PEPSI SCREENING

JANES SCREENING
MARQUISE CAMP
 I had the opportunity to interview Jane, which is the name I will use to keep the

subjects identity confidential. The idea of confidentiality is important to me because I am

not a professional psychiatrist, and understand I still have a lot to learn about viewing and

testing a students development levels. I know Jane through a good friend of mine, who

grew up with in the summers that I would be in Las Vegas.

Jane was born in the year 2000 here in Las Vegas. She had a natural birth with no

major complications, but was born with atrial septal defect; which is a small hole in her

heart. This never gave her any major problems in her life, but has kept her from playing

sports or being physically active for too long. Jane lives with her mother, grandmother,

older half-brother, little cousin, and her step uncle. Janes aunt also lived in the

grandmothers house with everyone, but recently passed away due to a medical condition.

Janes father does not live with her, and has never lived with her. Her father Kevin has

been incarcerated since the time of her birth, and although now released he is not in her

life much besides phone calls here and there. Jane is not in school, and did not finish high

school. I would estimate she has an eight grade education due to lack of attendance, but

enjoys to read novels and reads often throughout her day. Her half-brother also did not

finish high school, and neither did her mother. I found that education was not an

important topic in their house, and was something that they could get around to. After a

while I learned Janes mothers side of the family emigrated from Cuba, so that makes

Jane a first generation American citizen. After reviewing the information I have gathered

I believe the living conditions have affected Janes areas of development, and understand

why it affects so many people.

Physical Development

Physically Jane has fully developed, and does not have any health issues that

altered her development. According to McCown and Snowman in Psychology Applied to

Teaching, students reach physical maturity, and virtually all attain puberty. From

observing Jane it seems as if she has reached her full growth. I played a little game of

catch with Jane just to see if she had full range of motion in her legs and arms, which she

did. One thing that I could not help but notice was Jane looked a little over weight. I did

not dare ask her what her weight was, but if I had to guess it would be close to 160

pounds or over. While reading Indices of Relative Weight and Obesity by Ancel Keys I

learned the average weight of a seventeen year old girl is around 120 pounds, which is in

the 50 percentile. I am fully aware that weight can vary between individuals, but going

off the information I have found Jane would be considered obese. Although Jane has

physically developed she is not physically fit, or physically active. Most of her day is

spent in her room on her cell phone, or reading a book. I could not help but wonder if not

having her dad around to take her outside the play while she was younger had anything to

do with this. When Janes mom lived in Cuba as a little girl she was never allowed to go

outside and play, this was looked at as something that boys did and girls stayed inside the

house. I also contribute Jane hardly ever leaving her house due to the cultural tradition

she was raised in. When reading the physical characteristics of elementary grades in

Phycology Applied to Teaching I believe Jane fits this group even though she is

seventeen, as many other seventeen year olds may. McCown and Snowman state, There

is a greater tendency for them to overeat, particularly junk food. When this eating pattern

is coupled with a relatively low level of physical activity. This fits Jane because every
time I watched her eat it was always snacks such as chips, candy, and frozen foods such

as pizza rolls. I never saw her want to eat salad, or fruit, or even a steak. When she ate

meals it was foods such as pizza, and chicken fingers. It was almost as if she never grew

out of these foods onto foods you would see adults eat. Although Jane has gone through

the stages of puberty, and does not have any major physical problems I do not believe she

developed fully in this area. I believe something happened that deprived her from

reaching and completing all stages of physical development, and because of that has

hindered her in other states as well. While observing Jane she did not seem to care too

much on her looks. I never say her wear makeup and be worried about how her hair was

done, or if her outfit matched. I would sometimes hear her mom have to force her to take

a shower, or change a shirt because she always wears it out. This was strange to me

because the American Academy of Pediatrics states that girls at this age become more

concerned with how they look, and how other view them. It is not a bad thing that Jane

does but a lot of her attention with her appearance, it was just smoothing I noticed about

her and how she was different that other girls.

Emotional Development

When I first began to think about Janes emotional development I could not pin

point anything that caught my attention, and made me believe there was something wrong

in her emotional development. I could not think of anything because it was not as if Jane

was always acting out, or could not control her emotions. The whole time I observed her I

never saw her get angry at anybody, or fight with her mother and brother. According to

Sutter Palo Alto Health Foundation this is a good thing and shows growth, because teens

at this age should be easier for parents to handle. Occasionally she would smack her lips

if she was told she could not do something or get something, but besides that there was

nothing that stood out emotionally. This lead me to wonder if she was holding something

back, and did not feel comfortable with others knowing how she felt inside. More often

than not when I went over there she was in her room lying in bed; either looking at her

phone or asleep if it was before two in the afternoon. This is where I began to wonder if

maybe there was something emotionally wrong with Jane. After going back and reading

chapter three section five C in Psychology Applied to Teaching I believe Jane may fit the

characteristics of slight depression.

McCown and Snowman state Common symptoms of depression include feelings

of worthlessness and lack of control over ones life Jane may lay in bed all day

because she feels as if her life has no meaning to it, and there is nothing she can do to

change that. Jane has no friends outside of the family, and being alone all day may cause

her to believe she is nobody, and has no purpose. The McCown also went on to tell us

that 38.5 percent of high school females report feeling so sad and hopeless they would

stop engaging in regular day activities. This really describes Jane because she takes
herself out of activities, and does not go and do average teenage activities. Janes mom

told me that when Jane was enrolled in school she would get picked on and that could

have added on to emotional problems for Jane, and the reason Jane spends her days in her

room, and not out socializing. According to National Institute of Mental Health one sign

of depression is not caring about things or activities you used to enjoy. When Jane was

younger she was more active. For example, she would go outside, play tag, ride her

scooter, and attended school, Jane does not do any of these activities anymore. She now

would prefer to be alone than socialize, and read a book in her room rather go out.
Philosophical Development

It was a challenge for me to figure out Janes philosophical development because

she is an introvert. Everything that Jane thought stayed inside of her head, so it was hard

to tell what she was thinking, or what she believed in. When friendly debates were going

on she never had a point to add, or give her opinion on a situation. When I asked her what

she thought I usually got shut out with an I dont know. One moment that showed

philosophical development was when I asked her how she felt about Donald Trump. She

told me she did not like him because he was not fair to everyone, and wanted to kick

people out of the country. This let me know she had an idea on what was going on, and

had her own opinion about it. Even though Jane did not always voice her opinion she still

had one, which convinced me even though she did not voice her opinion she still had her

own morals she lived by and believed in. Robin Larabee claims in Normal Development:

Middle Adolescence at this age students should start to develop moral ideals and to select

role models. Which I believe Jane is beginning to do. Another reason I believe Jane is

developing fine philosophically is because she forgives her father for not being in her

life; she does not hold a grudge over his head. In Psychology Applied to Teaching it states

that as students get older they begin to change their idea from strict punishment to

rehabilitation; which reminds me of how Jane feels about her father. I had to remind

myself in this study that Jane was still young and may not use, or think about her

philosophical thoughts. Snowman and McCown state, High school students become

increasingly capable of engaging in formal thought, but they may not use this capability.

Jane may be advancing fine in this area, but does not show it because she doesnt think

about it. An article titled Cognitive Development states, Even though tens are forming
adult cognitive abilities, they still do not have the life experiences to guide them in

making the best choices. I believe this describes Jane perfect. Although Jane has formal

though process, she does not have enough experience to know what formulate in her own

thoughts what life is really about, and how to survive without her mom. This also may

explain why she does not feel anything wrong with just lying in bed all day. She does not

have the life experiences yet to discipline herself to accomplish goals in life, and support

yourself.
Social Development

The journal Child Development in Center of Control and Prevention stated that

teenagers at this age become more independent from parents, and begin to spend more

time with friends and less with parents. Observing Jane, I did not see her show any

independence away from her mother. I never heard her say she was going to hang out

with friends, or have friends over at the house. I believe this is the area Jane is suffering

the most. In almost every category of social development that I researched Jane does not

fully complete the levels she should be at for her age. One of the categories that she does

fit in is that her mother influences her long term goals, granted that she does not have

many friends that could be an influence on her. Psychology Applied to Teaching sates,

Girls seem to experience greater anxiety about friendships than boys do. The reason for

this is because girl look for more intimate friendships and this causes the anxiety. I

believe Jane does not try to make friends because she has a fear of being judged, and will

not find someone who will have common interest. I also believe she does not try to make

friends because she has her mom as a friend, and doesnt trust people outside of their

relationship. The journal Ages and Stages states Theyre looking for more adult social

settings, looking at moving on from teen activities. I do not see Jane trying to move

out of her teen stage. It is almost as if she enjoys being looked at as a young girl and

wants to stay that way. She still has no responsibilities, and doesnt take any upon herself.

She has does not go to school, or have a job so she does not have a social life. I fear if

Jane keeps on this path she will not be able to support herself once her mother is gone.
Intellectual Development

When I thought of Janes intellectual level at first I did not think it was very high,

and rather below average. I did not believe it was very high because she did not finish

high school, and hardly ever went to school after elementary school. Not only did not

having a very good education make me believe this, but I never heard her start up a

conversation that was about politics, current events, or important topics within society.

While reading Psychology Applied to Teaching I learned high school students become

more capable of formal thought, even though they may not use it all the time. Jane is able

to organize her thoughts, and pronounce her thoughts even though she may not do it

often. I know this because throughout the conversations I never heard her say anything

that was completely unorganized, and not being able to use her words in the right way.

After reading the journal Anxiety and the Intellectual Performance of High School

Students it made me rethink my idea that the reason Jane did not finish school was due to

a low intellectual level. This journal tested the theory that anxiety affects the intellectual

levels of high school students and can make them perform badly on test, and different

activities in the class room. This made me believe that the reason Jane struggled in the

classroom was because she had anxiety about being in a classroom, and not because her

intellectual development was altered. After reading Developmental Milestones for

Typical High Schooler I believe Janes intellectual development is not fully developed

yet. A few milestones listed on this site that I believe Jane did not get to yet is beginning

to set their own goals for the future, take other opinions into account but make their own

decisions, show an increasing ability to reason, and make educated guesses. A few

milestones that I do feel Jane has completed is Develop a strong sense of right and
wrong; make decisions based on following their conscience, and understanding the

consequences of actions, not just today, but also in a more far-reaching way. I believe this

is so strong for her because her father was in prison almost her whole life. Getting calls

from prison, and seeing him in there has given her a strong sense of could happen to her

if she.
Graph

I made this graph by using the observations, and information I found from sources that I

stated in the pages previous to this graph. The top score on this graph is 12 and the lowest

would be 1. The average high school student was graphed at about 10 on this graph. I

believe this is a reasonable score because the average high school student is not 100

percent sure on their developmental areas yet. Some are above average, but most are not.

Psychology Applied to Teaching stated students will be developed by this point and

reached puberty by this stage, which was one of the factors that helped me determine

where Jane fit on the graph. Reading Child Development in Center of Control and
Prevention I read teenagers at this age become more independent from parents, since Jane

is not independent of her parent her level was lowered in the social section of the graph.

The journal Anxiety and the Intellectual Performance of High School Students stated the

point that anxiety can really affect the success level of high school students. Even though

Jane does not do well in a normal school setting it may not be due to her intellectual

level, but her anxiety of the school setting. Taking that into consideration I used that to

mark Jane a little bit higher than half on the graph in this section. Using the sources stated

in my observations I was able to create the graph, and determine where I felt Jane best fit

within the graph.

Recommendations

Jane is not having any major issues with her physical development. She has

reached her full growth, and for the most part is healthy. I recommend Jane get out more

and exercise each day. Even if it is going for a 30 minute walk, she just needs something

to burn calories and keep her muscles strong. I fear that if she continues to go on she will

gain more weight, and possible be at high risk for diabetes. I also suggest that Jane

watches what she eats, and balances out healthy food with junk food.

For Janes emotional level I would suggest that her mom take her to talk to a

specialist, or a professional in this area to determine if she does suffer from depression or

not. I would suggest this so Jane does not go on feeling and showing signs of depression.

I believe talking to someone outside of her circle will give her someone to vent to, and

almost force her to open up. It is almost as if Jane is keeping her feelings inside and not

expressing them which is not healthy for her.

With Janes philosophical development I believe she should read books that talk

about different ideas about life, and different ways to live your life. I believe this would

give her different ideas about her own life, and it would allow her to hear different

opinions then the ones that come from her mother, or culture. I also feel like this could

her a since of who she is. Through books about others opinions about life she could find

her own, and this might encourage her to be more outgoing.

Jane really needs a big social change. I almost want to recommend she take a

speech class at CSN to get her comfortable with being in front of people. I also would

recommend Jane work on holding a conversation with people she just meet, and does not
know. I want to take Jane out to the strip and force her to have a conversation with people

she has never meet before. Anything that can break Jane out of her shell I would

recommend. Jane needs more responsibilities, and independence away from her mother.

A job would help Jane out a lot with responsibilities. This would give her an idea on how

the real world is, and there are no handouts.

I recommend Jane get back into school, and finish school to help her intellectual

level. Jane should be in a class with a small class size, and a teacher that will spend extra

time with her. I do not recommend to throw Jane back into a regular class because it will

not help her anxiety. I believe a critical thinking class will also help Janes intellectual

level. I believe this will help because it will show her how to think deeper into a topic,

and not leave her saying I dont know after every question. I also believe this will help

her because this will teach her to question why things are the way they are. Instead of

Jane always relying on others, she will be able to critically think her way through a

situation.
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