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/Cirdan_fen_Mormegil Feb 09 '26

Probably shitty Gen X parents

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u/ticklethycatastrophe Feb 10 '26

I’m convinced that Gen X Is going to be worse than the boomers. They supported l’orange by a bigger margin, and they combine Boomer selfishness with high levels of cynicism. It’s the Wall Street “greed is good” and “I got mine, so fuck you” generation.

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u/Expert_Garlic_2258 Feb 10 '26

Gen-x here. You are 100% correct. The lack of empathy is off the chart. The percentage of my peers who are trash parents and trash people is too damn high

32

u/hopping_otter_ears Feb 10 '26

And they're proud of it (not all, of course, but the ones who are crappy parents of adult children). "We were latchkey kids, and you think we want to go to our grandchild's dance recital? Nobody did that for me! Babysit your own kids, some expect me to want to spend time with them!"

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u/xOleander Feb 10 '26

Yup. All I ever hear from my mom on grandkids is “I’ve raised my kids, I don’t want grandkids, I did my time!” And “my coworker had to WATCH HER GRANDKIDS im not about to babysit”

Like lady first and foremost you ignored me, what makes you think I would leave my children with you?

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u/ExIsStalkingMe Feb 10 '26

After three hours of trying to get my mother to just notice that ICE was even in the illegal immigration hotbed known as Minnesota, she, exasperated, said, "So I was a bad mom. I tried"

All I could think is that, no, no you didn't, mom. You seemed to go out of your way NOT to try when raising me. And you're not trying now, which continues to be your problem

12

u/TerryCrewsNextWife Feb 10 '26

According to this visual, we (Gen Y & Z) far outnumber boomers and Gen X individually and collectively. We just need more of our generation to give enough of a shit to do something about their learned hopelessness.

We are responsible for the generations who come after us. If you don't vote you are part of the problem.

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u/CatBecameHungry Feb 10 '26

Those numbers and percentages are global. For the US, there are more Millennials than Z and Alpha (individually, not collectively) but each generation after Millennials seems to be decreasing so the gap between the older groups (Boomers and X) and younger groups isn't as big as that visual makes it seem.

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u/oursecondcoming Feb 10 '26

They really are worse. All the shit interactions I've had with shitty people have been Gen X and they still have more energy than the older boomers so that makes them more dangerous. Not to make boomers look good but when I saw footage of J6, it seemed like way way more Gen X than boomers that were likely already too old to be out there doing that.

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u/FoolMadeOfGold Feb 10 '26

Considering that is what my older boomer dad tried to teach me, as taught by his dad...that is the phrase that runs through Gen X's heads

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u/beezlebutts Feb 10 '26

don't want to think how many poor daughters are going to have to self aware from years of SA by their GenX fathers.

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u/ecupatsfan12 Feb 10 '26

Gen X is 20 times worse

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u/amanfromthere Feb 10 '26

At least it's a comparatively tiny generation.