Millennials aren't ready for the 'reality of life'

[BjornP]

We are teaching essentially the same history they've learned for decades. They are "taught" about the Declaration of Independence several times over in Elementary, Middle, and High School. The difference is now students/kids don't fain interest or respect. Students have no real use for memory nor do they respect tradition or see the need for them. While some of that has always likely been the case a lot of it has accelerated over the past 20 years. Social Media and the internet changed the game. Teens were always more concerned about their immediate lives (*and cognitively they can't conceptualize 5 years down the road really) but now they are consumed with instant recognition, gratification, and amusement.

This. Teachers got to raise their game to compete with all the noise these days. Many of the old timers are lost, and don’t know how to keep up, now that being the sage on the stage doesn’t cut the mustard. If it ever did. I know I was bored as hell in most classes.

Your experience sadly does not seem to be unique. It reminds me of a study I once read about:

https://cup.columbia.edu/book/the-prese ... 0231111485

To quote from one of the chapters, dealing with respondents recollections of history education:

After listening to 1,500 Americans, we understand how a generation has grown up to say that something is "history" when it is dead and gone, irrelevant, beyond any use in the present. That is how many of the people we interviewed described their classroom encounters with the past. While some of them praised individual teachers, their stories only underscored how deeply respondents felt alienated from the content and structure of history classes. Those with positive experiences - (...) told us what they liked most about their experiences with classroom history was the mirror opposite of what a majority disliked: that they could explore the past on their own.

[GloryofGreece]

We are teaching essentially the same history they've learned for decades. They are "taught" about the Declaration of Independence several times over in Elementary, Middle, and High School. The difference is now students/kids don't fain interest or respect. Students have no real use for memory nor do they respect tradition or see the need for them. While some of that has always likely been the case a lot of it has accelerated over the past 20 years. Social Media and the internet changed the game. Teens were always more concerned about their immediate lives (*and cognitively they can't conceptualize 5 years down the road really) but now they are consumed with instant recognition, gratification, and amusement.

This. Teachers got to raise their game to compete with all the noise these days. Many of the old timers are lost, and don’t know how to keep up, now that being the sage on the stage doesn’t cut the mustard. If it ever did. I know I was bored as hell in most classes.

Your experience sadly does not seem to be unique. It reminds me of a study I once read about:

https://cup.columbia.edu/book/the-prese ... 0231111485

To quote from one of the chapters, dealing with respondents recollections of history education:

After listening to 1,500 Americans, we understand how a generation has grown up to say that something is "history" when it is dead and gone, irrelevant, beyond any use in the present. That is how many of the people we interviewed described their classroom encounters with the past. While some of them praised individual teachers, their stories only underscored how deeply respondents felt alienated from the content and structure of history classes. Those with positive experiences - (...) told us what they liked most about their experiences with classroom history was the mirror opposite of what a majority disliked: that they could explore the past on their own.

Most people form my experience essentially devalue and dislike all core subject approximately equally. Students think most of what they are taught is "boring" and useless. That's no measure of its utility. Student excitement and amusement be damned. Let them rule the roost and see how wise they become. That would be like letting toddler baby sit each other. Education would devolve into emojis and memes withing a week. The problem is students can self direct until their late teens and even not really not in an adult sense. We either value research, reading, writing, speaking, and knowledge or we don't. Decide and let the chips fall where they may.

[BjornP]

Most people form my experience essentially devalue and dislike all core subject approximately equally. Students think most of what they are taught is "boring" and useless. That's no measure of its utility. Student excitement and amusement be damned. Let them rule the roost and see how wise they become. That would be like letting toddler baby sit each other. Education would devolve into emojis and memes withing a week. The problem is students can self direct until their late teens and even not really not in an adult sense. We either value research, reading, writing, speaking, and knowledge or we don't. Decide and let the chips fall where they may.

"Exploring the past on their own" does not mean students self-directing their own education or the goal of it being excitement or amusement. The goal ought to be teaching them to take greater personal responsibility for their own learning. Letting students read a bunch of historical primary sources and have them piece together how a historical event transpired, or what a historical person said or did, could be one way of "exploring the past on their own". Another could be making an assignment out of them interviewing the oldest member of their family and asking them how that family member's everyday life as a kid is different than today's.

[SuburbanFarmer]

Another could be making an assignment out of them interviewing the oldest member of their family and asking them how that family member's everyday life as a kid is different than today's.

Pretty fucking sad that we'd have to 'assign' this as an activity, tbh.

[Zero]

Most people form my experience essentially devalue and dislike all core subject approximately equally. Students think most of what they are taught is "boring" and useless. That's no measure of its utility. Student excitement and amusement be damned. Let them rule the roost and see how wise they become. That would be like letting toddler baby sit each other. Education would devolve into emojis and memes withing a week. The problem is students can self direct until their late teens and even not really not in an adult sense. We either value research, reading, writing, speaking, and knowledge or we don't. Decide and let the chips fall where they may.

"Exploring the past on their own" does not mean students self-directing their own education or the goal of it being excitement or amusement. The goal ought to be teaching them to take greater personal responsibility for their own learning. Letting students read a bunch of historical primary sources and have them piece together how a historical event transpired, or what a historical person said or did, could be one way of "exploring the past on their own". Another could be making an assignment out of them interviewing the oldest member of their family and asking them how that family member's everyday life as a kid is different than today's.

Yup. That’s the way to do it.

[GloryofGreece]

Most people form my experience essentially devalue and dislike all core subject approximately equally. Students think most of what they are taught is "boring" and useless. That's no measure of its utility. Student excitement and amusement be damned. Let them rule the roost and see how wise they become. That would be like letting toddler baby sit each other. Education would devolve into emojis and memes withing a week. The problem is students can self direct until their late teens and even not really not in an adult sense. We either value research, reading, writing, speaking, and knowledge or we don't. Decide and let the chips fall where they may.

"Exploring the past on their own" does not mean students self-directing their own education or the goal of it being excitement or amusement. The goal ought to be teaching them to take greater personal responsibility for their own learning. Letting students read a bunch of historical primary sources and have them piece together how a historical event transpired, or what a historical person said or did, could be one way of "exploring the past on their own". Another could be making an assignment out of them interviewing the oldest member of their family and asking them how that family member's everyday life as a kid is different than today's.

To do those things (which are decent examples of assignments but those activities will not lead to success in an of themselves) you have to have a basic solid foundational level of the subject to begin with. Students need to be able to read, write, and research. They cannot. They cannot b/c they do not want to and/or they do not have the discipline or the desire to. These things come from the parents. There are multiple reasons for the failure of American education. One of the primary ones being outlined above.

[jediuser598]

Another could be making an assignment out of them interviewing the oldest member of their family and asking them how that family member's everyday life as a kid is different than today's.

Pretty fucking sad that we'd have to 'assign' this as an activity, tbh.

Hardly have to assign it, they never shut up about it. My father tells me how cars back then were just amazing, so much better than cars today. I have to show him that he's demonstrably wrong, cars today are built better, better gas mileage, and safer.

More to the op, there is no substitute to a classical education. Philosophy really should be taught at an earlier age.

[Speaker to Animals]

In an economic sense, cars between the 1950s and the late 1960s were much better than what we have today.

If the government would allow it, Ford could roll out brand new trucks from the 1960s design that cost you less than many decent used vehicles. These trucks would be immanently more affordable to the average American. Mileage may be a little worse, but maintenance costs are FAR lower. Your upfront costs are lower.

Maybe they didn't break this down for you in your government school's "classical education" program.

[Zero]

Most people form my experience essentially devalue and dislike all core subject approximately equally. Students think most of what they are taught is "boring" and useless. That's no measure of its utility. Student excitement and amusement be damned. Let them rule the roost and see how wise they become. That would be like letting toddler baby sit each other. Education would devolve into emojis and memes withing a week. The problem is students can self direct until their late teens and even not really not in an adult sense. We either value research, reading, writing, speaking, and knowledge or we don't. Decide and let the chips fall where they may.

"Exploring the past on their own" does not mean students self-directing their own education or the goal of it being excitement or amusement. The goal ought to be teaching them to take greater personal responsibility for their own learning. Letting students read a bunch of historical primary sources and have them piece together how a historical event transpired, or what a historical person said or did, could be one way of "exploring the past on their own". Another could be making an assignment out of them interviewing the oldest member of their family and asking them how that family member's everyday life as a kid is different than today's.

To do those things (which are decent examples of assignments but those activities will not lead to success in an of themselves) you have to have a basic solid foundational level of the subject to begin with. Students need to be able to read, write, and research. They cannot. They cannot b/c they do not want to and/or they do not have the discipline or the desire to. These things come from the parents. There are multiple reasons for the failure of American education. One of the primary ones being outlined above.

I disagree.

They can, it just takes concentrated effort. The most resistance (beyond a bit of moaning at the word ‘essay’) I’ve encountered is from parents and teachers. Parents want their babies to get all “A’s” and have little patience for the process. Too many teachers I’ve met (among social studies) resist because they don’t want to put in the time, either due to laziness, or due to an obsessive focus on, and fear of, standardized testing. People screamed for ‘accountability’ and bureaucrats found the cheapest way to do it (multiple choice assessments) and now we’re paying the price.

Students will, by and large, do what we ask, provided they see value in it. After a year of seeing the process modeled and seeing their own progress (in the reading, writing, research model), they do eventually see growth and purpose. It’s the adults that have been cutting corners for years.

[GloryofGreece]

"Exploring the past on their own" does not mean students self-directing their own education or the goal of it being excitement or amusement. The goal ought to be teaching them to take greater personal responsibility for their own learning. Letting students read a bunch of historical primary sources and have them piece together how a historical event transpired, or what a historical person said or did, could be one way of "exploring the past on their own". Another could be making an assignment out of them interviewing the oldest member of their family and asking them how that family member's everyday life as a kid is different than today's.

To do those things (which are decent examples of assignments but those activities will not lead to success in an of themselves) you have to have a basic solid foundational level of the subject to begin with. Students need to be able to read, write, and research. They cannot. They cannot b/c they do not want to and/or they do not have the discipline or the desire to. These things come from the parents. There are multiple reasons for the failure of American education. One of the primary ones being outlined above.

I disagree.

They can, it just takes concentrated effort. The most resistance (beyond a bit of moaning at the word ‘essay’) I’ve encountered is from parents and teachers. Parents want their babies to get all “A’s” and have little patience for the process. Too many teachers I’ve met (among social studies) resist because they don’t want to put in the time, either due to laziness, or due to an obsessive focus on, and fear of, standardized testing. People screamed for ‘accountability’ and bureaucrats found the cheapest way to do it (multiple choice assessments) and now we’re paying the price.

Students will, by and large, do what we ask, provided they see value in it. After a year of seeing the process modeled and seeing their own progress (in the reading, writing, research model), they do eventually see growth and purpose. It’s the adults that have been cutting corners for years.

Have you ever encountered teenage students being disruptive, defiant, and disrespectful? Its not the teachers responsibility to convince the students classwork is necessary or important. Its their responsibility to present the material using a variety of technique, and assess the students on said material. It is the student's responsibility to learn the material. It is both the student and teacher responsibility to behave in a decent manner throughout instruction. That's about it. All people can be lazy that is not what I was addressing.

A large chunk of students across society do not accept any responsibility nor do the school districts enforce most guidelines. They do however fire teachers that have less than 80% of their students passing the standardized tests. Particularly in the 30+ states that are right to work states and particularly for teachers that have been with the district for less than four years.