C. T. Morgan, emphasizing the importance of emotions in life, writes that emotions are basic, primeval forces of great power and influence designed by nature to enable the organism to cope with circumstances which demand the utmost effort for survival or success or to add colour and spice to our living. Our emotions control our behaviour.

Adolescence is marked by heightened emotionality. Emotions like love, anger, hate, jealousy, fear, worry and joy etc, all reach its peak. At no stage the child is so restless and emotionally perturbed as in adolescence. He is too sensitive and moody. In the words to Ross, “The adolescent lives on intensely emotional life, in which we can see once more the rhythm of positive and negative phases of behaviour in his constant alternation between intense excitement and deep depression”.

This is why the period is often stated as a period of stress and strain. Sometimes he is hilarious but on other occasion he is depressed. He may develop morbid fears and inferiority complex.

If the teacher is aware about all these upheavals adolescents, he can guide accordingly. Developing proper emotions and controlling them is very essential objective of education during adolescence. Meeting social demands as well as to eliminate the damaging effects of emotions on attitudes, habits, behaviour and physical well being, control of emotions is essential.

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Control does not mean repression but it means learning to approach a social situation with rational attitude and repression of those emotions which are socially unacceptable. The class-room teacher can play an important role to reduce pressures that interfere with adolescents’ emotional development.

Proper training:

A teacher can use devices and methods to control fears of inadequacy in various situations by developing competencies and skills, thus developing self-confidence.

Development of resistance:

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A teacher should help the adolescents to examine themselves in finding the causes of failure and frustrations thus developing in them the resistance to frustrations.

Proper understanding:

As the adolescent is beset by problems of divided loyalties, accentuated by the lack of adult privileges and responsibilities, he is very sensitive and does not welcome any criticism. It becomes the utmost duty of the teacher to understand the adolescents and change the attitude towards him, try to provide him the proper environment for the expression of pent up feelings and can suggest the same for parents at home.

Fair treatment, sympathy, co-operation, and freedom of action within a reasonable limit should be given to adolescents and no unnecessary restrictions should be imposed. A variety of interests should be developed to avoid frustration.

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Teach the adolescents to relax by providing opportunities for hobbies, cultural activities, catharsis through play, free discussion, drama etc.

Suggesting the parents not to over protect the child can be an effective way of handling the emotions of youth.

Verbalization of feelings:

Adolescents should be trained to express their feelings. As the verbalization of pent up emotional feelings release mental tension and as emotions are put into words, they become diffused, less intense and manageable. The teacher must develop a clear recognition of the desirability of achieving free and constructive expression of emotions which will result in progress towards the desired goal.

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Health:

Poor health of the children may cause irritable behaviour like worry, anxiety, fear etc. Hence the health of children should be properly looked after. Moreover, teachers can guide them that they should study when they are not tired lest it should result in negative learning and feeling of inadequacy.

Picnic and tours:

The teacher can organise picnics, excursions; and tours to provide them opportunities to understand each other and to come closer. This may resolve many problems.