Rockridge High School
Teacher: Barbara Downey
Rite Of Passage
By Josh Onken
Grade 12
Everyday youth are faced with important decisions that may alter the direction their life is heading. Many youths do make good decisions but many stumble and are unable to get back on their feet. For these youth who stumble, where do they turn to for help? In our society today the answer to this question is unclear. Many teens have grown up in households in which the they do not have much contact their parents. This lack of contact further alienates the child from his (or her) parent(s) causing even more problems. Parents often fail to realize that as their child grows and the child’s need for more responsibility and freedom increases, so does the need for that child to be recognized by adults.
Today teens have devised their own ways of spanning the bridge from adolescence to adulthood. Some of these Rites of Passages are beneficial to the youth and the future of our society, but many others are immoral and have aided in the downfall of modern society. Parents are in disarray and youth are even more confused about the direction of their young lives. So as youth become lost somewhere between the worlds of adulthood and childhood, the need for a more formal rite of passage has increased.
The problem with today’s society is that teens have filled the absence of a formal rite of passage with their own forms of initiation, the most popular of which are alcohol and drugs. Probably the most widely abused are cigarettes and beer. These two products have been proven to be unhealthy yet youth continue to use them. Many feel that they are being rebellious and feel this makes them more popular.
Another problem is violence. Gangs are the most visible source of violence but there are other lesser known groups that influence youth through their radical ideas and philosophies. Many young gangsters do not consider themselves men until they have killed a member of the rival gang. Other groups promote vandalism, robbery, or even rape for young members looking to achieve a higher status.
One of the most predominant rites of passages among youth is sex. Sex is one of the most over looked problems in our society. No one is comfortable talking about sex, so most people turn a blind eye to the subject. Everyone seems to say not to do it, but fail to provide any type of education beyond that point. Most teens resent being told not to do something without being given a solid reason so they participate in the activity readily. Ultimately they will find themselves carrying a large burden that could have been avoided.
Although our society does have its problems, it does have its share of success. Programs such as Hearts and Hammers and Habitat for Humanity are giant steps in the right direction. These programs in which volunteers help erect houses for lower in come families would be a great experience for youth. It builds teamwork skills, teaches job skills, gives the youth a feeling of self worth, and most of all, it is fun.
Community youth groups have also played roles in the bettering of America’s youth through volunteer work. I have been a member of a couple youth groups in the past few years. I find the experience rewarding and fun. I have been involved with neighborhood trash pick-up, feeding the homeless, and mowing the lawns of the older members in my community. The other youth group that I am in has sponsored potlucks, worked at blood drives, and sang Christmas carols at nursing homes.
Many churches are also involved in getting their younger members active in various forms of service. They do many of the same things that the community youth groups except, by offering prayers and songs, church groups also try to heal the soul. Church youth groups from my area have traveled to places such as Haiti, Venezuela, and Mexico on mission trips and are very active when aiding the elderly and the poor.
The time is now right for communities to start initiating a rite of passage for its youth. A rite of passage based around community service could have a profound effect on today’s youth. Children could gain attention in adults’ eyes by doing something that would benefit the community instead of destroy it.
To achieve this we must first build on the ideas listed above. Community youth groups must expand and show children that it is cool to be in a youth group. Youth groups must then act and get its members involved in the community. A group that held semi-weekly meetings and did community service even just one weekend every couple months would still see a dramatic change in the attitudes of the individuals involved.
This project would not have to be limited to just lone communities but could be a nation wide organization. Along with working one weekend every couple months there could be a week set aside during the summer in which adolescents in the program work or do some form of community service throughout the week. Members of this organization could receive a newsletter containing ideas and the successes of other groups. Also there could be national help lines that teens with problems or questions could call to seek guidance or to find out what they can do to better their community.
The most important aspect of this program would be to let the children be in charge. Older members could act as officers to run meetings and lead group projects while a couple adult sponsors watch from a distance to offer guidance and support. The key would be to allow the children to feel that they are the ones making the decisions and the improvement and bettering of the community.
The time for a rite of passage is now. As today’s youth become more disenchanted and lost somewhere between the worlds of adulthood and childhood, the need for a rite or passage increases. A rite of passage in which adolescents became involved in their community would be beneficial to everyone: the youth, their parents, and society in general.
1. Margaret Mead is stressing that youths in today’s society are not striving to achieve their full potential, or in the words of the United States Army they are not trying to "be all that you can be." She believes that because there is little knowledge about society’s role in shaping young lives that people are rushing to conclusions about why adolescence is such a difficult time in people’s lives rather than first looking first to the more obvious reasons.
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. While these topics may not be as large a concern as they were in the 1920's, they are all still very important today. With the rising number of immigrants entering the United States each year who choose to continue to speak their native language, the importance of the language spoken at home continues to be a concern. Familial pressures on children is still an issue today because of how competitive our society is in general. All parents push their children to succeed in one way or another. Misconceptions about race and color has been an issue and will always be an issue. People are always looking for someone to blame their problems on and minorities are easy targets. Lastly the effects of artificially separating children from knowledge of birth, love and death continues to be an issue because of the emphasis in our society for a person to know who he or she really is.
3 Yes, I believe that culture is man made. The way we dress, what movies we watch, and the music we listen to are all reflections of our culture. We are culturally influenced by magazines, celebrities, and even politicians. This being the case, not all men can design culture. It takes a person or an organization with a lot of power to dictate to us exactly what our culture is. Culture– the act of developing the intellectual and moral faculties
4. In Margaret Mead’s writings she was emphasizing a greater knowledge and control over the civilizing process. She stated she was avoiding encouraging a return to the primitive places like Samoa, and their simple way of life. She did, however, want to take what she had learned and apply it to her life in New York.
5. I believe under certain circumstances or at certain places youths want boundaries and structure but there are also areas that youths want more freedom. At school, the atmosphere should be a learning environment and should have boundaries and structure. They are necessary to keep the students safe and provide a comfortable place to learn. In general, I do not believe that youths want more boundaries and structure. Young adults want as much freedom and liberty as they are allowed.
6. In my years in high school I have seen many rules dealing with substances that are illegal on school grounds broken. Some of the many things that I have witnessed are smoking in the locker room, drinking vodka mixed in orange juice during class, and even a small container full of marijuana and a pipe being carried around by a student during health class.
7. I do not believe there is a solution. There will always be racism. People will always point a finger for all of society’s faults. Blaming minorities is an easy way to direct the blame and is accepted by many people. Nothing can really be done except trying to teach understanding and trying in instill in our young non-biased attitudes toward race and color.
8. I believe that a student does more learning at school than just what is taught in the class room. The environment of a dual-sex public school is a learning experience in itself. It teaches youths how to interact with members of the opposite sex and people of different backgrounds and beliefs. This opportunity, which is missed by home-schooled students and single-sex private school students, better prepares youths for experiences in the real world.
9. I think this is true. Students in schools always talk about when they’re going to get out, much like a criminal locked in jail. If schools made an attempt to make classes interesting and show the relevancy between the knowledge being taught in class to experiences in the real world, I believe students would be more attentive. Schools should also try to help students specialize on areas that interest the student most. This would help the student concentrate on an area that he or she enjoys and also places them in a better position to succeed in the workplace.
10. I believe this is very true. The best teachers are those who work to gain respect from their students but also return it as well. A student is more likely to accept something coming from a teacher that he or she respects as opposed to someone who the student believes is out of touch with reality. Also teachers that try to forge friendships with students often get positive responses. The student begins to look at the teacher as someone willing to listen to ideas, questions, and problems, and not as someone being paid to do a job.