The Teenage Brain

Over the last several years neuroscientists have been discovering new information about the brain development of adolescents. We are learning amazing things about how dynamically the teenage brain is changing during adolescence. Those committed to working with teenagers find this information extremely fascinating. For decades, parents, teachers, social workers and youth workers, along with anyone else who spends much time around teenagers, have asked the question, "Why do teenagers act like they do?" These new discoveries about the brain are giving us insight for this question.

In the book The Primal Teen: What the New Discoveries About the Teenage Brain Tell Us, the author, Barbara Strauch explores the emerging research concerning adolescent brain development. Strauch is the medical science and health editor of The New York Times. She takes us beyond hormones as a primary explanation of teen behavior and reveals what scientists are finding out about how the brain of a teenager works. She writes, "The teenage brain may, in fact, be briefly insane. But, scientists say, it is crazy by design. The teenage brain is in flux, maddening and muddled. And that’s how it’s supposed to be. And the teenage brain is also wondrous. It’s the brains of teenagers, after all, that began to grapple with our knottiest, most abstract concepts, with honesty and justice. They may find themselves, often to their own surprise, happy to stay up until three A.M. to listen to a friend in trouble, worrying about the children in war-torn Afghanistan, or passionately falling in love with the nuances of a poem."1

We are finding out that the frontal lobe (which enables a human being to make right decisions) is the last part of the brain of an adolescent to reach maturity (as late as the early twenties). The frontal lobe also keeps a human being from being too impulsive. The reality is that adolescent brains are going through a critical stage of organizing and developing and the result is that teenagers are wired to see and experience the world differently than adults and children. They also learn differently.

All of this information makes a significant impact on how we should do youth ministry and engage in the spiritual formation of young people. For instance, the short-term memory center of the brain is going through major changes during adolescence. Give a teenager a list of three things to do and chances are they will accomplish one of those tasks and forget the two others. This doesn’t have anything to do with rebellion it is just how their brain works during this phase of their life. Studies show that teenagers learn best through experiences. They respond well by imitating something that is modeled for them.

Unfortunately, most of our educational models used in schools and churches focus on the impartation of information. The belief that filling a kids head with the right facts is the way to shape them is extremely ineffective. The spiritual formation of our young people must involve experiential learning, sustained spiritual practices, and close guidance by adults who model the way to be Christian. Please don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying that information and facts are not important. I am saying that we must be more creative in how we teach the truth of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. This is why we are creating learning environments and experiences in our ministry to young people. I believe that Jesus demonstrated to us how this is to be done by teaching his disciples along the way through parables that fired their imagination. Jesus used real life circumstances to mold and shape his followers. Jesus told stories and used nature to communicate profound truth. Jesus asked questions and didn’t always provide answers. Jesus created learning experiences for his disciples. It seems obvious that Jesus didn’t convene a classroom every morning to give his lectures. Jesus Christ, the creator, knew best how to shape his human followers. Here at YouthFront we are committed to moving away from rationalistic enlightenment models of human education. We are passionate about returning to biblical models of teaching the Great Good News and imparting to teenagers a way of life that helps them grasp the reality that they are fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God.

The Primal Teen: What the New Discoveries About the Teenage Brain Tell Us About Our Kids, Barbara Strauch (Anchor Books, New York, 2003), page 8.

Comments

[CGras]

I think the YouthFront Mission Institute is a wonderful example of modeling faith. I am so excited for this!

Also, it is high time for a Lexi post. Her last appearance was Dec. 25!

[Grant Wood]

Good words Mike. So many adults want teens to have a grown up brain. Parents and leaders who understand brain development learn to relax and enjoy the journey.

[Mike]

You are right Courtney... there will soon be a Lexi post.

[Mike]

Hey Grant, I love it every time your name pops up. Peace.

[Ty]

I grabbed this book but haven't finished it - been a busy year but it's so interesting. I keep recommending to parents to pick it up and continue reading and checking the research. Good stuff

[Doubthomas]

You know what else neuroscientists have found?
Personality, consciousness, identity are all intrinsically tied to the physical brain, so your God nonsense looks pretty unlikely.

[Mike]

Doubthomas,

By the looks of your name and the tone of your comment it seems like you may have had a pretty bad experience with the church or people who claimed faith. I'm sorry about that and appreciate your comment.

Peace,

Mike