We wanted to know more from the public on their views about our controversial issue, as well as attaining their own views on the topic. Altogether, there were 37 responses.
Question 1: Age?
[This question is to basically show who were our respondents and how many of them were there]
Therefore, most of our respondents are teenagers, with a few adults included as well.
Question 2: Which category bests suits you?
[This is a personal question, as some may think differently when it comes to age and who they think they are in society]
5 feel that they are considered adults already, even though in the previous question only 4 had been 20 and above, which is the range we consider for those who are adults. Again, most of our respondents are teenagers.
Question 3: On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being strongly agree and 1 being strongly disagree. do you think that most teenagers learn from adults?
[From this question, we hope to see their view on our issue, and how strongly they approve/oppose to it.]
Most say the range would be from 3-8, and it shows that our respondents do not entirely approve or disapprove with the idea of teenagers learning from adults. However, there is also a small party of people who strongly disagrees with teenagers learning from adults.
Question 4: Do you feel that your opinions/ways of thinking are different from that of an adult/teenager?
[Based on who they think they are as stated in question 2, we hoped to find out if they felt that there is a difference between the thinking of teenagers and adults, which is a factor in the learning relationship between teenagers and adults.]
While most feel that their way of thinking is different, there is also quite a large group of people who do not know whether their ways of thinking are different. Other factors may have resulted in this, but this survey would not explore details of the factors.
Question 5: Generally speaking, do you think that teenagers should learn from adults?
[Without a range of how they feel, we hoped to see if this question could tell us, in generic terms, what our respondents felt about teenager learning from adults.]
Similar to the results of previous questions, we can see that most of our respondents do feel that teenagers should learn from adults. Even with the given low range of 1-5 from only some 14 of them in question 3, more than half still feel that teenagers should learn from adults.
Question 6: According to your answer for question 5, why do you think teenagers should/should not learn from adults? (e.g. adults have better traditional methods of doing things OR too traditional, having old and undeveloped ideas etc.)
[We wanted to know their SPECIFIC reasons and opinions on the issue, which may also help in disucssion on the different stands of the issue.]
This is a free-response question, and their responses included:
1. Adults have experienced much more things than a teenager and they can give advice for teenagers to live a better life, avoid mistakes that lead to severe consequences.
2. Although adults may have more experience than us, their experiences and ours are probably different. Furthermore, I believe teenagers should have the maturity and integrity to do what is right and what adults do/ think may not always be accurate or correct.
3. Adults have developed logical thinking through life experience, thus are able to derive processes and solutions when doing things.
4. Teenagers can learn what and what not to do by observing adults. It is not just the words spoken by adults but also the actions of adults that a teenager can learn from.
5. Adults have more experience than teenagers. They may have gone through the exact situations that the teenagers are going through and have lived through the repercussions of making certain decisions.
6. Though the younger generation think that it may be 'uncool' to follow such traditions, I believe that it is important to retain one's culture. On top of this, learning from the experiences of adults is useful for us teenagers as it teaches is the right and wrong doings to some extent.
7. I feel that we should learn from adults and adults should also learn from us. I have always wanted equality amongst both the generations. I feel that there is a limit to what we do and what adults can do and I think that we can learn a lot from both the generations of people.
8. Firstly, I think that we should learn from adults as I feel that they are more experienced than us and thus they know better than we do. However, also, sometimes, I think that adults have a much more mature way of thinking and doing stuff and it doesn't really suit teenagers like us, so I feel that in this perspective, teenagers should not learn from adults.
9. I think that adults are more experienced and would know things better than us. We should incorporate our ideas with theirs to come up with the best suitable idea,
10. Teenagers are of a different generation as compared to adults. I believe that teenagers should have both adults' way of thinking as it might be more mature / logical, and their own mind-set as they should be able to think on their own.
11. Adults are good role models especially towards their children. Teenagers should learn from adults who are wiser and more experienced.
12. Every generation has their own types of ideas and methods. We can't just take whatever older generation do and do it all over again and repeat history. We need new things, new inventions, and new mind-sets. If we're just stuck there with that dead idea that you have to do it this way because older generation say so, then we'll never move on.
13. They should learn how adults manage their time & all those. However some adults do things like gambling & smoking which I don't encourage teenagers to learn from.
14. Teenagers these days are not sentimental and do not really treasure the things that they have. They have also become much lazier than before, probably because they do not need to experience that much hardship anymore. Teenagers also squander money, and are often spoilt, always wanting their parents to buy the latest mobile devices or electronic devices and game consoles, or even fashion accessories. Adults have better self-control, because they may have lived in hardship once and met with many problems in the past. They also have more matured thoughts, and know how to treasure their things, and family members. They are also more filial to their parents, unlike the present teenagers, who take their parents for granted, some complaining that they nag too much and continuously hate on them, some even wanting their parents to vanish forever. Teenagers should know that whatever their parents are doing for them are for their own good. Teenagers also have much to learn from their parents about the past, how people lived and their lifestyles at that point of time. Most adults have many interesting stories to be told, and these stories often have much to learn from too. Teenagers complain that adults have old thinking and that they may be too traditional at times, but I don't think that this is a problem. So what if our society is becoming more modern each day? So what if you are a teenager? I think that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and thinking, and those old ideas or traditional beliefs should be conserved. We should not forget the traditions that our ancestors have left for us. Teenagers should get to learn more about why adults tend to conserve traditional beliefs and be more understanding. Teenagers have also become a lot more immature and often quarrel with friends and relatives. If our parents could maintain peace with their friends and relatives in the past and present, why can't teenagers do that too? Teenagers should learn from adults how to do work manually as well. What do I mean by that? Most teenagers these days rely too much on electronic devices to do their work, such as the laptop to search for resources, or the washing machine to wash clothes, or the microwave to cook simple food. They should instead learn from adults how to research in libraries and newspapers, where more hard work is required, how to manually wash clothes and shoes and also how to use the stove to cook their food instead. What if one day, the power supply is cut off? They are doomed.
15. My answer had nothing to do with adults being traditional or not. I personally feel that most adults in Singapore are over the traditional methods, are practical and have common sense.
16. They are role models and they help shape our character by helping us differentiate what is right and what is wrong.
17. It depends; adults have more experience that teenagers could do well to learn from. Adults are in reality similar to teenagers in ways. They can be reckless at times, but also mature and be good role models to learn from. Teenagers are in the same way careless and have lackadaisical attitudes about several things. However, adults most of the time have more experience than teenagers and teenagers should aim to respect their elders and learn from them unless their elders prove unsuitable role models.
18. I think teenagers should discover their own way of learning and adults provide examples to follow.
19. Adults in general are considered to be more mature and hence teenagers should learn to consider the opinions of adults, as they have been through more. However, I feel that teenagers should still have their own stand as ideas and thoughts are not limited by age. Hence, I feel that adults can learn from teenagers too.
Conclusion: The results show most of them talk about experience, dependence on the situations, and maturity of adults. Also, they feel that most feel that teenagers should learn from adults, while a small number also state adults should learn from teenagers. All have their own opinions, and some even suggest equality between both groups of people.
Question 7: If you think that teenagers should learn from adults, in what ways (e.g. in terms of attitudes/moral values/education and academics etc.) do you think they should learn from adults? If you think that teenagers should not learn from adults, then whom do you think they should look up to as role models?
[We want to know what our respondents feel about the positive/negative things that teenagers can learn from adults and who else can be role models for the teenagers, besides adults.]
Their responses had included:
1. Attitudes and survival skills
2. Role models can be anyone who has left an impact on the teen, someone who is righteous and inspiring.
3. Teenagers should look up to people who inspire them.
4. Teenagers should learn from adults in terms of moral values, humility, perseverance and willingness to sacrifice for others.
5. Positive attitudes and moral values. I emphasize on the positive values. Teenagers can learn from adults. For example, when teenagers see the harm caused to an adult by smoking, teens can learn NOT to follow. Alternatively, when teens see the good consequences that came about from the words and actions of an adult, teens will be able to role model these as well. Whatever the decisions that teens make based on listening to or watching adults, teens must decide what is best for them. It is not necessarily true that adults are always role models for what to do but adults also serve as role models for what NOT TO DO.
6. They should learn to persevere and work hard and manage their time wisely.
7. I think that they should learn every area possible from adults.
8. I think that teenagers should learn moral values from adults. I also think that teenagers could learn how to think more maturely like adults, unless that particular adult is unfortunately, immature.
9. Teenagers should learn from adults in terms of attitudes and values. But these values should not be forced on the teenagers, and we should have a right to believe what we want to believe.
10. It really depends on who the adult is. Perhaps attitude, but then again, depends. It really depends on your current target/goal.
11. We should learn from their mistakes like study harder etc. In truth, nobody is perfect but I think teenagers should follow the footsteps of his or her parents which are adults :) this also only applies if the parents are on the right path or not.
12. How to make the right choices. To understand right from wrong, what to do and what not to do.
13. They should just learn from each other and create new ideas. There's no point looking up to someone.
14. Themselves, adults from earlier times: Salvador Dali, Mother Teresa, free spirited people, DO NOT CONFORM TO THE WAYS OF THE ESTABLISHMENT.
15. Everything, please, who else can teenagers learn from?
16. They should look up to whomever as they want as role models. Everybody has different role models.
17. They should learn moral values, perhaps traditional beliefs, and also education manners, and attitude.
18. They should learn in terms of culture/attitudes to certain things. I feel that teenagers are sometimes unable to appreciate culture that has true substance. While something that appeals to an older audience may seem 'dull/boring' to teenagers (this is prone to happening), it can actually be informative/intellectual, as due to the experience adults have, and they can understand deeper things. At the same time, some dogmatic practices that were common in the past and in the times of our adults now should be eliminated. As an example, in the past, women had much less value in society and were treated literally like property with no emotions or free will of their own. A good thing that has surfaced today is the rise of feminism (fighting for the rights of women to be equal to that of men). A lot of care should be taken when 'learning from adults'. Teenagers should not follow blindly; they should determine themselves who they can learn from.
Question 8: If adults aren't the future role models for teenagers, then what is the best way teenagers of today should learn?
[We wanted to know who, besides from the guidance of adults, can our teenagers of today learn.]
Some of the other responses included:
1. Not all adults are the future role models, but some are. So perhaps, the best way would be for teenagers to know who to seek advice from listen to them or just experience failures and learn from them.
2. Then the best way teenagers of today should learn through a holistic education system.
3. Teens can learn from many sources other than themselves: teachers, peers, old folks, books, and mass media.
4. They can look up to people (probably adults) in the society which are successful. Adopt their attitudes towards life and learn from their mistakes.
5. They can both develop their own ideas of thinking and learn from one another, but it has to be positive and right concepts for them to learn.
6. I’m sure that there will be at least one adult that we can look up to in the future. You see, in future, we will be the adults that some teenagers will be learning from. It is a matter of whether you want to "teach" them.
7. Of course, by learning from one another, i mean positively, from good friends who have good behaviour. Developing their own ideas and way of doing things might prove to be disastrous and this might change everything in the future.
8. Nothing is absolutely new I don't think it's possible for teenagers to learn solely among themselves.
Question 9: If adults are the future role models for teenagers, then would this benefit our future society?
[We want to find out if adults would be regarded as role models, and whether it would benefit the society positively.]
From the respondents, they mostly put their trust in adults to be the role models and eventually the teenagers would contribute positively to society and overall be beneficial for society.
This thus concludes the results of the Survey Statistical Data.
No comments:
Post a Comment