Parents: Relax

This article mainly talks about how teenagers these days are deemed worse off than their forebears, and that it isn't true. It talks about how parents should "relax" and that teens are less violent and more sober, rational in thinking, and should be given more rights in deciding their lives. It says that the teen brain may well be evolving, and that teens are actually becoming more rational and make better decisions compared to their forebears, so their parents, being the forebears, should rest easy knowing that their children are probably better at making the right decisions (albeit not as often as adults) as they themselves were when they were teenagers. The idea of introducing a type of 'competency test' to determine his/her rational thinking, no matter what their age is, was offered by Robert Epstein. The children/teenagers who pass this test can then be allowed more rights, such as signing their own contracts, vote and do essentially anything he/she wants, like drinking, smoking, driving, etc.

The author made a very good point in saying that even though this test can be considered, the question is, who will be the one who creates the test? Psychologists could, as Epstein said, but who can say that these psychologists can even agree on the level of maturity and rational thinking the applicant must have? Even though they are all in the same field, they would have different ideas on the competency level they think the children should have before they "pass the test". It's the same as different doctors coming up with different diagnosis for a single patient. This test could lead to even more problems because of the difference in opinion.

I agree with the author that teenagers now are more rational in their thinking compared to their forebears. This is because they are exposed to different environments. Teens nowadays have sources like the Internet where they can always research on whatever they want to know, and decide for themselves whether something is morally right or wrong. Most schools also tutor their students in what they should do and what they should not. For example, many schools invite professionals to come to their school and give talks to their pupils (eg on the harmful effects of smoking, drugs, etc.) Their forebears didn't get as much exposure to this kind of things when they were our age, as what was most important was their education, not overall upbringing. Violence is also decreased as most violent tendencies that teenagers may have are resolved as soon as possible. Although there are still cases of violence and shooting, it has become relatively less(as shown from the article-'the rate of school violence fell from 48 crimes per 1,000 students in 1992 to 22 per 1,000 in 2004, according to the Department of Education').

The author commented that since kids have been making better decisions in the past 20 years, they should maintain status quo and that it 'would be perverse to reward them by saying that we don't care if they get drunk and watch porn, or do anything else wrong. I disagree. Since it has already been proven that kids these days have better rational thinking skills and the ability to judge for themsevlves, giving them more freedom is simply what they deserve. They can be offered all the choices in the world, but if teenagers know what is right and what is wrong, they themselves will decide what they want to do. Thus, yes, parents should simply relax and let us learn how to live life our way.


-pinghao