Adolescence
Adolescence is a stage of development between childhood and maturity identified with dramatic changes. Physically, children undergo more rapid changes during this period than at any time except early childhood: Half a child's body weight, one-third of its height, and up to 85 percent of its muscle mass develop during this time. Huge psychological and emotional changes take place as well, as children reach sexual maturity and begin to find their places in society. Encouragingly, UN research shows that as a group, adolescents are better educated, better informed, and healthier than ever before. But because adolescence is usually perceived as a transition from one life stage towards a more desired state (adulthood), it is often not valued or recognized in its own right. In some ways, adolescents are a neglected group: their vulnerabilities unrecognized, their potential contributions under-valued; noticed only when they present society with a problem. Areas where more education and support are needed include the following: Life Skills. This is a blanket term encompassing a range of interventions including classroom training and peer counseling. Life skills training emphasizes the need to give adolescents the knowledge they need to protect themselves against a variety of threats facing them as they approach maturity. These include knowledge of how to prevent sexually transmitted infections, particularly HIV/AIDS. They also include skills needed to guard against the dangers of substance abuse and smoking, as well as the risks of being trafficked or otherwise sexually exploited. Finally, life skills training strengthens adolescents' capacity to cope with the threat of depression, suicide, and pregnancy outside of marriage. Overnutrition. As noted earlier, there is an increasing trend toward overweight in certain areas of China, particularly among young people. The trend stems in large measure from the rapidly changing composition of the Chinese diet, which in 1970 was only 10 percent fat. Today about 40 percent of Chinese consume a diet composed of roughly 30 percent fat, and most Chinese take in 400 percent more edible oil, eggs, and meat than they did a generation ago. Getting enough exercise is equally important. Adolescents need more information about diet and exercise if they are to remain fit and healthy. Research by China's Ministry of Health estimates 30 million teenagers under age 17 suffer from psychological problems to some extent. Such problems represent a growing trend among Chinese youth as the country rapidly evolves into a modern society. Mental and emotional issues can often be addressed if they are treated early. Unfortunately, traditional societies often view the need for counseling as indicating severe mental illness. As a consequence, many Chinese adolescents fail to seek treatment, either because of the stigma attached to doing so or simply because they lack information. Suicide is a particular problem. China's suicide rate is triple the global average, with women in the 15- to 24-year-old age group particularly vulnerable. Even so, there is a dearth of information on the prevalence and predictors of depression and suicide ideation in Chinese adolescents. Many Chinese psychologists believe psychological services in China are inadequate, with a shortage of trained specialists and no professional standards. Attendees at a psychologists' convention estimated 20 percent of China's 1.3 billion people suffered from psychological problems, but that several hundred psychologists existed to help them cope. Shanghai, for example, with a population of about 20 million, has only about 100 therapists. This is changing. Psychologists are advising the self-conscious Chinese to talk more with their children about sex, and new textbooks that discuss sex frankly are being introduced on a limited basis in Chinese schools. Nevertheless, there remains a need for education about sexuality and reproductive health. Surveys indicate a widespread lack of knowledge of such matters among Chinese adolescents. China has about 235 million people between the ages of 15 and 24, and 20 million people reach puberty each year at an average age of 12 to 13—four to five years earlier than in the 1970s. Many seek help from doctors only after becoming pregnant or contracting a sexually transmitted illness. Worse, many seek help from unlicensed health care practitioners because they are too afraid or embarrassed to tell their parents. Education about HIV/AIDS is especially critical. More than seven percent of HIV-positive people living in China are under age 19. Encouragingly, the government has substantially increased funding for HIV/AIDS initiatives, nearly quadrupling its budget for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment initiatives from US $12 million to $47 million (as of 2003). In addition, all middle schools and universities will have implemented HIV/AIDS education programs by 2005. Digital literacy. Much has been written about the Internet's potential to speed the free flow of information and ideas. But so far, the promise of a digital age has become a reality only for an affluent minority, dividing the world into those who can go on-line, and those who cannot. China provides a microcosm of this global issue. Internet users have mushroomed from 620,000 in 1997 to more than 87 million today, a figure surpassed only by the US. The good news is that nearly 20 per cent of these users are children. But China's six most developed demographic areas make up more than half of its Internet population, the six poorest areas account for less than 1 percent—a digital divide indeed. Whether the Internet penetrates poorer areas remains to be seen. It effectively bypasses China's state-controlled media, so government tends to view children's access to it as a double-edged sword. In 2004, local governments across China were ordered not to approve any Internet cafes in residential areas or within 200 meters of primary and high schools. Such policies stem partly from a desire to protect young people from pornography and exploitation. But with its capacity to improve the quality of teaching and learning, Internet technology provides China generally and its remote communities in particular with an educational and developmental springboard. UNICEF's work with the China Children's Press and Publication Group (CCPPG) illustrates the Net's potential uses for development. Launched in 2001, the CCPPG's website has become one of China's top sites for children and youth, with about 120,000 registered users. The site opened an anti-smoking forum that drew responses from 200,000 children, who developed their own messages and graphics for an anti-smoking campaign. Aiming to bridge the digital divide between itself and the developed world, China has made great efforts to promote Internet growth, and the number of Chinese Internet users continues to increase dramatically. Policymakers must ensure that the rise of the Net does not exacerbate China's own internal disparities. Children denied access to the Internet today are unlikely to ever fully catch up with their more privileged peers.
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