PEPSI

PEPSI Screening Project

Sarah Barnes

College of Southern Nevada

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PEPSI

Abstract

Over the past few months I have been conducting a PEPSI screen on a thirteen-year-old male.

During this screening, I have examined the teen by using the PEPSI model components as a

guide to determine if, developmentally, the child is on track. Those components are

physiological, emotional, philosophical, social and intellectual. Each component of the PEPSI

highlights areas that may or may not be normal for a developing thirteen-year-old male. This

screening is designed to shine light on areas that may need improvement within the child’s

development as well as help his teachers and parent assist him in more specific ways needed.

Recommendations for the child to improve developmentally are given at the end of the

screening.

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PEPSI Screening Project

Biography

Name: Josiah Marquez Davis

Gender: Male
Ethnicity: 75% African American 25% Mexican American
Age: 13 years of age
Grade: 7th
Socioeconomic Status: Middle Socioeconomic Status
Josiah Marquez Davis was born on December 10, 2004 to parents Sarah Barnes and

Alonzo Davis. Sarah and Alonzo met in college and had a loving relationship. Unfortunately, the

relationship between Josiah’s parents was unsuccessful and Josiah became a product of a single

parent household. For the last 13 years, Josiah has lived with his now 70-year-old grandparents,

his mother and his four-year-old baby sister. His grandparents, prior to their second retirement,

were hard working middle class citizens, and well to do. Both of Josiah’s grandparents served in

the United States Air Force for over 20 years. After his grandmother’s first retirement from the

USAF, she went on to work another 22 years for the Nevada State Welfare Department, retiring

at age 66. His grandfather, the same. After retiring from the USAF, he continued civilian work as

an electrician out at the Nellis Air Force Base for another 20 years and retired at the age of 65.

Although Josiah’s father has remained absent for most of his life, Josiah’s mother has always

made sure that he knows his father, and has some sort of relationship with him, even if it is

distant. Many children who end up without a father in the home also lack any sort of a father

figure. That has never been the case for Josiah. He has always had very dominant and positive

male figures in his life. Josiah has always had a consistent family unit that has always been very

loving and supportive of both him and his mother. Josiah’s immediate family is small. Aside

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from his grandparents, mother and baby sister, Josiah has always had the love and support from

his mother’s older sister, Aunt Steph and her husband, Uncle Eric (who has served and continues

to serve in the Unites States Army for over 30 years now), their two kids, Josiah’s cousins

Donovan (25 years old) and Alexandria (17 years old) both of whom he is very close to. He

shared a very close and special bond with his mother’s older brother, his Uncle Joey (who was a

special agent for the Social Security Administration) his wife, Tina and their daughter, Jada, who

is four years old, just like Josiah’s little sister. These men, Josiah’s grandfather, Uncle Eric and

Uncle Joey along with his mother’s long-term boyfriend and recent fiancé, have played an

invaluable role in Josiah’s life.

At the age of three Josiah started pre-school at Mountain View Christian School and stayed there

until fifth grade. At Mountain View Christian School, aka MVCS, Josiah did exceptionally well.

Education has always been a very important topic of discussion within Josiah’s family, and he

knows and understands the expectations that have been set before him. He made A/B honor roll

every quarter of the seven years he was at MVCS, he worked hard and placed in the school wide

spelling bee, and beat out his fellow classmates for a spot in the local speech meet every year.

Josiah has also played sports ever since he was able to walk, first playing soccer, then tee ball

and going on to basketball, flag football and tackle football. He is a very good athlete, and over

the years has continued to get better and better. Sports is a huge part of Josiah’s life. He has

always shown an interest in playing sports and has always done well, even earning the MVP

award for many seasons of basketball and football.

In the fifth grade, a spot opened at Somerset Middle School NLV campus, and it was decided

that he would go there. Josiah’s fifth grade year was an adjustment. Even though Josiah

maintained A’s and B’s, he struggled with making good choices and cared more about being the

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“cool” kid. Going from a private Christian school to a somewhat moderate public/charter school

was an adjustment. Combine that with his mother having his baby sister and his, Aunt Steph,

having a health scare, his fifth-grade school year was trying. His sixth-grade school year seemed

to be even worse. Not only did his behavior seem to get out of control, but his grades were also

slipping. The school started making phone calls home, and Josiah’s trips to the office for doing

“stupid boy stuff” increased. Luckily for him, he has a support system that stayed on him. After

his Uncle Joey suggested taking away everything, TV, cell phone, his “cool” shoes, and clothes,

packing it all up and taking it to his house, he began to straighten up. Then, the unimaginable

happened.

Around the second quarter of Josiah’s sixth grade school year, his Uncle Joey was diagnosed

with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma cancer. Everyone’s lives were turned upside down. After many

chemo treatments, Josiah’s uncle decided to seek treatment at MD Anderson in Houston, Texas.

This was difficult for Josiah because his uncle’s seeking treatment in Houston meant that he

would be leaving. Josiah and his uncle shared many discussions about his cancer and the medical

treatment he would be receiving.

Most children are unable to handle the psychological aspect of seeing someone they love

deteriorate in front of them, and, for a moment, Josiah’s family thought he would start to shy

away from his uncle due to a lack of understanding and being afraid, however, Josiah’s love for

his uncle never wavered. Even to the point that when Josiah’s uncle lost his full head of curly

hair, Josiah went and cut his full head of curly hair so that they could be “twins.” When the time

came for Josiah’s uncle to leave for MD Anderson, Josiah was sad. Although he knew his uncle

was going to get better, he did not want him to leave.

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Josiah’s uncle underwent a three to four-month clinical trial at MD Anderson with the support of

Josiah’s grandparents and his Aunt Tina. Because of this, Josiah’s mom had to take care of Jada,

his cousin, while her parents and their grandparents were in Houston seeking treatment. This

required Josiah to step up in a big way, and, he did. At the end of his uncle’s clinical trial, he was

told he was in remission and was cleared to come home. Josiah was so happy to have his uncle

back. The diagnosis and treatment, prevented his uncle from being present at a lot of significant

functions, miss football and basketball games, and not be as involved as he had always been

throughout Josiah’s entire life. This affected Josiah. They shared a father-and-son bond and

Josiah’s Uncle Joey had always been very instrumental in all things regarding Josiah.

Six months after returning home, Josiah’s uncles symptoms returned, and he headed back to

Houston, Texas. Josiah had started seventh grade and football season was once again, in full

swing. Josiah’s mother had a lot on her plate taking care of Josiah, his three-year-old sister and

now, his three-year-old cousin as well as being a full-time student. Josiah stepped up

tremendously. He was not having any behavioral issues at school, was doing well in football and

was showing more responsibility. Perhaps it was because he understood the necessity of his

being more of a help than a hindrance because of everything going on.

On November 18, 2017, at 5:30 am, Josiah’s cell phone rang. It was his Aunt Tina, along with his

grandparents and his Uncle Joey, who was unable to speak, on the phone. Josiah was told that he

could tell his uncle Joey his final goodbyes and at 6:03 am Josiah’s Uncle Joey’s year and half

battle with cancer ended, and he passed away. That time was so surreal, and Josiah and his

family have been picking up the pieces ever since. Today, almost six months later, Josiah and

his family are learning how to grieve in a healthy way as they continue to love and support one

another.

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Physiological

Josiah is 13 years old, weighs 137 lbs., and is 5’7 in height. In the last year or so many

people have made mention of how tall Josiah has gotten, how deep his voice is, the size of his

feet and how muscular his physic is looking. Josiah is considerably tall and lean with an athletic

build. Teenagers go through a period of rapid height growth that lasts about two years. After this

growth spurt the body begins to elongate and may even look thin. This occurs in boys ages 12 to

16 years old (Schwanke, n.d.). His face is beginning to show the chiseled features of his jawline

and cheekbones. His arms are long and medium sized, with distinct visible muscles, his stomach

is flat, and his abs are noticeable, and he has excellent legs and calf muscles to go with them. He

is a handsome young man with olive colored skin, light brown eyes and curly black hair. Josiah

is showing obvious signs of being well into puberty. Unfortunately, he has a little bit of acne, to

go along with the little bit of facial and underarm hair that he is so proud of. His voice is deeper

than any of his many friends. He has sprouted up like a weed and is taller than his mother and

most of his friends. He is also experiencing other personal growths that all boys between the ages

of 10 and 14 ½ start to experience (“Physical Changes”).

In the last three years, Josiah’s foot size has grown from a youth 8 ½ to a men’s size 10 in

shoes and 11 in football cleats! During the middle school years, the average child will grow 2 to

4 inches per year and gain 8 to 10 pounds per year. But some parts of the body, particularly the

hands and feet, grow faster than others (McCown). I believe Josiah’s physic is attributed to the

constant conditioning due to playing sports. Josiah has been playing sports since he was three

years old. He started out playing soccer, then tee ball, basketball, karate, flag football and tackle

football. Up until the age of 11years old, Josiah always played basketball and flag football, year-

round. He has since dropped flag football and moved up to tackle football, but he continues to

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incorporate basketball in the off season of tackle football. Tackle football is very demanding on

the body of these young boys. I have seen the transformations his body has gone through in the

past two years. In the fifth grade, at about age 11, he was quick and agile. Although he was not

very tall, he had good weight on him. Many coaches would see him and say, “Wow, he’s a

football player.” His body, feet, and hand coordination seemed to cooperate with one another. He

played running back for his football team and he was the fastest kid on his team.

The following year, at age 12, Josiah began to have issues on the basketball court and

football field. His knees were killing him while playing basketball, and his feet were working

against him. After many visits and referrals to a podiatrist and a bone specialist, Josiah was

diagnosed with Coalers Disease in his feet and Osgood Schlatter’s Disease in his knees. During

this time Josiah hit a growth spurt, his body and muscles all looked as if he was bigger and

stronger, but it was just the opposite:

“this vulnerable phase starts a bit before puberty – around 10 in girls and around 12 in

boys. The rapid increase in the length of bones at this time seems to come at the expense

of bone strength, increasing the odds of fractures. "Because the bones are growing at a

great rate, then the muscles tend to be a bit tight too. It's a time of inflexibility." This

tightness in muscles means there is an increased pulling force on the growth plate of

bones (where muscles are attached), which can cause pain and inflammation. This is the

basis of the common conditions Sever's disease, which affects the heel of the foot, and

Osgood-Schlatter disease, which affects the knee” (Johnson, 2014).

Josiah’s eating habits are poor, but he is not opposed to easting healthy. He loves home

cooked food over fast food, but he is a snack eater and loves junk food: chips, cookies, candy,

sodas, fruit juice, fruit snacks, you name it. He is starting to develop eating habits that are not

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going to be beneficial to him, especially as an athlete. If he wants to take sports to the next level,

aside from having the physicality, health and diet are just as important.

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References

Johnson, C. (2014, June 27). Teenage years risky for sports injuries. Retrieved from ABC
Health and Wellbeing :http://www.abc.net.au/health/thepulse/stories/2014/06/27/4033649.htm

Manna, I. (2014). Growth Development and Maturity in Children and Adolescent:

Relation to Sports and Physical Activity. American Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 2,
48-50. Retrieved 5 1, 2018, from http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajssm/2/5a/11

McCown, R. & Snowman, J. (2015). Psychology Applied to Teaching 14th edition. Boston,
Houghton Mifflin Co.

Physical Changes for Boys | Puberty Information for Teens. (n.d.). Retrieved 5 1, 2018,
from pamf.org: http://www.pamf.org/teen/health/puberty/physicalchanges.html

Schwanke, C. (n.d.). Average Height and Weight for a Teenager. Retrieved 5 3, 2018,
from Teens.lovetoknow.com:http://teens.lovetoknow.com/Average_Height_and_Weight_for
_Teenager

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PEPSI

Emotional

While conducting my research, I found that some theorist describe adolecence as a

period of turmoil. During this time, many teens are dealing with feelings of confusion, anxiety,

depression, exteme mood swings and low levels of self-confidence; These feelings are due to the

rapid changes in height, weight and body proportions, increase in hormone production, the task

of identity formation; increased academic responsibilities; and the development of formal

operational reasoning (McCown). That said, it is normal for adolecence to go through this period

of emotional instability without developing any social or emotional difficulties as an adult.

During my observation of Josiah, I noticed that his emotional response to different situations

seemed normal. When playing a competitive game of basketball, he showed enthusiam and

excitement when he or his team-mate scored. If fouled too hard or the referee did not make a

favorable call, like typical teen boys, he showed emotions of disapointment and frustration.

In observing Josiah when told to do chores or homework, he tended to be a bit defiant.

He would smack his lips, roll his eyes, huff and puff as if he did not know why he was being told

to do these things. Josiah exhibits what I think to be traits of being spoiled. Just for kicks, I gave

him a fun little test from the internet and, based on his answers, he was definitely spoiled!

However, although it may be frustrating and aggravating, it is normal for teenagers to fail to do

their chores without 10 reminders, to put off their homework, to be emotional, to lose important

things, to like music that is too loud, and to sometimes counter or question authority. Abnormal

behavior is sudden changes in personality, angry outbursts of profanity, extreme disrespect for

people and things, addictions, sudden failing grades, not sleeping or sleeping too much, extreme

weight loss, eating disorders, self-harm, running away, or self-imposed isolation (“Is My

Teen’s,”).

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Josiah has been going through an emotional time right now. Although he knows his

father and has somewhat of a distant relationship with him, his father has been absent for most of

his life. As he has gotten older he has become more vocal about what it means to him to not have

his father with him day in and day out. One person, in particular, filled that void and gave the

love and support Josiah needed. That person was his uncle Joey. Six months ago, Josiah’s uncle,

who, was very much like a father figure, unexpectedly passed away. Josiah hardly talks about the

passing of his uncle, but there have been several occasions when family members have caught

him crying alone, which has caused concern for his family as well as his teachers at school.

According to The American Hospice Foundation, teens grieve deeply but often work very hard

to hide their feelings. Fearing the vulnerability that comes with expression, they look for

distractions rather than stay with the grief process long enough to find real relief. Feelings can be

turned off quickly, much like flipping a light switch. Teens can act as if nothing has happened

while they are breaking up inside (Fitzgerald, n.d.).

Josiah has experienced great heartache at an early age between the absence of his father

and losing his uncle, whom he was extremely close to. Unfortunately, these are two great loses

of many to come, and only time will tell how these situations will greatly affect Josiah in a

negative way. The hope is that Josiah can communicate his emotions in a healthy way sooner

than later so that he does not suffer from any emotional difficulties as he gets older and becomes

an adult.

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References

Fitzgerald, H. (2014, June 05). The Grieving Teen. Retrieved May 8, 2018, from
https://americanhospice.org/grieving-children/someone-you-love-has-died-a-book-for-
grieving-children/

Is My Teen’s Behavior Normal? (n.d.). Retrieved from The Christian Broadcasing Network:
http://www1.cbn.com/family/is-my-teen%27s-behavior-normal%3F

McCown, R. & Snowman, J. (2015). Psychology Applied to Teaching 14th edition. Boston,
Houghton Mifflin Co.

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Philosophical

From the time Josiah was 3 years old to 10 years old, Josiah attended MVCS, a private

Christian school. At MVCS, along with the weekly rituals of getting up on Sunday mornings and

going to church, the belief of Jesus Christ was taught. Josiah has been raised on the foundation

and Christian belief in his Lord and Savior. Religious education can be expected to make a

strong contribution to moral development and promote the skills and capacities required for the

philosophical analysis that moral questions require (Erricker, n.d.). I believe that because of this

early exposure and influence within Josiah’s household his behavior and ability to feel deeply

empathetic for others is linked to his religious teachings.

When looking at the stages of moral development, I found that Josiah has developed

philosophically well into the first two stages. At stage 1, a deep and profound attachment to

parents, empathy toward the significant others, and obedience to authorities all contribute to the

physical survival of a person at this stage. People at Stage 2 are self-protective, dominant,

exploitative, and opportunistic. The need to love and to be loved is gratified based on reciprocal

altruism. People at Stage 3 have a strong desire to gratify their belongingness needs to a primary

group. They are willing to sacrifice for the benefits of the group at great cost (Ma, n.d.) .

Although Josiah has met the development level of stage 1 and 2, he has not quite

managed to develop wholly into level 3. He still tends to be a bit selfish and often time thinks of

himself first, until reminded of his actions. This is normal for a teen boy his age, but the hope is

that as he gets older the reminders wont have to come as often.

Josiah thinks often about the future and where he wants to be and what it takes to get

there. In the couple of months observing him, I have noticed that his ability to cognitively think

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about his future has increased. It is settling to know, that even at his age, Josiah is already

thinking of college and what he wants to do thereafter. He has been exposed to critical issues of

race and treating people fairly. His family feels that as a young, black, male, it is crucial that he

develop a sense of understanding as these issues arise. He recently read the autobiography of

Malcolm X and wrote a very clear report on the book. His ability to think about justice and what

that means was written clearly throughout his report. According to Piaget’s Cognitive Stages of

Development, this is considered the Formal Operational Stage (WebMD, n.d.)

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Reference
Erricker, C. (n.d.). Religious Education and Moral Development. Retrieved from Handbook:
http://www.re-handbook.org.uk/section/curriculum/spiritual-moral-and-related-aspects-of-
religious-education/religious-education-and-moral-development

Ma, H. K. (n.d.). The moral development of the child:an integrated model. Retrieved from Frontiers in
Public Health: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2013.00057/full

WebMD. (n.d.). Retrieved from Piaget Stages of Development:

https://www.webmd.com/children/piaget-stages-of-development#2

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Social

The definition of a social butterfly is someone who is social or friendly with everyone,

flitting from person to person, the way a butterfly might. The word social comes from the Latin

word socius meaning "friend." When one is being social, one is everyone's friend. Observing

Josiah with his friends and peers, I noticed that he is a natural leader. Josiah is a very friendly kid,

always wanting to make sure his peers are happy and enjoy being around him. He is funny and can

communicate with all different types of kids. Josiah also exhibits a great deal of self-confidence

through his interactions with his peers. In every social setting, whether it be at school, on the

basketball court and football field, or hanging out with his friends during activities outside of

school, Josiah is the guy that other peers want to be around, hang out with and talk to. Josiah’s

playing of sports from when he was a tot could have contributed to his ability to be socially mature.

Sports has been linked to building social cohesion and social capital among young people (“Social

and Emotional”).

Fashion has become a big thing with Josiah. He is very much into doing what is

considered “cool” amongst adolescents. One minute he wants to grow his hair out and dye the

top like the famous football player Odell Beckham Jr., the next, he wants to grow his hair out

into dreads like all the new-age rappers. He is very much into designer clothes and apparel and

what his friends have versus what he has, and vice versa. Between the ages of 11 and 15 middle

schoolers may begin to test out new ideas, try different clothing styles and mannerisms to fit in

(Morin, n.d.). Even though fitting in and keeping up with all the latest trends is important to

Josiah, he seems to be secure in who he is and who he is becoming amongst his peers.

Although Josiah can communicate and interact socially well with his peers, his teachers and

other adults tend to intimidate him a bit. One concerning behavior I have noticed is that Josiah

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tends to shy away from, and is unable to hold an interpersonal conversation with, adults.

According to the developmental task of adolescence, Josiah’s verbal capabilities are still

growing. Eventually, he will be able to speak up and assert himself in a respectful manner to

those considered to be his elders (Christie, n.d.).

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References

Christie, D. (n.d.). Adolescent development. Retrieved from US National Library of Medicine :

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC548185/

Morin, A. (n.d.). Social and Emotional Skills: What to Expect at Different Ages. Retrieved from
Understood For Learning And Attention Issues: https://www.understood.org/en/learning-
attention-issues/signs-symptoms/age-by-age-learning-skills/social-and-emotional-skills-
what-to-expect-at-different-ages

Social and Emotional Development. (n.d.). Retrieved 5 7, 2018, from

http://www.sportanddev.org/en/learnmore/sport_education_and_child_youth_developmen
t2/social_and_emotional_development/

Stages of Social-Emotional Development – Erik Erikson. (n.d.). Retrieved 5 7, 2018, from Child
Development Institute: http://childdevelopmentinfo.com/child-
development/erickson/#ixzz3ZaBI7RQf

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Intellectual

I was able to observe Josiah in his classroom for a few days off and on. I believe my

observation is biased in that, Josiah knew I was there to observe him, so he acted like a

completely different student. He came in, spoke to his friends in his class, but got seated right

away. He listened thoroughly to the teacher and got right to work once the teacher was done

talking. He worked independently without allowing other students to distract him and on few

occasions, he went up to ask the teacher a question about the material he was working on. After

speaking with his teacher, she stated that, “Josiah never acts like this, I think it because you’re

here.” What she meant was that typically it takes a while for Josiah to come in, get settled and

get right to work. Although concerning, she did mention that overall Josiah is a very bright

student, but he must start making better choices for the benefit of himself and his education.

Although Josiah is an A/B student he tends to slack through out the school year only to

make up for it towards the end of each quarter. His teacher made mention of how disappointing it

was, for someone so smart to not apply himself 100% as he should. She went on to say that she

has students to have to work twice as hard just to maintain a C grade, but for Josiah its hit or

miss, depending on if he feels like it. This behavior is normal for a developing thirteen-year-old

to have this kind of attitude about school. It just becomes frustrating when you now the student is

capable of much more than what is being put out.

Josiah speaks intellectually well. He makes sense in his conversations and can explain his

thought process clearly. He never crossed me as the immature, annoying kid. His behavior and

mannerism are all intellectually developing where they should be.

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Recommendations

Physiological:

After examining Josiah’s physiological development, I have come to determine that

Josiah is above average. He is taller than most 13-year-old adolescent boys and he weighs more.

He is as tall as and weighs as much as a teen 14 – 16 years old. Josiah’s eating habits are a bit

concerning. Although he is in overall good shape Josiah is in shape, he could improve his eating

habits. He does prefer a home cooked meal over fast food, but tends to snack a bit much on junk

food. My recommendation is that more healthy snack foods are bought instead of the junk. He

must learn that healthy eating habits are important and beneficial to his overall health.

Emotional:

Josiah has been dealing with quite a bit in the last six months. More so, he has always had

to learn how to cope with the absence of his father. I believe the love and support Josiah has

always received from his family has helped to ease the void of not having his father around, but

as Josiah gets older he is able to process, more deeply, his feelings about his father being gone.

In addition to that being Josiah’s constant, he just lost his uncle. Josiah tends to hold in his

emotions and refrain from discussing the things that are bothering him, and because of this, his

emotional development does cause for some concern. Josiah is only getting older and in two

years he will be in high school. Family counseling has always been discussed as an option to

help Josiah process his feelings about his dad and more recently, the loss of his uncle, who was

very much of a father figure to him. There is a family friend that works as a child psychologist

and offered to sit down with him and have discussions. Josiah and her son are friends, so it

would be a comfortable situation for Josiah.

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Also, making sure that Josiah’s mother and the rest of the family try to engage in

dialogue as much as possible with the understanding that he may not talk. As long as he knows

the door is always open and there is a constant exchange of conversation between Josiah and

those that love him, he will thrive emotionally.

Philosophical:

Josiah seems to be right on track for his philosophical development. He is a well-rounded

child and has been exposed to many thought provoking experiences. As Josiah continues to get

older he will develop the ability to think beyond himself. In the meantime, my recommendation,

is to continue to teach Josiah what is right and wrong, expose him to more books or

autobiographies of those who have changed our world for the better and to continue engaging in

conversation with him.

Social:

Josiah does a great job at exhibiting leadership skills and holding his own in social

settings. It has been surprising to see just how popular and well-liked Josiah truly is amongst his

peers and those that are older than him. The way he communicates with those his age, is nothing

short of confident. He is a social butterfly. He has no problem getting a group of his peers to

listen to him. He exhibits leadership skills in school and playing sports.

The one concerning aspect of Josiah’s social development is his inability to communicate

effectively with adults. He must learn to assert himself, speak up, and not be intimidated to ask

adults questions. I recommend that Josiah engage in more in-depth conversations with adults,

starting with those he feels most comfortable with. Family members, friend’s parents and

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coaches are all ideal people he could practice this with. I feel that his social development is still

maturing, as he is, only in the seventh grade. It will continue to develop as he gets older.

Intellectual:

One thing Josiah needs to realize is as he continues in pursuing his education, the work is

going to get harder. Josiah is a very smart kid, but he is lazy. He must start showing more

responsibility for his own grades and education if he wants to succeed in college. He also needs

to develop a stronger sense of self-efficacy, which I believe will come as he continues to get

older. My recommendation is that his mother challenge him over the summer. Enroll him in a

summer program that Josiah can move through without hand-holding. I also recommend that

there be stricter consequences in place once the school year starts for not maintaining the

expected grades.

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