Abstract
Courses on adolescent development have changed considerably over the past 25 years, mirroring changes in the fields of psychology and human development. The course on adolescent development is particularly suited to illustrate cohort differences and the impact of sociohistorical context on individual development. Students tend to be personally involved in the content of the course, affording instructors special opportunities for effective teaching. It is possible to use students' direct experience in adolescence and their familiarity with the cultural images of adolescents to facilitate their intellectual development away from overgeneralized personal experience toward more relativistic thinking. The value of empirical studies and an objective scientific view can be brought directly to students' awareness. Active strategies such as free writing, journals, autobiography, case studies, and projects help connect the course content to students' own experiences.
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