Are teenagers a problem?

Parents and grandparents always seem to have the premise that teenagers are a special category when we define the human race. According to 'the older genera­tion' teenagers are lazy, they wear ridiculous clothes and are extremely rude to their betters and elders; they find it impossible to be polite, helpful, constructive, caring or hard-working. What's more, they spend all their time listening to awful music ("It isn't music, it's just a col­lection of horrendous noises!") and gawping at unsuitable films. And all they ever think about is parties, drugs and sex. Well, that's how the story goes! But is it anywhere near the truth?

Actually, it seems to me to be quite the opposite of the truth. Teenagers spend a lot of time thinking about their work (studies), their families and friends and their hobbies. Sure, there are certain preoccupations such as clothes, money, how to behave in a certain sit­uation, their bodies.

But isn't it the same for most people? So what about the myth that all teenagers are rude, selfish, lazy and greedy? As far as I'm concerned, it's nonsense. The vast majority of young people I meet are polite, friendly, open, interested and hard-working.

Do teenagers have problems?

Teenagers are human, so of course they have problems. And the problems aren't very differ­ent from anyone else's.

What's going to happen at work/school tomorrow?

Why does Dad like my sister better than me?

Am I too fat / skinny / tall / short etc.?

Does my boyfriend / girlfriend really like me?

How can I afford to buy ................ ?

Am I stupid?

There isn't anyone alive in the world who hasn't posed these questions. We usually do it when we turn out the light and lie down in bed at night and the answers aren't very satis­factory!

It's true, of course, that sometimes teenagers have special problems. It is a difficult time because it is a period of transformation. It isn't quite as bad as a chrysalis changing into a but­terfly. It isn't easy to grow up and the physical and emotional changes are often confusing and worrying. But it's my impression that most young people cope rather well.

4.1.Try to understand the text with the help of the following words and expressions:

betters and elders = older people who are (or should be!) wiser

caring - заботливый

what's more - более того

horrendous = terrible, extremely bad

to gawp at = to look at something in a foolish way, esp. with the mouth open

drugs -наркотики

preoccupations = things that you think about more than anything else

to behave - вести себя

rude [ru:d]- грубый

selfish - эгоистичный

greedy - жадный

as far as I'm concerned = in my opinion

nonsense - чепуха, ерунда

skinny - тощий

to afford - позволять себе, иметь возможность

to pose - ставить (вопрос)

chrysalis - куколка (насекомых)

impression - впечатление

to cope - справляться

to come up - возникать (о вопросе, проблеме и т.п.)

set me thinking = made me begin to think about it

prerogative - прерогатива, исключительное право

inclusive - включительно

to exclude - исключать

to vote - голосовать

permission - разрешение

at the other end of the scale - с другой стороны

in actual fact – в действительности

premise - предпосылка, данное, логическая посылка

to define - определять, давать точное определение

ridiculous - нелепый, смешной

 

Fill in the gaps with suitable words and expressions.

1. Itravel ………. for my work and often meet young people.

2. Are ……… a problem in your country?

3. Why, for ……….., should teenagers be more of a problem than, say, ………. people or babies?

4. once you reach eighteen you can ……,

5. In actual fact they have their own group title now — '…………' or some­times '…………'.

6. It isn't music, it's just a col­lection of …………. noises!

7. Well, that's how the story …….!

8. Actually, it seems to me to be ……………… the truth.

9. As ………………, it's nonsense!

10. It is a difficult time because it is a period of …………….

 

4.3.Translate into English:

1. Я достаточно много путешествую по работе и часто встречаюсь с молодыми людьми.

2. Официально, конечно, тинэйджер это кто-то в возрасте от 13-ти до 19-ти лет включительно, но большинство людей вероятнее всего будет считать таковыми более молодую возрастную категорию подростков, исключая 18-ти и 19-ти-летних.

3. В соответствии с мнением «старшего поколения» подростки ленивы, носят нелепую одежду и ужасающе грубы с теми «кто старше и мудрее их»…

4.4.Make up a dialogue:

- a parent and a teenager, having some problems at the institute

- a teacher and a student with improper behavior

- two friends. One is having problems with his/her girlfriend/boyfriend

 

5. Additional material

 

5.1. Read the text and make the resume on it:

 

Text 3

BEING A TEENAGE MOTHER.

A Bit of History

When people think about Britain of today, very few imagine puritan Victorian Britain where any discussion of sex and sexuality were strictly prohibited and considered immoral. Since then, Britain has seen the crazy sixties with their new ideas of 'free love' and 'sexual revolution'. It has also seen the seventies, when British women finally began to see themselves as career-makers as well as moth­ers and wives. In the eighties, it became nor­mal to see nude images on TV and in the nineties, nobody was any longer surprised at the increasing number of sexual images in the media.

So have all these social changes forever changed the British attitude to sex and given Victorian Puritanism a well-deserved place in long-forgotten history?

Problem

Unfortunately not. It appears that Britons are still uneasy about discussing sex. The UK has the highest proportion of teenage pregnancies in Western Europe. Each year in England 90000 girls get pregnant. 2200 of these are under 14, and 7700 are under 16 years old. The British figure for the first, younger group is 10 times higher than in Japan, and eight times higher than in Sweden and the Netherlands, where attitudes to sex are more open.

According to the United Nations, the dra­matic situation with teenage pregnancies in the UK is largely due to the lack of sex edu­cation. Another factor is lack of general edu­cation and appropriate family support, as most teenage mothers come from poorly educated and deprived families. Unfortunately, Britain is still very class-oriented and the difference between life opportunities given to different classes is still significant.

Choice

Being a teenage mother is not easy. Some pregnant teenage girls decide to have an abor­tion or give their babies up for adoption. However, some decide to go all the way. Quite often, keeping the baby means never continuing education and ending up unem­ployed, living on scarce benefits from the state. Also, recent research conducted by Essex University has shown that British women who had their first child before 20, were twice as likely to be without a partner in their 30s than women who had their first baby in their 20s.

Solutions

So what is to be done in order to improve the situation?

It seems obvious that prevention of teenage pregnancies lies in better and more open sex education, as demonstrated by Sweden and the Netherlands, and easy availability and awareness of contraception. Although contra­ceptive advice and services are available in Britain, teenagers are still scared of seeking help and advice in fear of blame for their sex­ual behavior.

There have also been steps to improve the life of existing teenage mothers through creat­ing support schools with a creche, where school-age mothers can combine school educa­tion with looking after their babies. This gives the young mothers a chance to make their way in the world and not depend on state benefits.

Personal story

16-year-old Jane Taylor tells her story:

'Before I got pregnant I hated school and did not do much work there, concentrating on my social life instead. Every night I would go out drinking and clubbing. Since the birth of my son, Tom, my life has changed. I have realised that having a baby means a lot of responsibility and I now want to do well at school and maybe go to college or university afterwards. However, it is not easy to do with a baby, so I am lucky to have a local support school where I can attend lessons, get medical help and discuss baby problems in the compa­ny of other girls in my situation'.

Conclusion

Although all's well that ends well, as in Jane's story, isn't having a baby at an early age a too high price to pay for learning to be responsible and mature? Is it wrong to have an abortion? There are no right or wrong answers to these questions, so you need to find the answers yourself — what do you think?

In Florida, USA, single mothers are obliged by law to give the newspapers the most inti­mate details of their past if they want to give the baby up for adoption. The young women must give their name, height, weight and eye colour, the names of their sexual partners and the estimated date of concep­tion. This is done to give the baby's father, who may or may not know about the baby, a chance to claim responsibility for the child before it can be adopted.

VOCABULARY

 

Puritanism - пуританство,

Netherlands - Нидерланды

the United Nations -Организация Объединенных Наций (ООН)

lack (of) - недостаток

appropriate - соответствующий

support - поддержка

deprived family -неблагополучная семья

opportunity - возможность

significant - существенный

abortion - аборт

to give babies up for adoption - отдавать детей на усыновление

unemployed - безработный

scarce benefit - скудное пособие

were twice as likely to be without a partner-в два раза чаще оставались без партнера

obvious - очевидный

prevention - предотвращение, предупреждение

availability - доступность

awareness - информированность, осведомленность

contraception - применение противозачаточных средств

blame - порицание, осуждение

existing - существующий

support schools - вспомогательные школы

creche - ясли

to make one's way in the world -сделать карьеру, завоевать положение в обществе

to club -ходить по увеселительным заведениям

responsibility - ответственность

mature - зрелый

to be obliged - быть обязанным

height - рост

weight- вес

estimated - предполагаемый

conception - зачатие

to claim responsibility for -заявлять о своих правах на

 

5.2.Translate into English:

1. Быть матерью-подростком – нелегко.

2. Так что же необходимо сделать, чтобы улучшить ситуацию?

3. Теперь я получаю поддержку в школе, которую я могу посещать.

4. Все хорошо, что хорошо кончается.

5. Необходимо найти ответ самому.

6. Некоторые решают пройти весь путь до конца.

5.3.Answer the following questions:

1. Do girls in our country have such kind of problems?

2. What do they consider a way out in such situations?

3. What do you think about it? What would you do?

4. Who is responsible for baby in such cases?

 

5.4.Give the equivalents of the following words:

awareness, to seek, to decide, poorly educated

Grammar focus