Picture this: A group of kids partying as often as possible, being rebellious, and having the time of their lives. This is a stereotype that you might recognize as what teens act like in high school from movies or parent’s stories of the good old days. But now it would seem that it’s the ideology of the past. The group in the spotlight is now teens who stay at home all day glued to their phones, relying on the piece of technology for everything. From homework to knowing how to tell the time, a phone is an everyday necessity for teens. We’ve all heard it, haven’t we? ‘Kids these days.’ It’s often said with a shake of the head, or a sigh, implying a decline in some perceived golden age. The phrase usually comes loaded with negative connotations: too much screen time, a lack of real-world skills, and a detachment from ‘traditional’ values. But, now it begs the question, what is everyone doing wrong?
The landscape of education has changed drastically. With the rise of AI and grammar checkers, teens aren’t able to think for themselves. They have the technology to think for them. According to “Today” ”The company’s research found that 7 out of 10 teens between ages 13 and 18 use at least one type of generative AI tool that takes a question or prompt and provides an instant answer.” Whilst this tool can be beneficial with the academic escalation continuing to intensify, AI ”raises concerns about their reliability and maintenance.” Based on the article “Unveiling the Shadows: Beyond the Hype of AI in Education”.The availability of AI writing assistants and the use of grammar checks while helpful in tutoring and research and being a tempting solution for tasks, hinders the development of developmental writing skills. “Why struggle with grammar when AI can fix it?” says Westconn freshman Aiden Chawoski. The potential for AI to automate research and essay writing raises anxieties about the weakening of critical analysis and problem-solving capabilities. Students are not trying to learn but rather having AI do work for them. This overreliance can’t come in handy when technology is out of reach and students have to face tasks requiring original thought leaving them unprepared to take this challenge. Mr. Esposito’s take on AI as a teacher at Danbury High School for 5 and a half years, is “technology in a vacuum is wonderful, how human beings apply it has been continuously wrong for generations.” AI shouldn’t be seen as an over-reliance but rather as a tool to enhance learning. The challenge is to find a balance. To harness the power of AI to improve education, while also ensuring that students develop the skills and resilience they need to thrive in a world increasingly shaped by technology.
Another significant problem with kids today is their lack of freedom. With advancements in technology like Life 360, Find My Friends, and AirTags, kids are increasingly losing the privacy and freedom they once had. Nowadays, no ads are asking, “Do you know where your kids are?” If parents decide their kids shouldn’t be in certain places or believe they shouldn’t be out all day, the kids are forced to stay in. For teens today, there are no fields to hang out in at night or parking lots to loiter in. Instead, there are restricted times for supervised or monitored activities. Esposito notes that “parents today are overly paranoid and neurotic. Needing to know electronically where your child is at all times is a neurotic behavior… Parents now are incredibly overbearing and don’t give kids the room to be kids. Being a kid means making mistakes, and they’re not allowing kids to do that. That seems crazy to me.” Teens are supposed to make mistakes and learn from the judgment that will guide them for the rest of their lives. Adults often share stories of the foolish things they did and the silly people they met, taking every opportunity to warn younger teens against making the same mistakes. This is only possible because they had the chance to experience the consequences and high points of their freest years.
So what can teens do to truly live their lives? As sad as that question may be, when teens are restricted and monitored, it’s difficult for them to envision ways to have spontaneous fun. It’s the difference between saying, “This was fun,” and asking, “What are we doing next?” It’s the difference between staying home for safety or saving up for a senior road trip. It’s the difference between creating lifelong memories and experiencing real, long-term regret. For every adult who warns teens against foolish decisions that they might come to regret in adulthood, there are their own stories from which they learned. Adults today possess their independence and judgment thanks to the rules they broke and the boundaries they pushed during their youth. Rules are particularly designed to be lenient for teens because this is the time they make mistakes, and when adults must relinquish control to allow them the space to learn on their own. This article does not condone anything illegal or actions that could harm someone or others. As Esposito stated, “It’s human nature for teenagers to want to do things society doesn’t allow…It’s why teenagers desire to engage in adult activities and why we say no. It’s a tale as old as time.” With that said, there are countless other things a teen could do to truly live. It begins with putting down technology and stepping outside. “Do everything your teachers did when they were your age. Get your license, go hang out somewhere with your friends, break a rule, miss curfew… it’s okay to tell your parents they don’t have the right to know where you are at every moment of every day because you are an individual and that means you have the right to your privacy.”
So what should the takeaway from all of this be? We don’t know what the long-term effects of AI in schools or staying inside on technology will have on teens, but the effect so far has been detrimental to their development into true adults. We do know what growing up like the generations before us will help us turn into. So our advice as seniors to the younger few generations of teens is this. Go on adventures, get your license, leave your phone at home, and don’t knock living until you’ve tried it.
