In this job, it’s easy to get a rather jaded view of young people.

Week after week, we see stories of young thugs bashing up people, spitting on police, driving recklessly on our roads and causing trouble into all hours of the night. But how often do we talk about young people doing great things?

While it’s easy to blame the media for this – and no doubt many do – the reality is that stories about young people doing great things don’t rate as well as those about young people behaving badly.

But sometimes, their stories must be told just to give some real perspective on the world.

Recently, I was honoured to be invited to speak at the graduation night of Mountain Creek State High School’s International Baccalaureate program.

The IB program, as it is better known (mainly because none of us can pronounce it!), is all about developing inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who will in turn help create a better world, through intercultural understanding and respect.

In short, it’s about creating better citizens.

These students embark on a demanding two-year course where international standards are applied equally to all schools.

In other words, these kids are up there with the best of the world, being tested with students from both public and private schools around the globe.

Mountain Creek, which has gained a reputation for innovation and excellence, despite being such a large school, was the first school in Queensland to start the program.

And as their names, achievements and career ambitions were read out on the night, I couldn’t help but be impressed not only by the students themselves but the dedication of the teaching staff prepared to go the extra mile to produce such a challenging and fruitful curriculum.

For many of these young people, the achievement was just completing the arduous assignments, and the course itself, against a background which included both normal and extraordinary family life struggles.

Not only did they pursue academic excellence, they also embarked on practical work through a program based on creativity, action and service to the community.

As they will be the first to tell you, being a teenager is tough at the best of times.

It’s a time when many are trying to find their way in the world.

Some do so through achievement on the sporting field, others at school, while there are those who try to prove themselves to their mates by doing stupid things.

So often, I think it is easy to attack young people – or their actions – rather than trying to work out where they are really coming from.

Many teenagers do things on the spur of the moment which defy any consideration of consequence.

But perhaps if all of us had a little more understanding, myself included, we could help guide those seeking direction in a positive way, rather than constantly knocking them.

One of the things I spoke to the IB graduates about was how impressed I was, when travelling to Sri Lanka after the tsunami, by the many young people who had volunteered their time to try to make a difference.

Just days after the tsunami, there were young and old flying in from all over the world to see what they could do to help.

And if you look hard enough, there are plenty of examples closer to home.

The Daily, through its Community Spirit program, highlights the stories of many young people who are achieving remarkable outcomes for their community.

Often it’s a pity those stories are not as well read, or noticed as much, as ones like those about the young hoon speeding down Alex hill or the bashings at the local skate park.

One of the real challenges I think we all face is finding ways to celebrate the achievements of youth, reinforcing to them the value of going the extra mile for others.

Many schools do it well through citizenship programs, taking part in Anzac Day and the like, but there is a lot more to be done.

While some politicians have called for young offenders to be sent to boot camp, such an approach may work only with some.

Certainly there is a clear case for our judicial system to get a lot tougher with young people – but as a community we need to come up with more innovative approaches rather than just sending young offenders to jail.

It has often been said that it takes a whole village to raise a child – I think it takes a whole community, and a lot of determination, to raise a teenager.

While they will be the last to tell you it, most teenagers do want our respect and our love, and they want parents who will not only set boundaries but do the hard yards to enforce them.

Too often when you look at the troubled youth of today you can find parents who don’t care, are too busy or are not equipped to be good parents.

But while bleeding hearts may seek to blame the troubles of young offenders solely on their parents, there are plenty of young people who rise above their own poor family circumstances to achieve in their chosen fields.