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Understanding how the adolescent brain works is essential for middle and high school educators and leaders. This critical stage of development shapes how students think, learn and engage in the classroom.
In the webinar “The Power of the Adolescent Brain,” Dr. Thomas Armstrong, Executive Director of the American Institute for Learning and Human Development, covers eight key facts about the adolescent brain. He also discusses “brain-friendly” strategies that educators and leaders can use to respond to the needs of middle school and high school students.
Adolescence is a period of rapid brain development and change. During this time, students are highly curious, risk-taking and sensitive to peer influence. However, these traits are guided by an unevenly developing brain. While the emotional and reward-seeking centers mature quickly, the prefrontal cortex, responsible for reasoning and decision-making, develops much more slowly.
Understanding how the adolescent brain works helps educators guide learners toward positive behavior, reflection and self-regulation.
Cell bodies represent the gray matter in the brain, and this gray matter decreases through a process called pruning during childhood and adolescence. While this may seem like a negative, it actually makes the brain more efficient. Dr. Armstrong says that during pruning, the brain eliminates weaker neural connections, streamlining and strengthening the remaining ones.
White matter is made of nerve fibers called axons, carrying electrical impulse. During adolescence, it increases, improving cognitive control, processing and reaction times.
Neurogenesis is the creation of new brain cells. It was once thought that we were born with a certain number of brain cells and that was it, but as Dr. Armstrong explains, “We now know that throughout life we’re creating new brain cells, and adolescence is a time when this is particularly occurring.”
During adolescence, the pruning process of gray matter moves from the back of the brain to the front gradually. Therefore, the prefrontal cortex, the decision-making part of the brain, is the last to be “remodeled.”
Dr. Armstrong explains that the emotional brain, or limbic system, develops before the reasoning brain, the prefrontal cortex. The limbic system, responsible for emotions, risk-taking and impulsivity, matures early in puberty. On the other hand, the prefrontal cortex, which governs decision-making, self-control and planning, develops much later, often into the early twenties.
This creates a developmental gap where adolescents have heightened emotional and risk-driven behaviors but lack fully developed reasoning and self-regulation. As Dr. Armstrong says the “accelerator has been installed, but the brakes haven’t been put in yet. This explains many challenges of adolescence.
While the development of the brain during adolescence is partly natural, a lot of the growth process is shaped by environment. This is referred to as neuroplasticity. A team at the University of California Berkeley discovered this during experiments with rats. Rats living in an enriched environment with community and activities developed dendrites, or branches that make connections with other brain cells. Rats living in an isolated environment had fewer dendrites. Because of this, we now know that the brain will change due to environment and experience and that neuroplasticity can form new neural connections.
Dr. Armstrong explains that the adolescent brain is wired for risk-taking and impulsivity, and while that might not be seen as a benefit, it actually has evolutionary roots. In prehistoric times, these traits pushed adolescents to leave the safety of home, explore, hunt and gather, helping their communities grow and develop. Of course, there had to be a balance because too much risk can be dangerous, but the mix of curiosity and caution is what helped humans thrive. Understanding this evolutionary development can give us insight into why adolescents act the way they do.
Dr. Armstrong explains that the world is fairly dangerous for adolescents due to many types of temptations and influences. This results in traffic accidents, teen violence, media addiction, bullying, sleep disorders, STDs, self-harm, alcohol and substance abuse and mental illness.
He says, “We need to be very cognizant of these risks and take action so that we can change the trajectory of adolescence so that they don’t end up using their evolutionary genes to get into trouble in these ways.”
Adolescents may join cliques or social groups in school because they are trying to figure out their identities outside of their families. They are constantly constructing their sense of self, but educators can give learners opportunities to reflect and be more self aware.
To bring these practices into your school or district, consider the following steps:
Offer professional development workshops that explain the neurological changes in adolescents and how teaching methods can align with these changes.
Give educators opportunities to share successful strategies, challenges and insights. Consider peer observation programs or regular discussion groups.
Evaluate current policies and practices to ensure they support active, social and emotionally engaging learning. Adjust schedules, classroom layouts, or extracurricular activities as needed and allow learners to have input on policies.
Help parents understand adolescent brain development to strengthen learning at home. Host informational sessions or provide take-home resources to build stronger school-family partnerships.
