Vermont Higher Education Collaborative Logo

Collaborating with experts to support schools and deliver professional development, ensuring the success of all students.



3 Views on Solving The Mystery of the Adolescent Brain

“Remember being a teenager? Rocked internally with hormones, outwardly with social pressures, you sometimes wondered what was going on in your head. So does Sarah-Jayne Blakemore. And what she and others in her field are finding is: The adolescent brain really is different.”

“New brain imaging research and clever experiments are revealing how the cortex develops — the executive part of the brain that handles things like planning, self-awareness, analysis of consequences and behavioral choices. It turns out that these regions develop more slowly during adolescence, and in fascinating ways that relate to risk-taking, peer pressure and learning.” (TED talks)

Here are three resources to help in the understanding of what’s happening in the adolescent brain:

TED talks: The Mysterious Workings of the Adolescent Brain

http://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_jayne_blakemore_the_mysterious_workings_

of_the_adolescent_brain.html

FRONTLINE: Adolescents Brains are a Work in Progress

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/

work/adolescent.html

NPR: The Teen Brain: It’s Not Just Grown Up Yet

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124119468

Dennis has been the Director of the the VT-HEC since it was founded in 2000. He spent 16 years at the VT-DOE as Director of teams with various names that included: special education, Title I, health and wellness and other family and education support services. Prior to that Dennis worked at the Barre Town School (VT) starting as a special educator and serving many years as the Director of Student Support Services. He also spent 6 years as a classroom teacher grades 5-8 in NJ.

Leave a Reply