The Annie E. Casey Foundation The Annie E. Casey Foundation The Annie E. Casey Foundation

Course 3: The Adolescent Brain and Youth Development

In this online inter­ac­tive course, par­tic­i­pants explore what is devel­op­men­tal­ly appro­pri­ate for young peo­ple. This course describes the ongo­ing mat­u­ra­tion process of the brain and offers impor­tant con­text for teen behav­ior and pro­ba­tion transformation. 

This is the third course in the sev­en-part Juve­nile Pro­ba­tion Trans­for­ma­tion Train­ing Series. 

What You Will Gain From This Course 

🧠 Under­stand how the ado­les­cent brain real­ly works 

  • Dis­cov­er how brain devel­op­ment dri­ves behavior.
  • Unpack risk-tak­ing and teenage decision-making.
  • Make sense of the gap between what teens know and how they act.

🤝 Trans­form how youth are supported 

  • Uncov­er the unique growth poten­tial of adolescence.
  • Hear from youth and prac­ti­tion­ers through mul­ti­me­dia case studies.
  • Walk away with clear, prac­ti­cal strategies.

🛠️ Apply insights to real-world practice 

  • Find age-appro­pri­ate incen­tives that actu­al­ly work.
  • Exam­ine real exam­ples to iden­ti­fy what moti­vates teens.
  • Try inter­ac­tive tools like ​“hot vs. cold” decision-making.

Explore the Course 

Smiling teen with interactive target icons on their face and shoulders.

What’s real­ly going on inside the ado­les­cent brain? 

Click through the inter­ac­tive image of a typ­i­cal teen to uncov­er how ado­les­cent brain devel­op­ment shapes behavior. 
Five white cards showing different youth behavior scenarios.

Cold or hot? Test your instincts. 

Test your knowl­edge by guess­ing whether each behav­ior hap­pens in a hot or cold con­text, then flip the card to find out. 
Gold trophy with colorful streamers and confetti in the background.

Incen­tives in action. 

Dis­cov­er how one pro­gram uses incen­tives to sup­port youth, fea­tur­ing insights from the peo­ple who brought it to life. 
Meet the Peo­ple Behind the Course 
Lead Con­tribut­ing Expert 
Naomi Goldstein smiling, standing outdoors. Nao­mi Gold­stein — Pro­fes­sor of psy­cho­log­i­cal and brain sci­ences; Co-direc­tor of the JD/​PhD pro­gram in law and psy­chol­o­gy; Founder and Direc­tor of the Juve­nile Jus­tice Research and Reform Lab at Drex­el University.
Design Team: Harley Con­sult­ing Group 
  • Lyn­nell John­son — Instruc­tion­al Designer
  • Tara Layne — Instruc­tion­al Designer
  • Annie Sal­sich — Consultant
  • Jacque­line Skapik — Consultant

Learn more about oth­er courses. 

Get guid­ance on how to use the courses. 

Ready to get started? 

Explore the full train­ing series and choose the mod­ules that fit your role and context. 

EXPLORE THE PRO­BA­TION TRANS­FOR­MA­TION TRAIN­ING SERIES > 
APPA

Earn 1.5 APPA Con­tact Hours

The Amer­i­can Pro­ba­tion and Parole Asso­ci­a­tion has approved this course for 1.5 con­tact hours. Indi­vid­u­als who com­plete this course may be eli­gi­ble for pro­fes­sion­al learn­ing or con­tact hours, depend­ing on the require­ments of their juris­dic­tion and role. Com­ple­tion cer­tifi­cates can be sub­mit­ted through the appro­pri­ate local process for cred­it consideration.