A new section of each course starts monthly. If enrolling in a series of two or
more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two
months apart.
All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons
are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have
to be present when lessons are released. You will have access to all lessons until
the course ends. However, the interactive discussion area that accompanies each
lesson will automatically close two weeks after the lesson is released. As such,
we strongly recommend that you complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.
The final exam will be released on the same day as the last lesson. Once the final
exam has been released, you will have two weeks to complete all of your course work,
including the final exam.
Week One
Wednesday - Lesson 01
In our first lesson, I'll explain the term adolescent development and familiarize you with some terminology. I'll also provide you with an overview of the three main stages of adolescence to help you become familiar with the tasks and milestones inherent in each stage.
Friday - Lesson 02
Adolescence is a time of change. These changes occur on the outside as well as on the inside. For this lesson, we’re going to focus on some external changes, and one of the things we'll look at is puberty, the impact it can have on the adolescent, as well as how these changes can affect how you treat an adolescent.
Week Two
Wednesday - Lesson 03
In this lesson, we'll start looking at some of the internal changes kids experience during adolescence. As children's bodies take huge leaps forward, so do their brains as they learn and discover new ways of thinking and reasoning. This is cognitive development, which means how someone thinks, and that'll be our focus for this lesson.
Friday - Lesson 04
The dreaded peer group. During today's lesson, we’ll take a close look at socialization, peers and peer groups, friends, intimacy, and social changes in your adolescent's behavior.
Week Three
Wednesday - Lesson 05
One of the things that changes most during adolescence is a child's family relationships and how family members interact with each other. In this lesson, we'll take a look at some of those changes and the impact this may have on both the adolescent and the family.
Friday - Lesson 06
Emotional development is one of the internal changes that evolves during adolescence. During today's lesson we’ll take a look at some aspects of emotions and their development, and the significance this may have for adolescent development.
Week Four
Wednesday - Lesson 07
This is the “Who Am I?” lesson. Today, we'll explore how we think about ourselves, how our identity develops, what might influence our identity, and our self-concept.
Friday - Lesson 08
Today's lesson is all about moral development and faith separate from religion. We'll look at how the changes to the adolescent play a role in their moral development. You'll become familiar with the overall thoughts, ideas and processes that seem common to adolescent moral development.
Week Five
Wednesday - Lesson 09
In this lesson, we're going to take a close look at stress, anxiety, frustration, and defense mechanisms. We'll explore how these things affect all of us and how some of this is demonstrated during adolescence.
Friday - Lesson 10
For this lesson, we'll adopt a slightly different format. Today, we'll look at four separate things: nature versus nurture, temperament, personality, and resiliency. The main thread carried throughout this lesson is how a better understanding of ourselves can help us to better understand others.
Week Six
Wednesday - Lesson 11
Similar to the last lesson, today we'll look at a few more distinct topics. First we'll review some of the adolescent needs that we've discussed prior to this lesson, then we'll discuss chronic illness, gay and lesbian youth and the issues these individuals may be faced with, and finally a chapter highlighting parenting the adolescent.
Friday - Lesson 12
For our last lesson, we're going to stray from the normal to the abnormal part of adolescent development. The focus of this lesson will be a brief overview of disorders or conditions that are consistently viewed within the adolescent population.