News for Youth

Video Violence Affects the Brain; Teens Try Real Cases; New Way to Prepare for the SAT; Teen Pregnancy: Behind the Stats

Video Violence Affects the Brain

A recent study by the University of Indiana Medical School found that youth who spend hours playing violent video games have less activity in the frontal lobes of their brains than other youth. The study, which was presented at the 88th Scientific Sessions and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, was conducted on 19 youth diagnosed with disruptive behavior disorder (DBD) compared to the same number of normal teens.

Using a functional magnetic resonance scanner, researchers measured the amount of blood flow within the frontal part of the brain--the part controlling emotions, impulses and attention span. When shown a violent video game and a movie featuring violence, all the youth had diminished activity in this portion of their brains. Those with DBD were affected more.

Though reluctant to make a blanket statement regarding danger in playing violent videos, Dr. Vincent P. Mathews, author of the study, did say, "I think this information gives credence to what has become a growing concern about what is perceived as increased violence among adolescents." Video games featuring violence are the fastest growing segment of the video game market. ("Brain Cells Victims of Video Violence," Peggy Peck, UPI Science News, Dec. 2, 2002).

Youth Court: Teens Try Real Cases

The Greenville (South Carolina) News reported on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2002, that two Greenville County schools are adopting youth courts to take some student offenders out of family courts. With approximately 900 youth courts nationwide, and 13 in South Carolina, local residents are hopeful this pilot program will help youth become more responsible and free up the clogged court system.

Those eligible for the court are "first-time offenders charged with nonviolent crimes on the school campus or at a school event. The crimes range from vandalism to simple assault. Students do not escape accountability or punishment in youth court. To qualify, students must first plead guilty, therefore accepting responsibility."

Once accepted into the court, defendants face their peers who act as the prosecutors, defenders, jurors and court officers. While an adult volunteer, usually an attorney, directs the proceedings, students decide the punishments.

Youth courts have proven to be effective tools for teaching the importance of proper societal conduct. ("Youth Court: A Sound Idea," Dec. 8, 2002).

New Way to Prepare for the SAT?

Teacher Jeanne Clements has been teaching Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) preparation techniques to Morris Hill, New Jersey, students for 15 years. Now she's teaching them vocabulary words via an interactive computer game called Verbal Edge for the SAT that she developed to make learning easier and more fun.

Clements' game uses slick computer features including animation and teen dialogue to teach 400 SAT vocabulary words. Using mnemonics, she helps teens develop ways to associate words with other concepts. "Learning a word is like going to a party," Clements said. "When a word goes into your brain, it's looking for a friend. If it finds one, it stays; if it doesn't, it leaves."

The SAT is one of the most widely used tests for aptitude required of college applicants. ("Teacher's Game Helps Students With SATs," Laura Bruno, Daily Record, Dec. 9, 2002, ).

Teen Pregnancy: Behind the Stats

A recent report shows that teen birth rates in the United States are in decline. ''To be more specific: In 1991, there were 62.1 births for every 1,000 teens between the ages of 15 and 19. By 2001, that rate had dropped to 45.9. Even more remarkable: The teen birth rate in 2001 was the lowest it had been in over 60 years.''

While this is good news in general, there are still many teens becoming mothers before they are ready and thus reaping the consequences for themselves, their babies and society. In spite of this decline in teen births, the United States continues to have a higher teen birth rate than other industrialized nations. The U.S. rate was more than double that of the next closest nation—the United Kingdom. In the United States, states with the highest teen birth rates are all clustered in the South, with Mississippi leading the pack.

The report revealed that the vast majority of teen births in the United States occur outside of marriage and that the majority (66 percent) were to 18- to 19-year-olds. Almost one-third (32 percent) were to 15- to 17-year-olds. And, 2 percent were to teens under the age of 15. Sadly, "In 2001, there were nearly half a million U.S. teen births, about equal to the population of New Orleans." ("Little to Cheer in the Latest News About Teen Pregnancies," Dwight Lewis, The Tennessean, Dec. 8, 2002, ). YU