November 17, 2009, 2:09 AM
When Should a Person Be Considered an Adult?
By KATHERINE SCHULTEN
Questions about issues in the news for students 13 and older.
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At 18? At 21? Should you be able to fight in a war before you can rent a car? Is it cruel to sentence a teenager to life without parole? Why are our laws and rules on this issue so inconsistent, and how do they affect you? As the Supreme Court considers the question of whether children should ever be sentenced to life without parole for crimes that don’t involve murder, Catherine Rampell asks
“How Old Is Old Enough?”: (Click here and read this before reading on.)
…When should a person be treated as an adult?
The answer, generally, is 18 — the age when the United States, and the rest of the world, considers young people capable of accepting responsibility for their actions. But there are countless deviations from this benchmark, both around the world (the bar mitzvah, for instance), and within the United States.
For drinking, driving, fighting in the military, compulsory schooling, watching an R-rated movie, consenting to sex, getting married, having an abortion or even being responsible for your own finances, the dawn of adulthood in America is all over the place.
Students: Tell us how you feel about this issue. Where would you draw the line to separate adulthood from childhood? Why? Do you think there is one age that could be established as the threshold for everything from drinking to driving to fighting in the military to watching an R-rated movie? Why or why not?
Remember, before you begin writing your post, copy this into your post before you begin writing. That way, you’ll remember to what you are responding:
Where would you draw the line to separate adulthood from childhood? Why? Do you think there is one age that could be established as the threshold for everything from drinking to driving to fighting in the military to watching an R-rated movie? Why or why not?
Remember to sign your post this way:
Kaitlynn S.— Washington (Remember to spell your peak group name correctly.)
Proofread your response out loud in your head before you post it. Make sure it makes sense and addresses all the questions.