In the classroom, early maturing girls may be perceived by teachers as more likely to have academic and social problems due to emotional challenges, while boys may be deemed to perform better. On the other hand, late maturing adolescents might feel left out or different from their peers who have already began developing. This can affect their self-esteem, potentially leading to social withdrawal or acting out in the classroom to gain attention. Pubertal timing can indeed influence how adolescents are treated by adults and peers. Carter et al. (2018) highlighted that teachers may have different academic and behavioral expectations based on a student’s pubertal status, which can affect the classroom learning environment.
Carter, R., Mustafaa, F. N., Leath, S., & Butter-Barnes, S. T. (2018). Teachers academic and behavioral expectations and girls’ pubertal development: Does the classroom learning environment matter? Social Psychology of Education: An International Journal, 21(4), 973-1000. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-018-9450-1