This story was originally titled "Your Kids: 12-16 Years" in the September 2009 issue. Subscribe to Canadian Living today and never miss an issue!

The situation: My 15-year-old daughter has the same English teacher as last year. She says he picks on her and marks her unfairly. She wants to switch to another class.

The solution: If your daughter switches classes without trying to solve the problem, she will learn to run away from adversity, rather than face it. Is your daughter mature enough to recognize her own responsibility in the situation? For example, if she has problems outside of the class, does she blame others for them, too? If she is comfortable admitting that she may be part of the problem, encourage her to make changes to resolve it. For starters, she can discuss her concerns with the teacher.

The other issue to consider is whether your daughter has a learning problem in English, such as an undiagnosed learning disability, that may be causing her to act out in a subtle way and contributing to the teacher's negative attitude toward her.

• Ron Clavier is an author and psychologist with a background in neuroscience.