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Yun-a Jeong

Juvenile delinquent1) is a term to describe teenagers
from 12 to 20 who violate the rules for minors or cause
problems such as disobeying parents, habitual school
absence, running away from home, underage drinking, and
so on. Actually, these teens' negative circumstances like
parents' divorce or family violence can become factors
to their delinquency. The teenagers who grow up in a
family with less parental concerns spend more time with
other juvenile delinquents and they are naturally exposed
to delinquency. That is to say, in the teen's family, there
is nobody to support and care for them financially and
mentally. At this point, the role of the teacher is very
important. A teacher is generally a person who teaches
students knowledge and information through their educational qualifications2). However, in our reality,
there are few better person than a teacher to act as a windbreak3) and guide these teens. In other words,
teachers need to teach not only the textbook but also the road to live rightly.
Generally, our society focuses on harsh punishment for juvenile delinquents. However, teachers may
help to improve their mentality instead of just punishing them. Because there were few people to lead
them rightly, these teens grew up in an unfavorable environment with negative circumstances such as
habitual violence.
Then what attitude should teachers have in this situation? To juvenile delinquents, teachers can be
considered just another destructive adult. To
solve this problem, communication is the most
important skill needed. Teachers need to bring
themselves down to the teen's level.
Through reading this article, teachers should
be able to know that they need to understand
students' emotions and worries and become a
person who students can approach easily. Also,
they should show interest in programs which help
teens grow up rightly.

_______________________________________
1) Juvenile delinquents : 비행청소년
2) Qualification : 자격
3) Windbreak : 바람막이

32 MYEONG-SHIN GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL