New—August 2006
Adolescence
Growing Up in
America Today
Adolescence is an urgent wake-up call, with statistics and analysis showing that nearly one third of our adolescents are on the brink of dropping out of society because we have failed to act in their best interests.
Joy Dryfoos and Carol Barkin demonstrate what needs to be done immediately—in our schools, homes, courts, and communities—to save our young people. Their research shows that of the 33 million adolescents in the United States, almost 10 million are at risk of failing to become responsible adults. They attend schools that do not serve their needs, and lack the support of caring adults. African-American and Hispanic children, increasingly segregated in disadvantaged neighborhoods, are particularly vulnerable.
The authors reinvestigate and expand on the findings in Dryfoos’s landmark Adolescents at Risk (Oxford, 1991), taking a close look at today’s important issues in adolescents’ lives—sex, violence, alcohol, drugs, health, mental health, and education, along with the prevalence of internet use, cell phones, advertising, and credit cards. They review successful, state-of-the-art prevention programs, policy studies, and treatment strategies, and provide solutions based on their insights.
Dryfoos and Barkin demonstrate that we have failed to act on what we already know about how to prevent high-risk behaviors: establish relationships between young people and adults; get parents involved in their children’s lives; and create comprehensive programs led by highly trained staff with acute sensitivity to cultural differences. With compassion, insight, and incisive analysis, they make a convincing argument for more effective sex education, access to abortion, decriminalization of marijuana, limits on alcohol advertising, health care clinics in schools—and very much more. They show us how their strategies have been proven in many instances to help close the achievement gap; support schools; diminish drug use, violence, and discrimination; decrease the chances of teen parenthood; and change the destiny of juvenile offenders.
Dryfoos and Barkin show us precisely how we can rewrite the future of American youth. Adolescence is a must-read for anyone who cares about giving our emerging adults a better world, a better chance.
The Authors
Carol Barkin has written 35 books for children and young adults and six books for adults, both novels and nonfiction. Her best-known book for adults is When Your Kid Goes to College, which helps parents through this trying, though exhilarating, transition. Barkin is also a freelance editor and book doctor with a particular interest in the social sciences and psychology. She lives in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.
Photograph of Carol Barkin (left) and Joy Dryfoos by Spike Barkin.