Is there something wrong with my generation?

Pre-College Issues High School Life
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<p>I don't know why, but I always thought my generation was underachieving. They had poor grades compared to what I thought my parents' generation's grades were, they suffered with little to no talent, and they never could communicate correctly or at least responsibly. I believe it might have been the relaxation we got from the focus off of the big picture in the USA after 9/11 but I could be wrong. Did kids in the 70's, 80's, and 90's have a better work ethic, achievement, etc. or am I just paranoid? </p>

<p>By the way, I went to a slacker school, otherwise known as rich-town public school. Boy, were the kids f'ed up!</p>

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<p>I hope kids in high school right now aren’t responding to this. I know it’s under the HSL forum but please remain from answering if you have NO reasonable response.</p>

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<p>It’s the same as any other generation, trust me. In the 90s, I’m certain that people thought the generation was a disgrace and that the 80s generation was much more fruitful. Same scenario with the 80s, 70s, 60s etc. And the same scenario will apply once more a couple of decades from now. However, if you want a realistic/logical point of view/perspective, you have to acknowledge that in every generation there are good and bad fruits in every generation.</p>

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<p>I mean, there’s a rampant Vampire Weekend obsession, so yeah, there must be something wrong…</p>

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<p>Don’t post this on the HSL forum if you don’t want teens responding to it. It’s common sense.</p>

<p>I think you’re just paranoid. Not only do more people get to have an education now (meaning many people who wouldn’t have done so well in the past simply didn’t go to school), but the world is so competitive (all hail capitalism) that many people simply can’t afford to be slackers. People getting poorer grades nowadays would only mean they’re less academically-driven IF they were taking the same classes and exams as past generations were. It could very well be that the classes are harder and the teachers stricter. And how exactly could 9/11 have made people lazy or less intelligent?</p>

<p>Whenever someone brings something like this up, I just want them to watch Midnight In Paris so they’ll stop thinking their generation is a rotten apple.</p>

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<p>@retro: I have a bad feeling that was some sort of ad hominem… :D</p>

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<p>All I’m going to say is that every adult I’ve ever talked to says something along the lines of, “It was never this hard to get into college or get through high school in my day!” More APs, high admission standards, more pressure, more information at our fingertips with the Internet and such demands more info be known, etc. - much harder now.</p>

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<p>@drinkyourpretty I really don’t care that much about the teenagers and their part in this conversation. I just don’t want crappy answers. And yes, 9/11 happened to change the US in many different ways, including education, diversity, etc. Don’t believe me, look it up.</p>

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<p>hahaha studious, feel targeted there?</p>

<p>elfslayer, to be perfectly honest, i have a hard time treating the subject with the level of seriousness that you seem to be demanding, and that’s in large part due to your username.</p>

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<p>@ OP</p>

<pre><code> As for me, I stand on both sides of your post. In a way, I feel you are just paranoid probably because you are a hardworking person who was brought up to give in order to take. So, it is quite logical that such a person expects a similar attitude from people around them. Such a person believes it is only normal for the world to move around this motive of hard work and proper ethic. You have forgotten however, OP, that we are all different, come from different backgrounds and so have different values.
</code></pre>

<p>On the other hand, I think there is a slight problem with this generation of teenagers. This problem is minor compared to many other issues by the way. This generation has serious behavioral problems. Of course, not everybody. Adults have relaxed, and so teens don’t face any kind of serious pressure. Furthermore, technology (despite its vast advantages) has made people lazier. Lastly, there is a lot of confusion these days. People who have little to no education often make more than well-educated individuals. So, teenagers are confused and think they can make it without going the conventional way. In short, they have pushed long-term consequences aside.</p>

<p>You don’t care about teenagers’ part in this conversation? And you are posting in a HS Life thread!!! Fyi, I am a teenager and you can heed this info if you like.</p>

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<p>@retrohippo- oh the irony :wink: But so true.</p>

<p>I think every generation has a bit of that thought about the previous ones. In the end, each generation has problems and positives, it’s impossible to determine if one was worse/better than another.</p>

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<p>In trust each generations, is smarter than the last. Each often wonder if they’re up to the task of leading the future. Think of it this way, The generation of the 60-80s may not be able to solve today crisis’s but we can.</p>

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<p>Haha Retro I can’t take OP seriously either!</p>

<p>Anyways… I don’t have data to back this up (although it exists) but it is now harder than ever to get into college because, among other factors, more people have an opportunity to get an education. My dad says that if he was applying to colleges now he would never have gotten into the Ivy that he attended. Every generation probably looks back and says, “In my day we used to work hard in school, these kids are lazy!”. Your parents probably say that, and their parents probably said that, and your great-grandparents probably said that too. </p>

<p>Oh, and this is coming from a teenager, so feel free to ignore my statement completely.</p>

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<p>lol at least we’re not beatniks…</p>

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<p>This has ■■■■■ post written all over it…</p>

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<p>Perhaps the problem with your generation is that they do not have a grasp on the concept of cause and effect. If you start a thread in the high school forum, high schoolers are going to respond…</p>

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<p>Oh, I hope it’s a ■■■■■ post, and retro and nanner made me lol. Regardless, what is our measuring stick here? How do we compare work ethic, and what shall we say is a good work ethic? What are we trying to achieve as a society? People go on and on about “the greatest generation”, and great job by them, they saved millions of lives and spread democracy. We can all get behind that. Should everyone else after them just be like “we fail since we are not the greatest generation”? Shouldn’t we have different standards to live up to? When you imply that we have a lesser work ethic, is it because we aren’t going out and getting our hands dirty; not farming and fixing cars and whatnot? Or are you implying that we aren’t studying hard enough?</p>

<p>I would suggest that this generation is trying equally hard, on average, of course, in comparison to past generations, to satisfy the expectations of society, and those expectations are to do well in school and make lots of money. Like it or not, I’d say we’re well on our way to doing just that. If anything is “wrong” with our generation, it’s an issue with the society that made us the people we are.</p>

<p>I’m a college student, so apparently I’m entitled to answer this</p>

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<p>3piohbuirgbeupbibgofbeupgierbupibgiperbgp…too lazy to actually answer this.ewiufbewiufbgteuwoibgewuiqbguewibguoeriwbguieorbguirebgiuoreboguberiugbuerbgiuberuigbreuibgueribgeroigijbrierbgiuebrgiuerbgiuebrgiebriugbieurbgiueriugbreubjefrbigjrbejkgbjkerbgjkbrejkbgjkerbgjkberjkbgejkbjkb</p>

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<p>Are you kidding? Do you know how much harder and competitive school is now than it was in the 70s, 80s, and 90s? I really doubt that the same kids who got into the 1973 class of Harvard could get in today. </p>

<p>And it’s been proven over and over again that kids today have much higher stress levels than the generation you’re referring to. You say that kids today get poor grades compared to those of the past…well, yeah, look at the classes we’re taking! I’m already three math courses ahead of what my parents were in at my age, and they were both considered good students! </p>

<p>This is all just BS.</p>

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<p>Just a warning: I am obviously in high school, as this is the high school life forum. I consider myself at least adequately intelligent, but if you don’t want to read my post because I am part of this “slacker generation” (caused by 9/11?) then you can just stop now.</p>

<p>1) 9/11 hugely affected the national and international mindsets, obviously. I acknowledge that. I remember that day, and i was in 1st grade. However, I am not seeing how it could have caused inherent laziness in an nature generation. Fear, nationalism, racism and prejudice? I absolutely see that 9/11 has had these massive effects. I don’t, however, see how a single event could somehow spur the evolution of the mindset of an entire generation with regards to something not even associated with this particular event. 9/11 had no association with education or work ethic. Additionally, even if this “change” (which I don’t think there was one) occurred around 9/11, obviously correlation does not mean causation. </p>

<p>2) No. This generation is not lazier. My dad went to Harvard. He has great stories from high school-weekends, parties, hanging out, etc. He freely admits that he would not get in today. The bar has been raised everywhere. Similiarly, high school curriculum is now more difficult. I am two levels ahead of where my parents were in math at my age, I am writing English papers that surpass my parents’ writing ability (not because I am more intelligent or better, but because I have had more training), and I know so many random facts from multiple AP classes it feels like my head might burst. And I juggle more extra curriculars than they did. But you don’t just have to look at the typical high achieving student. Even an “average” student now will have completed more coursework and be more advanced than an “average” student from 30-40 years ago. Grades aren’t lower. If anything, grade inflation has occurred. </p>

<p>I don’t even care if this is a ■■■■■. I just felt like saying it. I would really like an answer as to how 9/11 could have triggered a “lazy” phenomenon. If anything, laziness could be attributed more to technology and the easiness of being distracted. But I don’t think that makes our generation lazier- surely past generations confronted with the same technology would have reacted similiarly.</p>

<p>I never understand when people bring up "this generation is (lazy, hard working, blah blah blah). We are all the same people born at different times. The human mind is not evolving within 20 years to cause drastic changes. People are merely reacting to social and societal norms. You can’t blame, say, 15 year olds today for being lazy and playing computer games when 15 year olds from 1950 would have done the same, given the opportunity. In reality, they both possess the same amount of laziness, one was just given an outlet to expose it. Similiarly, surely if schools had been as difficult back then as they are now, a group of kids would have risen to the task just as kids today do. It’s not like the mind has evolved significantly in one generation.</p>