Stages of Adult
Development
And Needs
Identity Vs. Role Confusion
(13-21 years)
Concerns and Characteristics:
 Struggle for identity (who am I?)
 Changing self-image
 Breaking away from parents and
transferring need to parental guidance to
mentors
 Very active socially
 Considers possibility of teaching
Implications for Staff
Development (needs)
 Provide
clear expectations
 Provide opportunities for independence,
but recognize the need for dependence
 Be sensitive to the ups and downs of
intimate relationships
 During student teaching, provide support
and feedback
Intimacy Vs. Isolation (21-39
years)
Concerns and Characteristics (the 20s):
 Searching for a partner
 Parenting may begin for some
 Focus on education and careers
 Wanting to demonstrate competence on
the job
Implications for Staff
Development (needs):
 Provide
mentor for new teachers
 Clearly define limitations of the job
 Offer on-site and specific training
(classroom management, working with
parents, etc.)
 Provide social activities for staff
Concerns and Characteristics
(30s):
 Social
life revolves around partnerships
and family or around close friends
 More men and women choosing to
postpone marriage
 Both men and women concerned about
balancing work and family responsibilities
 Job advancement may be a goal for
some
Implications for Staff
Development (needs):






Discuss relationship between career and family
Build trust and respect
Offer staff development, portfolio development,
college-level coursework
Encourage staff to become involved in
professional associations
Encourage staff to pursue graduate education
Provide teacher leadership roles (head teach,
advisor, or coordinator, administrator/supervisor
internships, for those who are ready)
Generativity Vs. Stagnation
(40-65 years)
Concerns and Characteristics:
Marriage – each partner respects autonomy
of the other
 Continues to try to balance work and family
responsibilities
 Mental activities still in place
 Becoming a model in the next generation‘s
eyes

 Friends
are important
 Signs of aging
 43% of marriages break up within first 15
years
 Feeling creative, productive, and selfsatisfied
 Begins to think about retirement
Implications for Staff
Development (needs):
 Know
teachers; individualize to meet teachers’
needs
 Jointly plan teacher development to facilitate
growth
 Respect differences, skills, and knowledge base
among teachers
 Offer training and support for those reentering the
field
 Include teachers in decision making
 Encourage teachers to lead staff development,
workshops
Integrity Vs. Despair (65 and
older)
Concerns and Characteristics






Beginning to accept self as part of elder
generation
Sharing wisdom
Mental ability may diminish, but still effective
Health and aging issues
Enjoys old friends, family, grandchildren
Still seeks work creative, or learning
opportunities
Implications for Staff
Development (needs):
 Prepare
teachers for retirement
 Explore ways that teachers can pass on
knowledge and expertise
 Provide individualized professional
development and learning
 Help teachers recognize
accomplishments
 Support
intergenerational communitywide programs and activities that bring
children, teachers, and seniors together
 Offer part-time volunteer opportunities
with training and support
 Teach children to care
Stages of Supervisors
Supervisors undergo a process of growth
and development over time. They face
similar problems and frustrations in each
phase, but their ability to handle problems
changes as they gain experience and move
towards maturity.
Phase/ Stage 1:
Beginning/Survival
Concerned with self:
 Anxious (will I be able to carry out the
responsibilities?)
 Critical of self
 Seeks support from many sources
Copes in several ways:
 Plays the role of supervisor
 Avoids responsibility
 Uses trial and error
 Uncomfortable with authority
 Develops new realizations about self
Phase /Stage 2:
Extending/Consolidation








“If only I…”
Accepts leadership with uncertainty
Can discuss problems and concerns more
objectively
Concerns are centered on others
Better understanding of others and of program
More comfortable with authority
High expectations for self
More confident, more relaxed
Phase/Stage 3: Maturity
 Knows
self and can evaluate self openly
 Sense of being in charge
 Greater sensitivity toward and
understanding of supervisees
 Recognizes
expertise of supervisees
 More realistic about job and what can be
done
 Concerned with ideas
 Stimulated by outside contracts, gets
rewards from solving problems
 Continues to be critical, but sees self as
learner