A1 Level – Elementary
1. What is your favorite age?
2. What did you want to be when you were little?
3. What new thing did you learn this year?
4. Is it difficult to become an adult?
5. Do you remember your first day of school?
6. What is a big difference between children and adults?
7. Who taught you a very important lesson?
8. Do you think about your future a lot?
9. What is a ‘rite of passage’?
10. What clothes did you wear as a teenager?
11. Do you still like the music you liked at age 15?
12. What makes you feel like an adult?
13. Do you like learning new languages?
14. What is the most exciting thing about growing up?
15. What memory from your childhood makes you laugh?
A2 Level – Pre-Intermediate
1. What are the key milestones that mark the transition from childhood to adulthood in your culture?
2. Describe one thing you worried about as a teenager that seems silly now.
3. What is the difference between physical maturity and emotional maturity?
4. How do parental expectations change as a child grows older?
5. Have you ever tried to hide a personal change from your family?
6. What are the pros and cons of moving away from your hometown for the first time?
7. What role do friends and social groups play during adolescence?
8. What is the most significant historical event that happened while you were growing up?
9. How has technology changed the experience of growing up for today’s children?
10. What is a common piece of advice older people give to the younger generation?
11. What is the difference between achieving independence and feeling isolated?
12. Do you think people stop changing after they reach a certain age?
13. What is the biggest challenge of the high school or university years?
14. What are the best ways to prepare a young person for the financial responsibilities of adulthood?
15. What are your feelings about celebrating a significant birthday, like turning 18 or 21?
B1 Level – Intermediate
1. Discuss how the concept of “coming of age” is portrayed differently in literature and film versus real life.
2. How can parents provide guidance and support without stifling a young person’s desire for independence?
3. What are the ethical issues surrounding social media pressure on teenagers to conform to certain appearances or lifestyles?
4. Do you think your generation faced more or fewer challenges growing up than the generation before you?
5. Describe a time when a personal belief or value you held as a teenager completely changed as an adult.
6. To what extent does the fear of failure prevent young people from trying new things?
7. What role does mandatory national service (military or civil) play in the process of growing up?
8. How do cultural norms around dating and relationships influence the transition into adulthood?
9. Discuss the psychological phenomenon of “nostalgia” and why people often idealize their youth.
10. What are the challenges for young people in finding their first job and establishing a career path?
11. How do different cultures define success and happiness for a person growing up?
12. Should schools focus more on vocational training or on broad academic education?
13. What is the difference between accepting responsibility and feeling overwhelmed by it?
14. Discuss the pressure to attend university immediately after finishing high school.
15. What is the long-term impact of consistent encouragement versus constant criticism on a child’s development?
B2 Level – Upper-Intermediate
1. How does the modern trend of living at home longer (with parents) affect the psychological development of independence?
2. What is the ethical argument about delaying a person’s financial independence due to high education costs?
3. Should governments provide specialized financial and psychological support for young adults making major life transitions?
4. What are the psychological reasons why some people struggle to let go of their childhood identity?
5. How has the constant availability of global information changed a young person’s sense of their place in the world?
6. Discuss the idea that the age of “adulthood” is constantly shifting later in life due to economic complexity.
7. What is the role of self-reflection and personal narrative in making sense of one’s past experiences?
8. How do our earliest family relationships create a blueprint for our adult expectations in relationships?
9. What are the challenges of navigating one’s identity when family expectations conflict with personal desires?
10. Discuss the concept of a “quarter-life crisis” and why it often occurs in the early twenties.
11. What is the difference between conforming to social pressure and finding genuine personal belonging?
12. Should high schools include mandatory classes on emotional intelligence and personal finance?
13. What is the impact of pop culture and media on defining beauty standards for young people?
14. How does the shift from a childhood focus on play to an adult focus on work affect long-term happiness?
15. Discuss the idea that every major life stage (e.g., career change, parenthood) is a new phase of “growing up.”
C1 Level – Advanced
1. Analyze the socioeconomic factors that influence the timing and nature of major life-cycle transitions (e.g., marriage, home ownership).
2. To what degree should the legal system recognize a young person’s autonomy and decision-making capacity before the legal age of majority?
3. Discuss the philosophical concept of “self-becoming” (or self-actualization) as the ultimate goal of growing up.
4. Evaluate the impact of technological determinism on the skill sets and psychological resilience of future generations.
5. How does the historical context of a political or social revolution shape the coming-of-age narrative for an entire generation?
6. Examine the role of “scaffolding” (temporary support) provided by parents and institutions in fostering long-term independence.
7. What ethical guidelines should govern the use of personal data collected from children and adolescents by digital platforms?
8. Discuss the concept of “emerging adulthood” as a distinct life stage characterized by exploration and instability.
9. How do different indigenous cultures use elaborate rituals to mark the sharp transition to adult status?
10. Analyze the interplay between the massive student debt crisis and a young person’s ability to transition successfully to adulthood.
11. What ethical challenges arise when parents attempt to live out their unfulfilled dreams through their children’s career choices?
12. Debate whether a mandatory “gap year” of travel or service should be required for all young people before higher education.
13. How does the design of urban space (e.g., accessibility of public transport) affect a young person’s freedom and independence?
14. Discuss the concept of “generational trauma” and how historical experiences influence the process of growing up today.
15. To what extent does the modern pursuit of “eternal youth” conflict with the psychological necessity of accepting aging?
C2 Level – Proficiency
1. How do you analyze the idea that the definition of “growing up” is constantly being redefined by economic forces rather than biological ones?
2. Formulate a critique of educational systems that promote hyper-specialization, potentially limiting a young person’s holistic development.
3. Analyze the intersection of neurological development, emotional regulation, and the increasing complexity of modern social demands.
4. Discuss the philosophical distinction between “potentiality” (what a child can be) and “actuality” (what an adult is).
5. Critically evaluate the effectiveness of government welfare systems in supporting young adults during periods of vocational uncertainty.
6. Propose a new societal framework for guiding young people through the transition to adulthood that is universally accessible and equitable.
7. Examine the psychological function of “liminality”—being between childhood and adulthood—and its role in identity formation.
8. How does the language of advice and guidance from older generations reflect underlying assumptions about the challenges facing the youth?
9. Discuss the ethical responsibilities of social media companies in protecting the self-image and vulnerability of adolescent users.
10. Analyze the historical relationship between the age of suffrage (voting) and the societal expectation of full adult responsibility.
11. Articulate the inherent tension between the need for societal stability and the creative, revolutionary potential of young people.
12. Debate whether new brain imaging technologies will eventually allow us to definitively identify the age of full cognitive maturity.
13. Assess the long-term societal effects of decreased physical play and increased digital interaction on childhood development.
14. Discuss the philosophical definition of ‘wisdom’ and how it is acquired over the long arc of growing up.
15. How might the principles of developmental psychology be used to model processes of organizational transformation and change management?
