Assignments for YPAS 3355 Sociology of Youth

Assignment 1
Objective: Be exposed to the unique dynamic of dealing with youth;

Comments: Please download the report "Youth Matters" to complete this assignment

Assignment:
Summary: Please summarize the report, "Youth Matters" so that it applies to your own life and ministry situation. Be sure to capture the essentials of a youth leader's role and responsibilities.

Your report should reflect the language and circumstances of your location and culture.

Assignment 2
Objective: Have read and discussed the Bible's perspective on youth, adolescence, and growing up;

Comments: The bible speaks of children, often, as "sons," "daughters," or both. In several places, especially the proverbs and the Mosaic law, it outlines parental and societal responsibilities for dealing with children.

Assignment: When I was a child...
Commentary: Using the bible and course resources available to you, search the scriptures and develop a commentary on the bible's approach to dealing with youth. The bible is not known as a politically correct resource. Feel free to comment on this issue, and any others that you encounter.

Your report should be based directly on scripture, with your commentary added.

Assignment 3
Objective: Understand common theories of youth development from childhood to adolescence;

Comments: Please review the following article for this assignment:
Adolescent Growth and Development

Assignment:
Article Review: Please review the article "Adolescent Growth and Development" linked above. Your review should include:

• A summary of the article's most important content and concepts
• Your opinion of the article and its positions
• A summary of the most important things you learned from the article

Comments: Please see comments on "Youth Culture"

Assignment:
"What Planet Are You From?" A guidebook for understanding youth culture.
You are a new assistant youth pastor at a large suburban church. The senior pastor has just returned from a youth conference, where it was made abundantly clear to him that he has no clue about current youth culture.

Recognizing the importance of young people to the gospel, he wisely realizes that others on the staff may be as out of touch as he is. He asks you to put together a short guidebook that can be distributed to the staff.

Your task is to develop a short (4-6 page) introduction to Western youth culture and the forces that shape it. You will need to very concisely develop a guide that addresses the principles and foundations of youth culture, not necessarily its specific examples or icons.

You will need to focus on the underlying causes of change and youth behavior patterns, so that your colleagues will have a view to the forces involved, not necessarily the specific songs, lingo, wardrobe, or hand signals (which will change next week, anyway).

Use your Questia.com resources, the course Resource page and the resources linked from this assignment's comments page , plus other resources at your disposal.

Assignment 5
Objective: Be familiar with contemporary theories of extended adolescence;

Assignment: Scan and Glean Review: "Twentieth Century Teen Culture By The Decade"
Please develop a scan and glean review of "Twentieth Century Teen Culture By the Decade" at Questia.com.

To complete a scan and glean review, please be sure to do the following:

1.) Scan the resource carefully:
Scan the introductory materials (intro, forward, author's letter, etc.)
Scan the table of contents, looking especially for relevant key word topics
Scan the index and any closing materials (index, epilogue, etc.)

2.) Based on your initial scan, read more deeply to glean material relevant to your search:
Identify key words and key topics
Read the passages and chapters that address those topics
"Reverse read" those topics by following their citations in the book's index (if any)

3.) Develop your "scan and glean" review
Provide a general introduction to the book
Identify (state) your key words or key topics
Report on the book's approach to your key words and key topics
Provide your response to the book as it relates to your key words and key topics

For this review, your key topics might include "spirituality," "spiritual development," "drug abuse", "runaways," plus other issues and concepts important to you.

Present your review in report form. It can be relatively short (2-5 pages) but should clearly articulate your issues within the context of ministry, and the way the book addresses them.

Assignment 6 & Final Paper
Objective: Be prepared to develop a strategy for encountering youth ministry

Comments: This assignment integrates Assignment 6 and the course's Final Paper, and counts the total of both components toward the final grade. To prepare for "encountering youth ministry" it is imperative to understand where young people are coming from. In addition to the earlier assignment related to "Youth Culture," the resources listed below will help build a foundation for understanding how to work with young people.

Assignment: Book Review
Please choose one of the following books from Questia.com, read it and submit an original review.

The Romance of Risk: Why Teenagers Do The Things They Do
All Grown Up and No Place To Go: Teenagers in Crisis
Youth Crisis: Growing Up In A High Risk Society

Your review can be relatively short (2-3 pages) and should include the following:

A summary of the book's content
An overview of its most important content and contributions
Your review (opinion) of the book's quality, usefulness and value