Generation Next Blog

October 2012

Spirituality Improves Mental Health

By |2012-10-15T12:28:46+11:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Mental Health & Wellbeing|Tags: , , , , |

Quality of life is a subjective gauge of a person’s overall well-being and includes assessments and self-reports of physical health, mental health, functional abilities, emotional condition, social support, and spirituality. As healthcare continues to evolve and provide more complete, holistic care for patients, the importance of religion and spirituality is increasingly emphasized. And, with good [...]

Tips on how to protect kids from online porn

By |2012-10-15T12:26:49+11:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Cybersafety, Mental Health & Wellbeing|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

Research shows that 70% of boys have viewed porn online by the age of 12 and that by the age of 15 nearly all have.  Increasingly they are also downloading porn onto their mobile phones and sending nude photos of themselves to each other. Experts agree that viewing pornography can be harmful to the healthy [...]

Indians in the UK are the happiest ethnic group

By |2012-10-15T12:24:57+11:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Mental Health & Wellbeing, Society & Culture|Tags: , , , , |

David Cameron rates the idea of measuring happiness, and from the Office for National Statistics we learn that, when asked the question, Indians and those of Indian descent in the UK emerge the happiest. They number about 1.4 million – our largest visible minority – and on average, they rate life satisfaction as 7.5 out [...]

Why 6-Year-Old Girls Want to Be Sexy | Self-Sexualization is on the rise

By |2012-10-15T12:23:34+11:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Mental Health & Wellbeing, Society & Culture|Tags: , , , |

Most girls as young as 6 are already beginning to think of themselves as sex objects, according to a new study of elementary school-age kids in the Midwest. Researchers have shown in the past that women and teens think of themselves in sexually objectified terms, but the new study is the first to identify self-sexualization [...]

Doping in Education

By |2012-10-15T12:19:02+11:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Drugs & Alcohol, Mental Health & Wellbeing, Society & Culture|Tags: , , , , , |

In last week’s newsletter I wrote about the sense of relief that students feel upon the completion of their studies and how the media exacerbates this by reporting on the HSC every day.   You can set your watch by it can’t you? Seriously.   Well, twenty-four hours before NSW student sat for their first [...]

TEACHERS AND PARENTS – THE NEW RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

By |2012-10-15T12:11:12+11:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Society & Culture|Tags: , , , , , , , |

One of the big 'buzz' terms in education today is 'parent engagement'; one of the most misunderstood terms in education today is 'parent engagement'! So, what is 'parent engagement' and how does it affect our children's learning and wellbeing? Harris and Goodall (2007) concluded that many schools 'involve' parents in the day to day running [...]

Smoking and Adolescent Brain Development

By |2012-10-15T11:50:04+11:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Drugs & Alcohol, Mental Health & Wellbeing|Tags: , , , |

When it comes to substance abuse like smoking or abuse of intoxicating drugs, it is very difficult to determine what a “safe” limit of exposure is.  Quite often, the initial exposure to mood altering substances like nicotine occurs during the teenage years. The period of adolescence is marked by a tendency towards risk-taking behavior which [...]

ADHD pills become latest study aid

By |2012-10-15T12:00:17+11:00October 14th, 2012|Categories: Drugs & Alcohol, Mental Health & Wellbeing, Society & Culture|Tags: , , , , , |

HSC students are taking illegally obtained prescription medication used to treat ADHD to help cram for their final school exams, which start tomorrow. The Sun-Herald spoke to students from five schools across Sydney last week who admitted to using the medication, saying it improved their focus during study. But medical experts warn that they are [...]

Taliban Shoot Teen Education Activist

By |2012-10-15T11:32:02+11:00October 10th, 2012|Categories: Society & Culture|Tags: , , , |

An attempt by the Taliban to kill a 14-year old girl, famous for speaking out against the Islamic militants and their attacks on girls' education, has triggered a wave of national revulsion in Pakistan. Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head and neck while she sat with classmates on a school bus as it prepared [...]

You’ve got to move it move it: tips that will make kids move

By |2012-10-09T14:31:53+11:00October 9th, 2012|Categories: Mental Health & Wellbeing, Society & Culture|Tags: , , , , , , |

With screen time (computer, TV, online games, iPad, mobiles, etc) taking up more and more of children’s time and attention it is important that they are encouraged to burn off excess energy by getting up and out. They should aim to ‘move it move it’ and engage in physical activity for at least 30 minutes [...]

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