Kids These Days

I’m sure we have all said it, I know I have.  And every single time it comes out of my mouth I feel like I can hear my mom or my grandmother speaking through me from the grave.  Oh kids these days have their own little nickname, “millenials” or “entitlement generation”, you take your pick.  But I have another little key phrase for all of us, “You better check yourself before you wreck yourself.”
Did you do the puppy dog head tilt?  Huh?  What’s that you say?  You heard me.  Watch what you’re talking about.  Okay- maybe “check yourself” is too modern day hip slang for the age old “when you point your finger there are three fingers pointing back at you.”  But the message is the same.
I hear all the time about what is wrong with this generation.  I hear the complaints.  I see the posts and the articles.  You think this is new?  You think every single generation hasn’t complained about the generations that follow them?  I’m not saying I haven’t said it in the past but I’m sure as heck saying that I remember having it said about my generation too.  A famous philosopher said, “Our youth now love luxury.  They have bad manners, contempt for authority.  They show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise.  They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up their food and tyrannise their teachers”
I bet you nodded along in agreement.  Maybe you even said a hell yeah or a hallelujah.  Except the person who said that wasn’t talking about the kids born from 2000-today.  The philosopher is Socrates and he was talking about students roughly 2500 years ago.  That was just a “couple” of years ago.
Let me tell you what I see every single day working with kids in this “entitlement generation.”  I see kids that are lazy.  I see kids that want something for nothing.  I see kids that don’t have a work ethic or understand that you have to work hard to get ahead.   I see kids cheating. But you know what else I see? Parents making excuses.  Parents allowing their kids to have anything they want.  Parents helping their kids with their homework (aka- doing it for them).  The same thing I have seen for the last 20 years of teaching (and I’m pretty sure teachers saw for the 20 years before that, and the 20 years before that...)
Before we blame the “entitlement” generation let’s talk about the reality of the situation.  My generation is raising these kids.  It’s up to us to teach them to change their behavior.  We can’t throw our hands up and blame it on technology, the president or any other factor besides what stares us back in the mirror.  But there is another side to this argument as well.
Earlier I talked about what I observed in my classroom.  You know what else I see?  I see kids standing up to bullies and protecting the little guy. I see students giving up their free time or fun time to help their classmates catch up or figure out something tough.  I see kids getting excited about a story that tickles their imagination.  I see wonder and  joy about learning some cool science fact or historical event.  I see kids helping a classmate or teacher pick up a mess or pick up something they have dropped, volunteering to clean up the room and lending their supplies to classmates in need.  I see kids cry when their friends experience heartache and I’ve seen kids overflowing with pride when their classmates have success.
I get frustrated when I hear people complain about “kids these days”.  Are there kids who could use more guidance and teaching? Are there kids who need to be told no a few more times and fail a little more?  Of course- just like there were when you were a kid or I was a kid.  You want to complain about this generation and think you have all the answers?  Then volunteer in a classroom or as a coach.  Organize a youth group or a club.  Heck- apply for a job as a paraprofessional and get paid to make a difference in these kids’ lives.

Our children are watching us and learning from our examples.  Think of that next time you backstab or talk about a family member, coworker or complete stranger.  Think of that next time you swear at the guy who cuts you off or yell at a ref at a basketball game.  Think of that the next time you say math was hard for you too and isn’t worth studying for or tell them just to cheat and copy it from the internet.  Think of what you are teaching them when you do that assignment for them (that they aren’t capable of doing it on their own or when the going gets tough it’s okay to give up).  
I consider myself lucky to be able to work with students every single day.  They have a way of keeping me humble, showing me how wrong I can be and yet, making me laugh almost every day.  I mean, just this week, one of my fifth graders told me if I wanted to smell good all day I should rub my deodorant on my nose because then that’s what you smell all day.  I mean, ask yourself, isn’t that a little stroke of 10 year old genius?