Unfortunately I really had to agree with Bauerlein on most of his points about today's youth. Even two years ago I would have argued tooth and nail that we are not dumb. Thinking about this caused me to recall when exactly I came to the realization that the intelligence level of children is in fact deteriorating. I remember it vividly. I was trying to get back into college and had to visit my high school to sign for my transcripts to be released.
Two girls came into the office angry because one girl's iPod was had been taken. She had been listening to it during class and became irate because the teacher did not give her a "warning" before she took the iPod. Before I began to judge, I tried to recall if I was ever so fickle. She rudely addresses the secretary with 25 years of tenure about recovering her iPod. The woman informs her that she has to talk to Mrs. Baumgartner the principle.
I'm thinking to myself. Was I ever that dumb? Was I ever that rude, even when I was dead wrong? It cannot possibly be true. In those moments, I felt old. I felt so different from these kids. It had been less than four years since I walked these halls as a student. It had been less than three years that I had been a parent. How had I transformed so much in that time? I am sure that having a child had an effect on how I viewed the world but I also know that post being a parent I still had common sense.
Maybe we are not only dumb when it comes to a knowledge of literary classics. Maybe there has been a decline in our level of common sense. I am really not sure.
Last Post
14 years ago
You brought up very good points but I don't feel it is fair to call everyone is our generation dumb just because some of the people in it are.
ReplyDeleteThe story about the ipod is ridiculious but yet so true. It hasn't been a full year since I have been out of highschool and I can see the immaturity levels. I used to sit back and watch how students would argue with teachers over everything, not realizing that it only made them long dumb. I'm not sure if it is because our generation is dumb, it could just be the simple fact people just do not care anymore. If anything people do it for the attention but I don't think its the type of attention that anyone wants.
ReplyDeleteI think that your last paragraph is what I agree with most. We are only the dumbest generation when it comes to knowledge. When it comes to handling more than one task or dealing with things on our own. I think in this era we would by far out perform other generations.
ReplyDeleteWow your story with the iPod really is unbelievable. Kids think they can get away with anything now a days. Besides, what would her argument be anyway? Who cares if she didnt' get a warning. If I was the teacher I would have taken the ipod and thrown it out the window. Everytime my friends and I see kids under our age we're always debating whether we were that immature. In situations like the one you said about the iPod I believe it's the parents that are to blame. They learn this attitude from somewhere and if they are getting away with bad behavior at home they probably think they can at school too.
ReplyDelete