeleteWhen you are a young child you are very impressionable. For some people they have a great family and on hand parents who teach them what right from wrong is and morals. Then you have children whose parents are not hands on. Those children will then grow up to be more impressionable adolescents from their peers. So their peers will have a stronger influence on them than their parents do. This is not saying that all of the cases are like that, because there are children whose parents are hands on, but are still geared more towards what their peers have to say.
I completely agree with your argument and found it very well written and insightful.
I really enjoyed reading this post because Jimmy went beyond simply stating Coleman's argument and questioned it. I agree that Coleman takes an adult-centered perspective when stating the "subculture" that youth have created by relying solely on their peers. He does fail to apply how in a sense, adults also have a similar subculture though that is not what it is called. Peer support and peer dependence for most youth arises from the need to belong and be accepted. Like mentioned in lecture, when Coleman asked students what was important to them the expressed they wanted to be remembered for something great and be popular. This can be translated to how (generally) many adults want to provide the best comfort for their children and ensure they succeed. By taking an adult-centered perspective to make his argument, Coleman's stance is slightly weakened. Regardless, I believe Coleman attempted to take a youth-centered perspective but failed to do so when he neglected the similarities between the youth "subculture" and the adult culture.
ReplyDeleteJimmy’s argument is very interesting to read. I would, however, disagree with his conclusion and argue otherwise. Firstly, I should state that Coleman does not explicitly reject the role of parents in the discussed issue: “ They (adolescents) are still oriented toward fulfilling their parents’ desire, but…”(Coleman). Coleman believes that the world of youth is also concerned with peer’s approval and this has become more obvious than before. Coleman identifies several elements, which segregates the world of youth from the world of adults, but perhaps the most important point is “economic specialization”. It is very clear that parents are mostly engaged with their job-related tasks and can not afford to train their children for a specific profession. The standardization system in modern societies requires youth to go through a particular learning system, which prepares them for standardized tests. As we all know, the education system tends to evolve very rapidly in line with technology advancements; therefore, the youth need to be more involved with schools and peers than with their parents. Also, we should agree that adolescents spend the most productive hours of their time with their peers outside of home. It is true that youth still spend a substantial amount of time at home, but in reality they are still connected to their own world through their iPhones and iPads. I acknowledge that this is not the case with every single household in the United States but I am confident this is true about most of the households. According to LA Times “Young people spend 7 hours, 38 minutes a day on TV, video games, computer”. I am certain that youth do not use this time necessarily to communicate with parents but they rather use it to communicate with their peers or watch contents which are designed to target adolescents.
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