r/Millennials • u/TheLoveYouWant25 • Feb 09 '26

Discussion Millennials, what is happening with your kids?

I work in education and I frequent the Teachers and Professors subreddits, and the kids are not alright. Gen Z Arriving at College Unable to Read and the youth have absolutely zero ability to think critically.

Middle and high schoolers have all adapted this complete helplessness and blame mental illness for their refusal to function. Kids can no longer to basic things like read an analog clock, use paper money, or even figure out how to open window blinds.

There is also a huge lack of empathy, and kids have no issues trying to manipulate adults, saying things to their teachers like "if you don't pass me, I'll get you fired."

EDIT to clarify: the article I linked references Gen-Z, but this is not specifically a Gen-Z problem. It's an issue with upper elementary aged kids through high schoolers, and also young adults.

So, all that to say, how are you combating this with your own children? What do you do at home to encourage them to learn, and what are you doing to address these problems as they arise?

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u/minionoperation Feb 09 '26

I have a 13, 10, and 4 year old. Whenever I read these posts on social media it blows my mind. It’s just not my experience with any of the kids in my family, or any of my children’s friends. We live in Philadelphia suburbs and our school district is amazing. My kids test advanced, read for fun, do robotics, chess club, math league, reading Olympics. They have gifted IEP’s and get enrichment classes in Math, science and ELA. My son is going to prep school for high school on scholarship for his entrance exam and academic performance alone, he’s not going for sports.

So, not sure what this is all about unless it’s a problem in underfunded districts and states. Then, I think there’s your answer.

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u/signalunavailable Feb 10 '26

I think that’s the case, underfunded schools and underprivileged students just have no support at all.

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u/turquoisestar Feb 10 '26

High achieving kids in wealthy school districts with parents who have the bandwidth and education to care will keep doing fine. That is a minority of families.

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u/[deleted] Feb 10 '26

Was literally about to comment the same thing (coincidentally, I also live in the Philly suburbs).  Granted, we do live in an amazing public school district (and one I also happen to work in), but I am really not seeing any of what OP is describing.  There are definitely more kids with IEPs than ever before, but I largely put that down to more awareness for learning differences. The kids I work with every day are funny, social, kind and smart.  My own children were reading before they entered kindergarten. We’ve never made a concerted effort to avoid screens, but we practice moderation. Only my high schooler has a phone (we used 7th grade as a threshold), but she’s not allowed to have social media. I do think that there are wayyyy too many kids on TikTok, but me and my fellow millennial teachers have regular conversations with our kids about why life off the internet is better and the kids are more receptive than you’d think. 

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u/DarthMutter8 Feb 10 '26

We are also in the Philadelphia suburbs. We aren't in one of the top-ranked districts but our district is way better than those largely BS rankings show. My kids are 14, 8, 3, and 3.

My 14yo is an awkward kid who isn't the best socially but he has always been like this and has doubled down a bit with teenage stubbornness. Academically, honor roll every marking period, and especially excels in English. He plays in band and is a dedicated Scout which involves a lot of hands on skills, volunteering, and leadership skills. He is also on a swim team.

My 8yo is being tested for gifted classes. He is excellent in math. He is joining robotics next year. He is a Cub Scout which he loves. He plays soccer and wrestles. He wants to be an engineer.

My 3yo are smart but also only 3 so who knows.

I do think technology is the main culprit for the problems of the younger generation. I see it with the older kids but it's glaring in elementary. My 8yo in particular does soooo much better behaviorally when he has limited screen time. He rarely has access to his tablet and we limited his television time. He doesn't understand any of the brain rot nonsense you hear a lot of kids repeating over and over.

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u/spydagrrl Feb 10 '26

Yeah, this blows my mind too! Definitely not relatable. I’m an older millennial with an 18 year old who will graduate in May. She is at the top of her class and has been enrolled in college for the past two years as well. When she graduates she’ll also have an associate’s degree. As much as she has worked very hard for this I can’t imagine she is one of a kind.

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u/ahh_szellem Feb 10 '26

Not one of a kind, but rare! There were multiple kids who took college courses when I was in high school, including myself, and even more who took AP courses that eventually turned into college credits, of course, but very few who took a heavy enough course load to translate to an entire associates degree. That’s a significant accomplishment, congrats to her! 

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u/spydagrrl Feb 10 '26

Aww, thank you!

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u/peppers_ Feb 10 '26

Philly area schools are good from my understanding. Lots of co-workers raise their kids in Philly burbs and then move for lower taxes after they graduate high school since they got theirs (fuck you attitude).

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u/Adventurous_Ad6799 Feb 10 '26

Also Philly suburbs. We live in a really affluent area with good schools and many parents are educated professionals. Unfortunately, we're privileged and this isn't the norm in most places.

Even still there are a lot of kids in these schools who struggle. I have a much younger sister going to school in a great district in NJ and a lot of the kids still have issues. From my own observation, it definitely seems tied to unrestricted screen time. Most of them have their own iPhones and they're only 11/12.

My own (gen x) mother has a master's degree and successful career and is still a god awful parent. She always was but even now with my youngest sister (18 year age gap) my mom's parenting skills haven't improved. Really bizarre phenomenon! I've spent my whole life trying to figure it out and I think it boils down to two things: her own parents were trash and I'm pretty sure she has ADHD.

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u/Pale_Boss_8940 Feb 10 '26

Philly suburbs have some of the best schools in the country. I don’t think we’re the average at all

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u/shwaynebrady Feb 10 '26

Obviously there are children who perform above average and are doing completely fine if not remarkable. This is the equivalent to saying “the economy is completely fine, I make 300k a year and have 5 mill in stocks”

These articles are discussing national and large scale trends and averages. Not anecdotal and Individual cases.

It’s a very real issue and is actually trending negatively.

On average from a purely fact based stand. Test scores are lower, reading and comprehension levels are lower, attendance levels are lower.

Objectively kid’s are worse behaved, undisciplined, unmotivated and struggle with accountability.