Erikson/Marcia TIPR

Which of Erikson's psychosocial crises are the children in the class facing (may be more than one)? Which of Marcia's identity states seem(s) to be most prevalent? What specific teacher behaviors do you observe that either help or hinder the students to successfully navigate this crisis? What more could or should be done? Be sure to include a reference in your response. 

Erik Erikson is known for is theory of psychosocial development that is made up of eight stages from infancy to adulthood.  In each stage a person has an identity 'crisis' that affect the development of their personality.  According to Erikson during the ages of 12-18 they are experiencing the fifth stage of psychosocial  development, which is identity vs. confusion.  During this stage a person wants to belong and fit in and so they re-examine who they are and who they want to become. Also during this stage their body is changing and their self-image can change and they may feel uncomfortable for awhile.  They also start to explore possibilities and start to develop their own identity based on their explorations.
Based on Erikson's psychosocial development stages, a man named James Marcia extended Erikson's stages theory and states that during these 'crises' their identity is constantly being negotiated.  Known as Marcia's Identity States, they include, identity diffusion, identity foreclosure, identity moratorium, and identity achievement.  While a teenager is exploring possibilities, they are in in Marcia's Identity Moratorium Stage, where they are actively searching for information about their identity, but they have not made commitments yet.
Some of the possible 'crises' that the students will be going through as we are teaching them are based around trying to figure out who they really are.  Crises could include their religious beliefs, sexual and gender identity, how they look, who they are academically and socially. The following clip shows a few crisis a teenager may encounter  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJMXk5ibkQk.  
Although a teenager could be going through any of Marcia's identity stages, I feel a young teenager is experiencing identity diffusion, where they are not interested in making any choices concerning their identity, or are experiencing identity foreclosure, where they commit to an identity early without exploring their options.  Often teenagers are experiencing identity foreclosure because they have simply adopted the identity of their close friends and family.  According to Marcia a person must go through an identity crisis (identity moratorium) to really figure out who you are.  I feel an older teenager is experiencing identity moratorium, where they are exploring all the possibilities of you they want to become, and possibly experiencing identity achievement, where they have gone through identity moratorium and have committed to an identity.  I feel that the best way to help students through these stages in life is to be respectful and kind towards their feelings and to be sensitive to the 'crises' the are experiencing.