“Back in the day when I went to school…”
Yeah, yeah, back in the day, back in the day… How exactly does that help your kid?
“I wish parents (and the general public) knew that they are not experts on education simply because they themselves went through the school system as a child…” (Teacher, public middle school, AB, Canada)
We all have a certain aversion to change. It’s in our very nature. At the same time, we like to take advantage of technology that makes our lives easier. We also have a tendency for hypocrisy when it comes to the hardships and the joys of our youth.
When our parents used to tell us how things were ‘better’ or ‘harder’ when they were young, we’d roll our eyes or simply smile and think ‘yeah, thank goodness things are no longer like that!’
The younger generation feels judged and patronized for something they have no real control over. In fact, it is our generation, the generation of parents, who has pushed, worked, encouraged, and caused this progress that we then disparage.
Teaching ‘older’ or traditional values to your children is constructive, helpful, wise, and needed. Complaining to your children about ‘progress’ and them moving forward, when really they have no choice but to follow suit and do their best in the present, is useful to nobody.
When you take an honest step back and have a look, in many ways, it’s like Bon Jovi said “It’s all the same. Only the names will change”. We like him, of course, because like us, he didn’t get to do his homework using the internet.
You can rest assured that your kid too, will grow up to reminisce fondly about today as being ‘back in his time’.
“The charm of history and its enigmatic lesson consist in the fact that, from age to age, nothing changes and yet everything is completely different.” - Aldous Huxley
