Throughout my years in public education, I repeatedly heard the mantra, "We have to change the way we teach because kids have changed." I realize that today, more than ever, kids expect to be entertained. But, does that mean every lesson has to be a 'dog and pony show' or game? I don't think so. Some lessons need to be challenging and provoking. Don't get me wrong. I love playing a game just as well as the kids do, but I also realize that as adults they will be expected to have an attention span longer than a 30 second commercial.
Kids may think they want to be entertained, but what they really crave is someone who cares enough about them to demand their respect. Demand isn't enforcing respect, but, rather, earning it. People who always cater to the demands of others loose their respect. It is the same with kids. They try to bully us into submission just to see how far they can push, but when we establish firm structure within the classroom, they stop pushing and start growing into productive adults.
One area where kids have not changed is accountability. Kids still have trouble accepting responsibility for their actions. What about the classic "Nothing" when we ask what a student is doing. Or what about this oxymoron, "Did you kick her?" "No, it was an accident." Admitting guilt while denying guilt. Typical kid. This is yet proof that kids need structure. They need to learn where the boundaries are and how to function successfully within them. Need more proof? Take for example the young adult that almost pushed over my elderly parents in a parking lot. Made me furious! When I confronted him, you know what he said (with an attitude)?? He said, "I didn't do anything wrong. I come here all the time. What did I do?" When I told him that the two people he practically ran down were my parents and I didn't appreciate it, he just shrugged and repeated that he hadn't done anything wrong.
Really?
Too often we are asked to entertain rather than teach. We are asked (and in some cases expected) to ignore disrespectful behavior. Behavior that is not acceptable in general society, but is gradually becoming the norm. Being a 'little general' in a video game world isn't easy. This time of year especially demands our fortitude. It is so difficult to maintain an educational environment between Thanksgiving vacation and Christmas parties, but hang in there! This is temporary and everything you do will reap huge benefits, if not in a few months, than in the faces of your kids, in a few years, when they realize that you were right.
So... have kids changed? The way that kids entertain themselves have changed. Attention spans seem shorter. They are definitely more entitled. BUT... deep down kids still need AND want structure. They still need to be taught meaningful lessons. They still need and want rules, guidelines, and consequences. Kids still need adults that earn their respect and make them feel safe and secure. Whether or not they want to admit it, kids still need us.
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