A brief history Of Growing Up

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It was the photograph immediately below that attracted me to this little story, how well I remember, and I'm still fagging away a half century later.



Children are growing up too fast, says a leading author. But hasn't society always worried that young people are experiencing adulthood too soon?

Fat, spoilt, feral and stupid. Who would be a child or teenager today? They even miss-time their coming-of-age, apparently.

"I think children act like adults at an alarmingly early age," said Dame Jacqueline Wilson, who has sold more than 30 million books. Her remarks came as a poll by her publisher suggested that more than half of parents believe childhood is now over by 11.

But a glance through recent history shows that adults have long raised concerns about children "growing up" too quickly. Did they always?more