Times recently published an article titled "The Me Me Me Generation" talking all about how the Millennial Generation is lazy, narcissistic, and unfocused due to our extreme attachment to technology and our self-serving, ego-boosting ways. While reading the article I can honestly say that I felt more than a little angry at the author of the piece. In the piece they use many blanket statements like "the Millennial Generation" and "they all" which are, first and foremost, never an effective way of debating a point but also felt like a personal attack. Stepping back from all this though, I decided to not judge the article based on anything other than it's statistics and to look at the piece from a purely scientific view, but still the piece doesn't make a whole lot of sense. For one, the piece tries to argue that our technological and always-on addictions are distracting us and making us less social and more self-centered. What the article fails to mention however is how exactly we are "addicted" to technology. I can honestly say that I have been in a situation where I am hanging out with a group of friends and everyone is on their phones or laptops. From the outside it may seem shallow and self-centered, but if you were to look at any of their screens you would see that many of them are reading news articles, looking up data, reading research papers, exploring Wikipedia, and more. Our generation may be screen locked, but it is not only an excuse to become more self-centered, but actually quite the opposite. The Millennial Generation is on a constant adventure to learn more, to be exposed to alternative viewpoints, and to try and be aware of what's going on around them. Again, from the outside it may look like we are in our own little world, but on the inside we are trying to place ourselves in our new global society.
And yes, the Millennial Generation are not lining up to move out of our parents house, take on full time office jobs, and work strict 9 to 5 hour work weeks. But this is not because we don't want to, it's because we realize that we don't have to. Why should I be forced to drive 2 hours a day in traffic, to go to an office building where my main job is to enter data into spreadsheets? Why not instead fax me the data and I'll enter it at home? It's bad enough that we are forced to enter a work field that has few jobs to offer us only to be stuck doing something that doesn't fulfill or challenge us. We can use that time instead to spend time with our family, friends, and loved ones. This may sound narcissistic yes, but I believe that we are truly moving from an age of structured walls and cubicles to an age where the majority of workers will be working from home.
But how does this relate to education? Too often I feel that students are wrongfully and harsh fully reprimanded for having cell phones out in the hallways and lap tops out during recess. We tell them to put their phones away and tell them, "Your friends can wait until after school." But what if the student was actually trying to figure out a question that had been nagging them for a while? If every moment can be turned into a teaching moment, then why not this as well? Instead of jumping to conclusions and seeing the slouched over student on his phone as a nuisance, instead ask him what he's doing? Does he have any questions? Asking these questions can lead to a great teaching moment.
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