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Paul Burt

EDU 220

Dr. Hooks

11 March 2018

Ronnie Heldt

Pepsi Screening
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Ronnie is 17 year old Caucasian male student, and a senior at Arbor View High School.

He was born and has been raised in Las Vegas Nevada. He has been fortunate to live and grow

up in a stable and loving home. Socio-economically speaking his family lives an upper middle

class lifestyle. He is the younger of two children, and is thankful to have two loving parents who

are both instrumental in all areas of his life. He seems to have a loving and meaningful

relationship with his older sibling who appears to be very influential in his decision making.

Although he is somewhat social, and has the ability to communicate with his peers and adults

quite well, he does seem to be somewhat of an introvert, with very few close friends.

Academically he seems to do enough to get by, usually achieving mostly C’s with a few B’s and

D’s intermittently achieved. He rarely spends too much time studying or working on class work

because he has figured out he can just get by with what he’s doing now. Academically there’s

nothing holding him back from what I’ve observed except his motivation and willingness to

study. He always seems to demonstrate great manners, and is extremely polite, and overall has

an extremely positive attitude.

From my observations he seems to have some self-confidence issues that stem from his

being overweight, and often uses humor to hide his own insecurities on his body image by

making jokes about himself. He is not really affiliated with any school clubs, or extracurricular

activities, and doesn’t play on any of the sports teams at the high school. Ronnie did take the

initiative to become the equipment manager for the football team. He does seem to feel like

being the equipment manager has helped him become part of a team and seems to be reflective

of what that means to his development as a young adult. Ronnie also has not taking an interest in

getting his driver’s license, which is interesting because most kids jump at the chance. His

parents have not pushed for him to get his license, so he also has never had to, or applied for
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work in his life. Similarly to many young adults he spends hours of free time playing video

games, and searching the internet by himself instead of engaging with other kids his age.

Physical Development

Although there is not a lot of research shown in the text, we do understand that children

at Ronnie’s age should start becoming comfortable and aware of their bodies. According to

JoAnne Ellsworth at the age of 17, or late adolescents he should be at the stage of “Anxiety

about the body or inability to accept the changes may result in obsessive attention to diet, weight

building or exercise”. (J’ Anne Ellsworth) The more time I spent with Ronnie I realized that he is

aware of his body type, and can see the differences of his body compared to boys similar to his

age. He definitely knows that being overweight in relationship to his height is definitively to his

disadvantage. I also believe his fatigue level is lower for a boy his age, and takes naps as

frequently as possible. Unfortunately the anxiety has not driven to more exercise but quite the

opposite, of over eating and a little embarrassment, which in turn has led too much of his

isolation from his peers.

According to the text this is also the time for adolescents to become more sexually active.

In high schools across the country the statistics are somewhat alarming, the book states that

“Many adolescents become sexually active, although the long-term trend is down. From 2001

through 2007, sexual intercourse among high school students trended up after having declined

through the 1990s. In 2007 close to two-thirds of students reported having engaged in sexual

intercourse by the end of grade 12”. (Snowman, McCone, pg. 101). Ronnie was quite open about

the fact that he is still a virgin, and hopes to remain until marriage. I’m not sure if that is solely
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based on his morals, or his parents, or the fact that he still has not really dated or has had a

girlfriend, but regardless it’s still impressive that he has stuck by his personal decision.

There are also other characteristics that develop during this period, according to Stanford

Children’s Health there are “specific stages of development that both boys and girls go through

when developing secondary sexual characteristics (the physical characteristics of males and

females that are not involved in reproduction such as voice changes, body shape, pubic hair

distribution, and facial hair)” All these changes are clearly noticeable in Ronnie, especially when

it comes to the deepening of his voice, as well as his chin and moustache stubble. Physically

Ronnie is clearly at the end of his adolescence stage. He shows all the normal signs of a boy in

his senior year in high school.

Emotional Development

Emotionally Ronnie is at the time when important decisions are being made about the

person he would like to be in the future. This time can be extremely overwhelming for most

young people and Ronnie is no different. According to the text during this time of life it’s

common for young people to “develop symptoms of depression which include feelings of

worthlessness and lack of control over one’s life, crying spells, and suicidal thoughts, threats,

and attempts. Additional symptoms include moodiness, social isolation, fatigue, hypochondria,

and difficulty concentrating”. (Snowman, McCone, pg. 105). Ronnie clearly shows signs of

social isolation, because it’s easier being alone than being rejected. One positive though is the

fact the he does have a certain amount of self-worth which his strong bond with the family

instilled. I would also succeed that he definitely has a lack of concentration when it comes to

school, not because he doesn’t get it, but more so because of a lack of interest.
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Erikson’s Psychosocial Development shows that Ronnie is in the area of Identity Versus

Role Confusion. We know during this stage that young adults should be or are in the

“development of the roles and skills that will prepare adolescents to take a meaningful place in

adult society.” (PG. 30) This is clearly the time for Ronnie to start making choices that will have

a direct impact on his adult life. He should be learning the skills that will make him productive,

and a more responsible and well-rounded member of society. As I observed Ronnie I didn’t find

that he was confused about what role he is supposed to assume in society, but do feel that he

hasn’t quite achieved how to accomplish this yet as a senior in high school at Arbor View. The

majority of choices he make are more based on the now, instead of the future.

To further illustrate my observations I’ve turned to The Identity Status Theory by

Marcia. Observations show that Ronnie is at the Identity Diffusion Stage of Marcia’s theory. It

states that students in this stage often are “Not self-directed; disorganized, impulsive, low self-

esteem, alienated from parents; avoids getting involved in schoolwork and interpersonal

relationships.” (Snowman, McCone Pg. 33) Ronnie is aware that the time has come to make

decisions about his future, but is still hesitant on exactly what that means. He shows sign of

lower self-esteem when it comes to appearance, but demonstrates high self-worth when it comes

to being a really great kid. Understandably, he demonstrates a lack of direction and

unwillingness to get involved in school work and school activities, because he has not yet

grasped the rewards that would be associated with doing well in school. As the school year

draws closer to the end, Ronnie is still completely lost as to what his next steps should be. I still

haven’t heard him say that he is interested in college or for that matter even a trade school. He

has even discussed that this is partly why he never chose to get a driver’s license. He understands

by achieving the ability to drive brings the onset of dubious other responsibilities, such as a job
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and paying a certain amount of his own bills. It also means he would need to show responsibility

to be on time, and the need to work hard. His parents have stated many times that he is a hard

worker was he gets started it’s just getting him to that point.

Philosophical Development

Ronnie is quite aware of the expectations of school and family, and understands to a

certain level how to keep both parties happy, without having to put forth any extra effort to

achieve higher. Eland describes that “Adolescent egocentrism… accounts, in part, for the power

of the peer group during this period. The adolescent is so concerned with the reactions of others

toward him particularly his peers, which he is willing to do many things which are opposed to all

of his previous training and to his own best interests”. (Snowman, McCown pg. 45). During the

beginning stages of this time Ronnie was very open about the fact that he said he had “tried

alcohol as well as smoking because his peers were”. But then realized he didn’t like it and in

fact, that it would disappoint his family and their view of him. Ronnie’s lack of sociability with

peers at school did not change the fact that he didn’t want to drink and smoke, just because they

were, and that it might of helped him fit in. In the end he chose not to because it would

disappoint his family. This shows that he was aware of how is actions would affect the view his

family had of him.

The development of formal operation also comes to the forefront at this time of a young

person’s life. Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development show that young people eleven years

and older are “able to deal with abstractions, form hypotheses, solve problems systematically,

engage in mental manipulations”. (Snowman, McCown pg. 40). He is young man who is quite

willing to come up with his own thoughts on current events, and has the ability to think on a
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higher level, but hasn’t figured out how to connect that thinking to decision making. His

decisions are primarily at this point aimed at appeasing his parents first and foremost, secondly

his teachers, and thirdly I would say his peers. Decisions are not being made with much thought

on how they will shape him and his future.

When looking further at Ronnie’s philosophical development, I found Vygotsky’s theory

quite interesting. Vygotsky believed the opposite of Piaget in the fact he believed “that children

gain significantly from the knowledge and conceptual tools handed down to them by those who

are more intellectually advanced, whether they are same-age peers, older children or adults’.

(Snowman, McCown pg. 52). He definitively models most of his behavior and decision making

by the tools and beliefs that lie within his families and societies guidelines. This does show that

he has moved past the importance of peer influence. He has shown that he understands the

importance of developing his own views, but still demonstrates he hasn’t done that.

Social Development

Socially Ronnie is behind and ahead of the curve of this stage of his life. Being and

introvert and less social he has exemplified that he’s not overly concerned with what his peers

would consider important, and doesn’t fall to peer pressure, I’d say more to the pressure of living

up to the established family and community standards. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Reasoning

align more closely to the thoughts of Piaget’s. Social development of young people between the

ages of nine and twenty generally are at the age of Conventional Morality. It states that socially

they “tend to conform to the conventions of society because they are the rules of society”.

(Snowman, McCown pg. 61). My observations of Ronnie showed that he definitely fits into this
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category. He follows the rules to keep his parents happy, more so than it just being the right thing

to do.

Kohlberg also discusses in stage three Law-and-order orientation which states “To

maintain the social order, fixed rules must be established and obeyed. It is essential to respect

authority”. (Snowman, McCown pg. 61). Ronnie seems to have a clear understanding of what

this means, and does base his decisions accordingly. He is reflective in the sense that by obeying

school rules as well as his parents he will be rewarded, or in his case more importantly, he will

stay off everyone’s radar and left alone.

The development of ones ego is extremely important. When first talking with, and

observing Ronnie I really felt that he was behind the curb socially. Loevinger discusses ego in

nine stages. I’m happy after my reading to see that Ronnie is not really concerned or influenced

in his beliefs or decision making by his peers, but still hasn’t developed his own belief system.

According to Loevinger Ronnie has entered into the fourth stage, which is known as the

conformist stage. Loevinger describes this stage as “generally, they tend to view the world in

simple, conventional, rule-bound and moralistic ways. What is right and wrong is clear to

them—namely, what their group thinks is right or wrong. Their feelings also tend to be simple

and rule-governed, in the sense that there are some situations in which one feels happy, and other

situations in which one feels sad”. (Lovenger) He goes on to describe how most people can

become stagnant is this stage because it’s comfortable and sometimes just easier. I feel that

Ronnie is scarred to move to the next phase because he realizes things will never be quite as

simple and clear as they seem to be for him right now.

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Intellectual Development

Ronnie is a bright kid, with a ton of possibilities for his future. Intellectual speaking

Ronnie does not have any learning disabilities except for maybe being unmotivated when it

comes to his school work. Ronnie has definitely entered into Piaget’s Formal Operational Stage.

Young adults who are in this stage begin to look at school work differently than when they were

in elementary, and middle school. At this stage “children do reach the point of being able to

generalize and engage in mental trial and error by thinking up hypothesis and testing them in

their head”. (Snowman and McCown pg.43). Ronnie is a higher thinker when it comes to current

events and problem solving. When he is applying himself I could see how he differs from a

student who is solely in the concrete operational stage. When he is problem solving he looks to

his personal experiences more than just generalizations.

School for Ronnie is towards the bottom of the priority list, behind video games, sports

center, and TV. When he attempts to learn and actually study he does an amazing job. But as

I’ve discussed earlier getting good grades is not that important to him, he knows that C’s will

keep his parents as well as school off his back. Fortunately Ronnie is a bright kid, and can

understand things in the way and interpret them according to his beliefs. According to Bruner’s

theory “important outcomes of learning include not just the concepts, categories, and problem-

solving procedures invented previously by the culture, but also the ability to Invent these things

for oneself”. He’s cognitive thinking falls completely in this range; he ponders a question before

jumping to a conclusion, he recalls from memory and lessons learned about his world views.

Lastly I turned to Piagets perspective of his constructs to assimilation. His assertion of

Accommodation is also a critical part of young person’s life. During this time “adaption involves
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changing or altering our existing schemas in light of new information, a process known as

accommodation. Accommodation involves modifying existing schemas, or ideas, as a result of

new information or new experiences”. Ronnie constantly draws from past experiences to form

future decisions, unfortunately their not always good ones. The upside of this is the fact that he is

trying to develop and come up with his own thoughts, ideas, and political ideals.

Recommendations

Physically Ronnie is exactly where he should be for a young of his age. He has gone

through the majority of puberty and clearly shows all the signs of this. Ronnie should implement

an exercise program so he can get in better shape. Physical activity would make a world of

difference not only for outer appearance, but also for his self-esteem. He should also consider a

new nutritional regiment as well.

Emotionally he might be a touch behind for someone at his age. The majority of his

decisions are based solely by him. Which sounds great, but in actuality it’s because he doesn’t

have many close relationships other than his family. I would recommend that he try to join at

least one extracurricular activity so he could develop more connections. I believe that this would

help him become even better-rounded.

Philosophically speaking he is pretty sound in his beliefs and convictions, but I do

believe their closely associated with those of his family. I would recommend that he actively

participate in a setting that would take him out of his comfort zone. Perhaps attending a church

service that he is unfamiliar with, or even doing volunteer work at a homeless shelter, or

rehabilitation center.
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Socially Ronnie is somewhat behind especially when it comes to be being social. He is

strong when it comes to not succumbing to the pressures of his peers’ would recommend though

that he become more accountable for just skating by. I would say that he make a goal to achieve

A’s the rest of the school year. I believe that this goal is attainable because he is a smart kid.

Intellectual he has strong beliefs about politics, country, and morals, but I’m not quite

convinced their completely his. I would recommend that he get his driver’s license as well as a

job. This way he can learn how things are in the real world, and how that world will influence

him even more. Overall he’s a great kid, with a great head on his shoulders. With a bit more

directions and drive I’m sure he could accomplish great things.

Bibliography

http://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/topic/default?id=the-growing-child-adolescent-13-

to-18-years-90-P02

http://the-mouse-trap.com/2007/12/24/ego-devlopment-the-nine-stages-theory-of-

loevinger/

www.simplypsychology.org/bruner.html

https://www.verywellmind.com/piagets-stages-of-cognitive-development-279545