If your child is struggling to decide which academic or career path to take, what can you do to help" Frances Cushway shares her top tips
Can you remember the first thing your son or daughter wanted to be when they grew up" My eldest announced at the age of four that she wanted to be a ?Viking Ballerina Inventor?, but since then her aspirations have switched to teacher, singer and someone who ?looks after the trees to stop people chopping them down?.
She?s only seven, so a desire to explore different career options at this young age is only natural. But what about when our children become teenagers, and still have no idea about what they want to do"
Teenage transformation
Have you ever wondered why making a decision can be so difficult for teenagers" It?s because the area of the brain responsible for decision-making is the pre-frontal cortex, and during adolescence, the brain goes through an intensive remodelling to become more efficient, ?pruning away? the unused connections while strengthening others. The pre-frontal cortex is the last to be remodelled, so in the meantime, teenagers might rely more on their amygdala to make decisions ? the part of the brain also associated with emotions, impulses and instinctive behaviour. As a result, it can be difficult for them to plan and think about the consequences of their actions.
In retrospect, it?s quite unfortunate timing that our children are encouraged to make such big decisions ? from their A-Level ch...