America’s Teenagers: Myths and Realities by Sharon L. Nichols and Thomas L. Good
292 pages
Started: 6 November 2008
Finished: 26 January 2009
This was an interesting book looking at several of the ideas people have about teenagers and youth in our country. It began by talking about how youth are valued and devalued in our society and then talked about the media, violence, sex, substance use, health, work, and education. It also offered solutions, even small ones that could make a bit difference, in the last chapter. If a book is going to do a lot of pointing out problems, I appreciate when it also talks about solutions.
Each chapter talked about the beliefs people hold about teenagers, and then presented statistical evidence for what the truth is, and how close or far that truth was from what people generally believe. On the whole, society is greatly underestimating just how good adolescents are in this country and all that they have to deal with, and in doing so they are not being provided with the opportunities and support they need. It was a very interesting read and I have already pulled what I learned from it in several conversations.
One complaint I would have with the book is how they presented the statistics. At the start of the chapter about substance use, they state that it is tragic that deficit depictions are the ones that are more prominently displayed by the media while the stories of youth’s positive behavior and choices are pushed to the side and marginalized. But that is exactly what they had done in the previous chapter on sexual behavior! That whole chapter had been deficit depictions! Made me want to shout to the world that I’m a virgin and it’s perfectly okay! Also made me want to go shake a finger of shame at the authors.
One of the biggest lessons from the book then would be to think critically about statistics reported in the news. What story aren’t they telling when they tell others? And definitely, don’t underestimate teenagers. The negative stereotypes adults constantly talk about can become self-fulfilling prophecies, so watch what you say.
Rating: 8
