Benchmark - Adolescent Cognitive and Social Development. Education Essay

Adolescent Cognitive and Social Development
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Adolescent Cognitive and Social Development
The development process in human beings is a lifelong process that begins immediately after inception. This process takes place in various dimensions: physical, social, emotional, and cognitive. Although the different aspects of development vary from one person to the other, they remain conjoined throughout the various stages of life. It is however during the adolescence phase that human beings experience rapid development in every aspect owing to the need for a careful observance on teenagers due to the implications that come along with the development. Learning, one of the major components of development besides maturation and growth and probably the most critical especially for an adolescent is greatly affected by the different aspects of development and thus appropriate measures need to be put in place to help in the development process.
Cognitive and emotional changes become part and parcel of the development process as a result of hormonal changes and also the maturity of brain components that are associated with these aspects during the adolescence phase. Limbic systems, responsible for the regulation of sleep and emotions are among the brain components that are under development during adolescence (Racz et al., 2017). Sleep is a crucial aspect when it comes to the learning process as research indicates that lack of it is associated with memory malfunctioning and lack of concentration (Galván, 2020). Besides, emotions play an important role in the development of essential reasoning and thinking skills that are critical during the learning process. On the other hand, social development fosters collaboration and relationship buildings, facilitating a conducive environment for learning to take place. Important attributes that are essential in a learning environment such as self-awareness and empathy are realized through social development.
Adolescents can be complex creatures to deconstruct and hence it is difficult to factor in their divergent interests and needs to a learning perspective. Nonetheless, adequate measures need to be put in place to gather for these diversities. According to Sliwka and Klopsch (2019), school settings where adolescents spent most of their time need a thorough redefining to accommodate the rapid changes in terms of development as well as the anticipated difficulties that they are likely to face as they transition to adulthood. Failure to address these concerns may lead to a huge number of adolescents disliking and cutting off themselves from schools. Maximum engagement in learning activities can be evoked from an adolescent by incorporating complex problems that command total engagement of their cognitive functions as well as engaging the students in providing real-world solutions to the problems in the contemporary world (Sliwka & Klopsch, 2019). This will not only unleash their potential but also prepare them to face the uncertainties of the future.
Appreciating the aspect of diversity in the learning process is key in the realization of holistic development and the overall success of a learning institution (Gurr and Drysdale 20...