Our schools claim to teach sophisticated topics such as critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, the meaning of math, social emotional learning, and dozens of other buzzwords. Truth is, the schools hardly bother to teach even basic skills and foundational knowledge. Simultaneously, children are indulged and excused, which encourage the least desirable personal traits.
All of which explains the answers left by teachers (on an internet forum) when asked this question: what are the most appalling things about students nowadays?
• "One of the big things that disappeared over the years from teenagers is common sense. Teens would do something really stupid, such as chugging down any number of foods in vast quantities and then whine and complain that they were sick to their stomach. ‘It’s not fair!’ they moaned."
• "The number of students with abnormally-short attention spans, a difficult time ‘settling down,’ and aversion to silence increases every year."