Sunday, May 12, 2013

Oh My, Millennials

Tis time for graduation speeches and this cartoon makes it look mighty depressing:













I actually do not think things are quite this bad, as unemployment for college graduates is pretty low.  But there are big problems now and ahead.  This is why there is much deserved outrage whenever anybody generalizes that this generation is lazy or whatever (thanks, Time). 

I have been teaching for twenty years (as of next fall), so I have taught a full generation's worth of students, and I cannot honestly say that the folks being kicked out into the world today are any different from those I first taught in 1993.  The world may be a bit different, but these students still show heaps of variation in their ability, their interests, their passions, the work habits and all that.  The only thing I can really be sure of is that in 30-40 years, the Millennials will be saying that the latest generation (mid-21st-ers or whatever) are lazy and distracted and entitled. 

One other Millennial note.  I had a heap of fun comparing with folks on twitter the Millennial scores we all got from this Pew quiz.  I got a 33--perfect for Gen X, which is what I am.  Why so low compared many of my friends on twitter: no tats, no piercings, I read the daily newspaper, I don't text much, and I contact government officials--it is part of my job. 

Enjoy this very Millennial mother's day.

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