The role of young people in modern society

‘What should young people do with their lives today? Many things, obviously. But the most daring thing is to create stable communities in which the terrible disease of loneliness can be cured.’
Kurt Vonnegut

Adolescence is a vital period in life as this is the first time individuals can truly make their own decisions. The relationships teenagers have with their peers, family, and members of their social sphere play a vital role in the social development of an adolescent because teenagers can be easily influenced by the people they develop close relationships with.

The role of the family in a teenager’s life changes dramatically. Some psychologists say about the generation gap. Generation gap is the difference in ideas, feelings and interests between older and younger people which is often characterized by the lack of under­standing. Arguments often concern minor issues of control, such as acceptable clothing, and the adolescent's right to privacy, which teenagers may have previously viewed as issues over which their parents had complete authority. Social media has also played an increasing role in teenager and parent disagreements. While parents never had to worry about the threats of social media in the past, it has become a dangerous place for children. Many parents have very little knowledge of social networking sites and this further increases their mistrust. Despite changing family roles during adolescence, the home environment and parents are still important for the behaviors and choices of teenagers. Teens who have a good relationship with their parents are less likely to engage in various risk behaviors, such as smoking, drinking, fighting, and/or unprotected sexual intercourse. In addition, parents influence the education of adolescence.

Most modern teenagers realize what role education plays in modern world so they are more likely to complete secondary and higher education to get better chances of a career development. Of course the amount of time adolescents spend on work and leisure activities varies greatly, but more and more teenagers are spending more time in school or working and less time on leisure activities. The growing number of teens try to find some part-time jobs in summer time as the problem of pocket money exists. Some parents are too strict and control how their children spend money.

Adolescence is the period when teenagers often become heavily emotionally invested in friends. Friends demonstrate a greater impact on one another so it is common for teens to copy friends in different situations. Peer groups can have positive influences on an individual, such as on academic motivation and performance. Unfortunately, they can also have negative influences, like encouraging experimentation with drugs, drinking, vandalism, and stealing. So the social environment which can be created for a teenager is very important.

Within the past ten years, the amount of social networking sites available to the public has greatly increased. One in four (23%) teens are "heavy" social media users, meaning they use at least two different types of social media each and every day. Some psychologists have indicated that electronic communication negatively affects adolescents' social development, replaces face-to-face communication, impairs their social skills, and can sometimes lead to unsafe interaction with strangers. However, other researchers suggest that Internet communication brings friends closer and is beneficial for socially anxious teens, who find it easier to interact socially online.

Adolescence is a period full of uncertainties; therefore, teenagers feel the need to find somebody that they can cling to, who would make them feel like they belong somewhere or to something in the society. The role which a teenager should never play is a desperate, lonely person. And this is everyone’s responsibility. The chance should be given to everyone.

There are some ways to a happy life:

• Love yourself. Almost no one is satisfied with the way he or she looks. Remember that you are you and you are unique.
• Be yourself. You cannot be “cool” all the time. And who determines what is cool?
• The advertising companies? MTV? The happiness from following the crowd is not lasting. Don’t sacrifice yourself to be with someone who doesn’t respect you.
• Believe in yourself – if you don’t, how can you expect others to?
• If you set yourself goals, always set goals that you can reach. If you have done enough, then award yourself. Smile at your face in the mirror and say: “I did great today”. Say it three times and mean it.
• Learn the power of colour. Blue is calming, red gives you energy, orange makes you more optimistic, turquoise makes you less shy and more confident in yourself.
• Believe dreams can come true; it’s the first step on the road to making them happen.
• Learn to say “No”. If you really don’t want to do something, say so... If this is difficult for you, say “This isn’t easy, but I have to say “no”.
• Eat breakfast. People who make time for it are slimmer and healthier.
• Exercise! It’s really worth the time and effort it takes. Exercise is fun. It strengthens your muscles. It’s a good way to meet people and make friends. It helps to get rid of pent-up emotions and anger and it can lift your mood.
• Beware of watching too much television. Once on, the TV can be difficult to turn off.
• Get eight hours sleep at night – you’ll feel and look better after it.
• Feeling low? Meet a friend, listen to music or just have a sleep. Reading something really gripping can also help.
• Expect to fail sometimes. It happens to everyone, no matter how successful. The important thing is to learn some useful lesson from your disappointments.
• Learn the power of positive speaking – sounding optimistic makes you feel that way.
• Worried about something? What advice would you give to your best friend? Take that advice yourself.
• Be social. People with friends live longer than loners.
• Join something – a sports club or a drama society. People who feel involved are more optimistic and more successful.
• Crying is an important way of getting rid of stress-generated chemicals that would otherwise build up in your body.
• Feeling shy? There’s absolutely nothing wrong with being shy. But it would’t hurt to make an effort to be more social.
• Do sport. It can give you energy to live.

STUDENT CARD

Give a 2-2.5 minute talk on the topic “The problems of young people”.

Remember to say:

• What problems young people face today
• How the problems influence the life of young people
• How these problems can be solved
• If you have any problems and how you deal with them

Answer the question: Is it important to have a good family? Why/Why not?

WORD FORMATION