in western Europe have far lower rates of unintended pregnancy. They also have lower rates
of sexually transmitted diseases and fewer abortions (Berne & Huberman, 1999). The rea-
sons for these differences are not clear, but European adolescents have greater access to
contraception and universal sexuality education in some European countries (AAP, 1999).
The problem in the United States is not raging hormones, but a vocal and powerful conser-
vative minority that denies that sexual expression is a part of healthy development.
There is a racist and classist fear in the United States that extending freedoms and re-
sponsibility to teenagers instead of intensifying control in schools might be effective in mid-
dle-class professional communities where it is thought that adolescents generally accept so-
ciety’s expectations, but would not work in poor communities of color where it is thought
that teenage pregnancy, resistance to authority, and violence are epidemic. I would not clas-
sify resistance to authority as a problem, but it is clear that violence and unintended preg-
nancy cut straight across race and class lines. The widely publicized school shootings in the
last few years have occurred in White suburban and rural communities, and White adoles-
cents in the United States have higher birth rates than their counterparts in industrialized
northern hemisphere countries (AAP, 1999).
A study by Ann Locke Davidson (1996) powerfully illustrates that teenagers will respond
to a combination of respect, responsibility, and freedom. Among her findings, Davidson in-
cludes a case study of a teenager from East St. Louis, Illinois, who felt the community did not
value him or his school. This young man gave up on any possibility of achieving success
through the standard routes. He became a member of a youth gang and was involved with
drugs and violence. He joined the gang because membership provided him with both a
sense of power and of belonging.
The young man’s mother, in an effort to help her son, sent him to live with a brother in
Los Angeles, where he entered a high school program with other teenagers who had been in-
volved in gang-related activities. In this program, he was given responsibilities that showed
he was respected, he took courses that reflected his history and ethnic roots, and he learned
about college opportunities. He went from a school where he was viewed as a delinquent
and denied information and the right to participate as a full member of the community to an
environment where those in power sent a clear message that they cared about him and his
future. In this new setting, instead of being a dropout, he went to school every day and in-
vested in his learning.
Understanding this young man’s experience, and the experience of similar young men
and women, can help educators develop models for secondary schools that respond to the
needs of teenagers. For example, most community programs that are run for teenagers try
to divert their attention away from their lives by providing them with recreational opportu-
nities. Although these are valuable, they do not offer teens the chance to be constructive, re-
sponsible adults and citizens. I believe that successful schools and youth programs must
help teenagers link up with their futures and allow them to participate as valued members of
the community. Secondary education should expand freedom and responsibility together,
extending teenagers both privilege and power. The adult community will need to cede some
control if it is willing to share power and allow teenagers to make significant decisions.
What would schools look like if students had more power and responsibility? In many
classes for academically elite students, ideas are respected and students are allowed to en-
gage in independent and group projects in which they pursue information and construct
their own knowledge and understanding. This approach to teaching is appropriate for all
students in all schools and communicates to students that they have something significant
to contribute to the educational enterprise. Secondary education can also be linked to paid
internships where students can explore possible career paths and engage in work that is val-
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