This caught our eye today -- consider using the discussion guide mentioned at the end to talk with teens in your life. Comments welcomed and encouraged...
LIFE Inc.
www.learningis4everyone.org__________________
With the school year coming to a close, the Uhlich Children’s Advantage Network (UCAN), in partnership with the Child Welfare League of America, has issued its eighth annual UCAN Teen Report on Adults. The report card gave more than 1,000 young people, ages 12 to 19, across the country the opportunity to grade adults in 24 different categories, ranging from running the government to combating prejudice and racism.
The overall grade for adults was “C+”. As in previous years, adults did not receive an overall score of “A” in any of the categories. Nor did teens award adults a “B+” in any category. Teens did, however, give an overall score of “B-“ in seven categories: teaching positive values; spending quality time with their families; protecting teens and kids from gun violence; creating job opportunities for the future; building healthy relationships with young people; and preventing child abuse.
“This report should be used as a tool to help adults understand what matters to young people, and prompt us to listen to, and communicate with, the teens in our lives,” said Linda Spears, CWLA Vice President of Corporate Communications and Development. “We expect teens to be prepared for adulthood when they reach age 18, but as parents and caring adults, we have a responsibility to lay the foundation and provide the guidance and leadership teens are seeking.”
While the report offered relatively good news, the teens surveyed gave several failing grades. More than one in four gave failing or near failing grades to adults in the category of leading by example. Failing and near failing grades were also given for leadership in the government, ability to run the government, and really listening to and understanding young people.
“It’s very disappointing to see the grades given by American teenagers – the future of our country – and find that their perception of leaders and parents is, in many areas, very negative,” said Tom Vanden Berk, President and Executive Director of UCAN. “We hope that these statistics will spur the country to action and help adults become better role models in word and deed for American youth.”
Created and sponsored by the Chicago-based Uhlich Children’s Advantage Network, the UCAN Teen Report Card is an annual measure of adult progress on issues affecting teens, as graded by teens themselves. Conducted in January and February of 2006, the survey was followed by teen focus group discussions held in Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, D.C. In each focus group, teens discussed the items on the report card, gave their own grades, and made recommendations for adults to use in improving their grades next year.
To access a full copy of the UCAN Teen Report Card, visit
www.ucanchicago.org/reportcard. For the teen/adult discussion guide, visit
www.ucanchicago.org/reportcard/discussion.htm.
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