In pop culture, teenagers are often portrayed as rebellious, disobedient, and uncontrollable. This behavior sometimes replicates itself in real life among real teenagers, and many parents try everything in their power to curb such dangerous behavior; grounding, taking away electronics, and long lectures are just a few techniques a parent may use. When none of this works and the safety of teenagers are brought into question, the age-old question rises again: do curfews, both parent given and government issued, keep teens out of trouble? I attend a private boarding school where students are given times that they must be back inside of their dormitories. Many students have pushed for later check-in hours, pushes that have been met with a strong
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But is it possible to prioritize a teen’s safety without making them feel smothered by limiting rules? In this day and age, teenagers are becoming more social- both through the internet and in person- and would want to be out late to experience all this rapidly changing world has to offer; but as the sky darkens and crowds disperse, the safety net teens have during the daytime quickly vanishes. When this happens, the safest place to be is home. With that in mind, should curfews be later or earlier? Should there be exceptions to the rule, or should there be one consistent …show more content…
Some parents swear by it, but others are not so sure. Many believe curfews set by outside influences, such as the government, are unfair. Some, teenagers and adults alike, argue that it is not the government’s place to inflict rules onto children, and that only a parent should have the power to impose such rules. The purpose of government inflicted curfews are to keep teens safe and juvenile crime rates down, but studies by the Annals of the American Academy say that the implementation of government curfews may have little to no effect: “The evidence does not support the argument that curfews prevent crime and victimization. Juvenile crime and victimization are most likely to remain unchanged after implementation of curfew laws.” (Adams, 136) This is not just one isolated study, as many other studies on the effectiveness of curfews have produced similar results; government issued curfews are ineffective in lowering youth crime rates and in lowering the potential threats teens may face during later hours of the
But is it possible to prioritize a teen’s safety without making them feel smothered by limiting rules? In this day and age, teenagers are becoming more social- both through the internet and in person- and would want to be out late to experience all this rapidly changing world has to offer; but as the sky darkens and crowds disperse, the safety net teens have during the daytime quickly vanishes. When this happens, the safest place to be is home. With that in mind, should curfews be later or earlier? Should there be exceptions to the rule, or should there be one consistent …show more content…
Some parents swear by it, but others are not so sure. Many believe curfews set by outside influences, such as the government, are unfair. Some, teenagers and adults alike, argue that it is not the government’s place to inflict rules onto children, and that only a parent should have the power to impose such rules. The purpose of government inflicted curfews are to keep teens safe and juvenile crime rates down, but studies by the Annals of the American Academy say that the implementation of government curfews may have little to no effect: “The evidence does not support the argument that curfews prevent crime and victimization. Juvenile crime and victimization are most likely to remain unchanged after implementation of curfew laws.” (Adams, 136) This is not just one isolated study, as many other studies on the effectiveness of curfews have produced similar results; government issued curfews are ineffective in lowering youth crime rates and in lowering the potential threats teens may face during later hours of the