Communicating with ‘tweens and teens is hard enough when you’re just dealing with your own kids. Undertake the daily challenge of teaching 20 or more young people in this age group, and you’ll be glad for any advantage you can get.

That’s why it’s good news that The Regional Training Center (RTC) has introduced “Teaching ‘Tweens & Teens for Optimal Learning” – a course specifically designed to train teachers how to engage students in this challenging age group.

The RTC, a respected provider of professional development programs for teachers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland, has developed the course to help teachers reach these students in a way that truly motivates them and enhances their learning experience.

According to the course developer and designer Richard Zweier, “‘Tweens and Teens (adolescent learners in grades: 5-12) present the educational community with unique challenges that differ from the challenges presented by elementary school students (grades: K-4).”

Zweier spent 37 years as a middle and high school teacher, specializes in brain-based educational research and is nationally certified in Brain-Based Education by Eric Jensen. He notes that how ‘tween and teen brains function and develop has a major impact on what teachers need to do in the classroom. The more teachers know about how these students think, the better prepared they are to enhance their teaching styles to interact with them.

The course delves into the nature of the adolescent brain, including the question of which brain structures are still under construction and how this impacts learning. For example, teachers need to be sensitive to the fact that teenage brains have frontal lobes that are not fully developed. This is the area of the brain that controls problem solving abilities and allows people to think through their actions rationally.

It also reviews the various emotional states this group experiences. “People run on emotion,” Zweier says, “Teens more so. Teachers need to be smart about the emotional atmosphere in their classroom and need to create a safe psychological environment in which kids can thrive. Remember, you teach people first, and content second.”

Through interactive discussion, readings and role play, the course also shows teachers how to involve ‘tweens and teens in lessons that are personally meaningful. Other areas touched upon during the course include discussions of how cognitive development, stress and sleep patterns affect learning.

“Teachers of ‘tweens and teens are hungry for the tools they need to effectively connect with their students,” said Diana Ramsey, co-founder and director of RTC. “This groundbreaking new course is designed to do just that, in a way that is fun, interactive and gives them practical ideas they can quickly implement in their classrooms.”

“The overarching goal of this course is to delve into the nature of the pre-adolescent and adolescent years based on the most recent research from the fields of psychology, educational psychology, learning theory, cognitive science, and cognitive neuroscience. This provides teachers with a practical and powerful framework to understand the nature of these students in a deep and profound way, thus enabling them to garner genuine engagement with middle and high school students for optimal learning,” according to Zweier.

Founded in 1993, RTC is a unique provider of educational training programs for K-12 educators that improve their knowledge and classroom teaching skills with both graduate degree and non-degree continuing education.

RTC’s courses are unique in that they teach educators how to teach, rather than what to teach. The courses are led by teaching professionals who facilitate a highly-experiential, peer-to-peer learning model. Based on the best practices of fellow teachers, this type of hands-on training is designed to give educators additional tools and strategies to create an optimal learning environment for students.

For more information on The Regional Training Center, please visit www.thertc.net or call 1-800-433-4740.

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