In communities all over England, teenagers are seen as aggressive, threatening, violent troublemakers who do not care about the rest of the population. However, most teens are not like this in the slightest and research shows that the teens that are inherit this behaviour from parents or come from broken homes. So is it actually the children who are to blame? If parents were to instil good behaviour in their offspring thee would be less menace on the streets. Parents and families should be vigilant, teens can be unruly and unpredictable but a firm compassionate hand from a parent can lead them down he right path.
Sian HolmesMy thoughts are that teenagers are misunderstood and the pressure from them to grow up quicker than the previous generations and the competition for a good job at the end of their school career is very high, I think we need to pay more attention to the needs and capabilities of teenagers, so we gain a greater understanding of how they feel with the amount of pressure on top of them.
George NewtonOnce again I am appalled to see ‘youths’ and hoodies’ hit the headlines, unfairly stating that all teenagers are abusive, reckless people who of which have no thought for anyone else, but this is merely a stereo type. I am disgusted with this, how dare they say that! It is not in everyone’s nature to cause trouble. Teenagers are being victimised by stereotypical statements and, as a result people look down on teenagers and it hinders things teenagers can do for example get jobs, employers see teenagers as untrustworthy. You were teenagers once; how would you feel if you were stereo typed as a teenager and everyone would avoid you in the streets and follow you around shops?
Jack SouthinI think that the way teenagers could improve their relationship with the community and break stereotypes is if they met each other. They could do this by local schools or clubs having an open day. It gives the students a great chance to give the community an excellent impression of what they are really like and they are able to show off their amazing achievements.
Another way that teenagers could express their harmlessness and kindness is by helping the elderly in their local village and do jobs for them.
Jess PetcherIt baffles me to know that there are so many crimes and mistakes from adults but lots seem to think teenage stories on alcohol, drugs and gangs are more important because they can pin the blame on someone else, unable to stand up for themselves, rather than face the consequences of their own actions they are afraid of what they will see of themselves in the mirror.
For me an obvious solution to this is to get teenagers and the local community involved in something together so the relationship between both can improve. We could do charity events for Haiti and age concern. Hopefully this would help create a bond between the age differences and make people think twice about stereotyping teenagers and newspapers and the media would be ignored on some of the lies they produce.
Alice RoizerAfter doing some research, teenagers are now all as bad as they are shown in the media. Outside school there are clubs and activities that all teenagers can attend, but they choose whether or not to do them, for example, Rangers, Scouts and Guides. These types of clubs allow children age from seven to 18 (18 and over for leaders) to join and participate in activities and things to do with the community or environment. The Scout and Guide Association have been running for 100 years and already 56,470 young people have joined a group providing children and teenagers with the chance to do some good and make a difference.
My point of view on this subject is there is an equal amount of anti-social behaviour and good behaviour from teenagers in the community. Although some teenagers are good, adults only usually see the bad side as it is more recognisable. In the paper lately there has been a purple leaflet ‘Tackling Anti-social Behaviour’ It looks like the community is serious about anti-social behaviour and so are the police.
Paige NuttallSome teenagers don’t do things like drugs and alcohol, they do positive things and are aware of their behaviour. For example help their parents in the house, cleaning, washing the pots and hoovering around the house. Teenagers could also help the elders for example doing their shopping, do their gardening so the elders don’t have to bend down. They could also help by doing their cleaning. Another example is to improve the community is picking up litter in the community. The community could make more youth clubs, sporting events and more swimming baths.
Megan MarchantHave you ever wondered how teenagers feel when they get judged on their age? Why is it that teens get judged on their age, but it’s not ok that people get judged on their race, religion or sex? Isn’t it the same thing? The youth get discriminated and yet no one is trying to stop it. Does anyone actually know how teenagers feel about this prejudgment and pre-formed opinion people have on them before anyone has even taken the time to know them? You will find most feel belittled, abused and harassed.
The age groups adults hate the most will soon become the people that will be paying their pensions, deciding on how things will be run and they will be bringing up the next generation. And still people treat teens like an inconvenience when soon they’re going to have to rely on them. So perhaps it’s time that adults should treat the youth like they want to be treated themselves.
Jessica HillTo conclude, teenagers can make the difference with just a few small changes, don’t encourage bad language, don’t encourage attitude, dress more casually and smile to someone to make their day.
Jade Heeley