An Education Above
TM
Laurel Leaf Winter 2016
The Teenage Brain RPCS
About the
Crane Lecture Through the generosity of the late Charles Crane, a Baltimore businessman and philanthropist, an endowment was established at Roland Park Country School in 1993. This fund was created in loving memory of Mr. Crane’s mother, Sarah Crane Cohen, a warm and compassionate woman who possessed a genuine fondness for all people. The endowment, the Sarah Crane Cohen Visiting Scholar in the Humanities, brings a distinguished educator to campus each year.
was honored to have Dr. Frances Jensen on campus as the Sarah Crane Cohen Visiting Scholar in the Humanities in October. Dr. Jensen held an Upper School assembly, a faculty workshop and an evening talk for parents which opened the repurposed Faissler Library Learning Commons. Dr. Jensen, Professor of Neurology and Chair of the Department of Neurology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, is the product of an all girls’ education at Greenwich Academy and later Smith College where she graduated cum laude with a degree in neuropsychology. A neuroscientist and the mother of two boys who are now in their 20s, Dr. Jensen wrote The Teenage Brain: A Neuroscientist’s Survival Guide to Raising Adolescents and Young Adults, to explore the science of how the brain grows—and why teenagers can be especially “impulsive, moody and not very good at responsible decision-making.” Connecting summary and analysis of research data with anecdotes gained from her years as a parent, clinician and public speaker, Dr. Jensen explores adolescent brain functioning and development in the contexts of learning and multitasking, stress and memory, sleep, addiction, and decision-making. Dr. Jensen provided students, parents and educators with practical advice for raising and understanding teens. Dr. Jensen addressed the effects of “screen time” on the brain and Dr. Frances Jensen and Jean Waller Brune recommended no more than an hour a day for teens. She told our students to get more sleep and told parents to let their teens sleep. And, when asked “why is my teenager so self-absorbed,” she calmly replied, “Give her time. Empathy comes with age.” RPCS is deeply grateful to Mr. Crane for establishing the endowment that brought the thoughtful and empathetic Dr. Jensen to our campus.
What Kind of Online Community Are We?
annual Robinson Health Colloquium
T
he 7th annual Robinson Health Colloquium brought Dr. Catherine SteinerAdair to RPCS in October for the second time. The idea for these Health Colloquia came from James G. Robinson, former Trustee and parent of alumna Beth Robinson deVilliers, 1996, who believes that parents must be fully engaged in the lives of their daughters. We have been holding these annually since their inception in the fall of 2009. These Colloquia, involving assemblies for students, Dr. Catherine Steiner-Adair with RPCS students evening meetings for parents and specialized information for faculty, have focused on a variety of important health issues for girls and young women, ranging from drug and alcohol information to body image and healthy eating to social media. Dr. Catherine Steiner-Adair is an internationally recognized clinical psychologist, consultant and author specializing in education, who spoke about her latest research and book The Big Disconnect: Protecting Childhood and Family Relationships in a Digital Age. In her book, Dr. Steiner-Adair examines ways in which technology and media change how children learn and grow,
and shows parents how to balance the benefits of technology while reducing the risks it poses at every stage of development. Dr. Steiner-Adair posed a simple, yet thoughtful question, to the students. “What kind of Roland Park Country School online community are you?” She asked students to consider whether they were guilty of creating a “Fakebook” on their Facebook page? “It takes a lot of time and energy to create an online profile and maintain it.” Was this time taken away from personal relationships and conversations? Texting is often the vehicle for meanness online. The key to strong relationships is hearing the tone of voice and reading social cues when you hold conversations. With texting, we cannot see the person we are communicating with and we may become emotionally disconnected. Being unable to empathize makes us even less reflective when we are angry with our friends. Dr. Steiner-Adair’s asked us to “be our best and most thoughtful self when connecting in any way online.” She also urged: “outsmart your smart phone,” which became the rallying cry for this colloquia. RPCS is deeply grateful to the Robinson family for bringing such inspiring speakers to campus each year.
Roland Park Country School