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"Teenagers really get a bad time,' says Sarah-Jayne Blakemore. 'It is amazing how it seems to be totally acceptable - even institutionalised - to parody and demonise them. We laugh at things that mock teenagers, but if you applied those sorts of jokes to any other sector of society, it just wouldn't be acceptable.' Blakemore is a professor of cognitive neuroscience and deputy director of the University College London Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience. She is sitting in her office behind Russell Square, the heartland of London academia, mounting a strong defence for every teenager in Britain who has slammed a bedroom door, smoked a cigarette, driven a car too fast and even - though she certainly doesn't condone this - given in to the peer pressure that surrounds drugs such as Ecstasy. Society's response to the teenage conviction that 'nobody understands' is often lack of patience. Teenagers, we think, are moody, self-absorbed, reckless, defiant creatures who reject our wisdom in favour of a path of personal sabotage. But the rallying cry from Blakemore - an increasingly powerful voice in the world of international neuroscience, who has given policy advice to the British government - is that teenagers are right. Beyond the world of neuroscientific research, for the most part society does not understand them."

"Why are so many of our high school and college students so, so smart, and yet, at the same time so, so… foolish? It turns out they can't help it. The adolescent brain is a work in progress, "a puzzle waiting completion," says Dr. Frances Jensen, professor and chair of the Department of Neurology at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and the co-author of The Teenage Brain: A Neuroscientist's Survival Guide to Raising Adolescents and Young Adults (Harper), with Amy Ellis Nutt. Recently, Jensen spoke with NEA Today about how the mysteries of the teenage brain can be better understood by parents and educators."

"If the human mind is sometimes a puzzle. Then the teenage mind is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. Lucky for us, one neuroscientist has just published a guide to that perplexing headspace. Dr. Frances Jensen who was once stumped by the behaviour of her own teens shares years of study on the teenage brain, that will warn you and give you hope."

"It's no secret that state and national assessments continue to indicate that boys lag behind girls in the area of reading. The gap tends to grow larger as students enter adolescence. It's also no secret that many teenage boys dislike reading - in class or at home. Just ask a high school teacher…or a teenage boy. While it's not true that all teenage boys dislike reading, there is a growing trend of many becoming unmotivated readers. Obviously, students who are resistant to reading are unlikely to get better at it. Here are four ideas for motivating adolescent male readers."

"I read technology articles quite often and see plenty of authors attempt to dissect or describe the teenage audience, especially in regards to social media. However, I have yet to see a teenager contribute their voice to this discussion. This is where I would like to provide my own humble opinion."

"19 year old, Andrew Watts, is a sophomore Management Information Systems major (marketing minor) at the University of Texas in Austin and penned an interesting glimpse into the world of teenage (and college) consumption (or lack thereof) of the biggest social networks. We see studies day in and day out from Gallup or Pew on polling that is then interpreted by all the hot tech blogs, but very few articles actually cite real, blood pumping teenage humans. And by the time the studies are published, most likely, the stats are dated - as teenage trends move in and out so quickly. What do they actually think, in their own words, about the various social networks? Watts lays it out:"

"Watch the 3 teenage girls who won the Google Science Fair speak at TEDx"

"Is the Internet making teenagers do more dumb things than ever?"

CTIA-The Wireless Association® in conjunction with Harris Interactive has released some new research on cell phone use by teenagers (Release: September 12th, 2008). The survey looked at teenagers aged 13-19, across the United States. There were 100 questions about cell phones, perceptions, and attitudes.

"Teens can't control impulses and make rapid, smart decisions like adults can - but why? Research into how the human brain develops helps explain. In a teenager, the frontal lobe of the brain, which controls decision-making, is built but not fully insulated - so signals move slowly. "Teenagers are not as readily able to access their frontal lobe to say, 'Oh, I better not do this,' " Dr. Frances Jensen tells Fresh Air's Terry Gross."

"As teachers, we all have assumptions -- and likely some opinions -- about teenagers and social media. But are those assumptions correct? Well, now we have research to help us find out. This week, Common Sense is releasing its latest research report, Social Media, Social Life: Teens Reveal Their Experiences, a deep dive into the social media habits of American teenagers. This research is the second wave in an ongoing study tracking teens' attitudes about social media; we released our original report in 2012. Back then, Snapchat was just a fledgling start-up, and Facebook was a top choice for teens. But how -- and how much -- teens use social media has evolved almost as quickly as the technology itself. This year's report doesn't just tell us about teens today; compared with our original data, it shows us just how much things have changed. It might seem like teens are using social media more than ever (it's true -- they are!). Teachers work with teens every day, so it makes sense that we have our own opinions and anecdotes about their social media use. But it's important to remember that our personal perceptions about social media might not always reflect what our students experience online. And that's why this research is so important. The results of this latest study help us question our assumptions and start addressing real issues that help our students. "

"Many American teenagers try to put in a full day of school, homework, after-school activities, sports and college prep on too little sleep. As evidence grows that chronic sleep deprivation puts teens at risk for physical and mental health problems, there is increasing pressure on school districts around the country to consider a later start time. In Seattle, school and city officials recently made the shift. Beginning with the 2016-2017 school year, the district moved the official start times for middle and high schools nearly an hour later, from 7:50 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. This was no easy feat; it meant rescheduling extracurricular activities and bus routes. But the bottom line goal was met: Teenagers used the extra time to sleep in. Researchers at the University of Washington studied the high school students both before and after the start-time change. Their findings appear in a study published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances. They found students got 34 minutes more sleep on average with the later school start time. This boosted their total nightly sleep from 6 hours and 50 minutes to 7 hours and 24 minutes."

"Sociologist Jeffrey Lane's book The Digital Street looks at the ever-increasing scrutiny of teenagers' social-media accounts in central Harlem. "

"In the last decade, rates of anxiety-related disorders in teenagers have steadily risen, particularly in girls. Researchers and psychologists posit several hypotheses about why these rates are on the rise -- from digital hyperconnectivity to heightened external pressures to simply a greater awareness, and therefore diagnosis, of mental health concerns. Whatever the causes, Dr. Lisa Damour has hopeful news for parents and teens: first, some degree of stress and anxiety is not only normal but essential for human growth. And if those levels become untenable, there are tested strategies for reining anxiety back in."

"Welcome to Teen Ink, a national teen magazine, book series, and website devoted entirely to teenage writing, art, photos, and forums. For over 25 years, Teen Ink has offered teens the opportunity to publish their creative work and opinions on issues that affect their lives - everything from love and family to school, current events, and self-esteem. Hundreds of thousands of students, aged 13 -19, have submitted their work to us and we have published more than 55,000 teens since 1989. Distributed through classrooms by English and Art teachers, and available in libraries nationwide, Teen Ink magazine offers some of the most thoughtful and creative work generated by teens today. We have no staff writers or artists; we depend completely on submissions from teenagers around the world for our content. Teen Ink has the largest distribution of any publication of its kind. Teen Ink is devoted to helping teens share their own voices, while developing reading, writing, creative and critical-thinking skills. All proceeds from the print magazine, website and Teen Ink books are used for educational purposes to further our goals."

"Teen Ink is a monthly magazine devoted entirely to teenage writing and artwork. We have no assigned stories, staff writers, or artists. Instead, we depend entirely on submissions from teenagers nationwide - and around the world - for our content. Join the millions of teens who read Teen Ink."

"Laurie Santos wants to help teenagers, and the rest of the world, feel happier. Santos, the psychology professor behind Yale University's most popular course, recently launched a free six-week version of the class aimed at teenagers, called "The Science of Well-Being for Teens." It was developed to address rising rates of anxiety, depression and suicide rates for kids between ninth and 12th grade, Santos says. Lesson No. 1, she preaches in one of the course's pre-recorded lectures: Our brains lie to us about what makes us happy."