Chapter 6 Discussion Board: The Children Are Not Alright
Original Post, 30 points, due by Thursday the week it is due by 11:59 pm
- In this chapter, we have discussed grit, stereotype threat, the obesity crisis, and the effects of the pandemic on learning. I think we all know that many kids and young adults these days aren't doing well.
- Head over to social psychologist Jonathan Haidt's Substack
Links to an external site. and watch his 40-minute talk
- Links to an external site. at the national summit meeting of the Foundation for Excellence in Education called "Smartphones vs. Smart Kids." (You can skip the 10-minute Q&A at the end.) He discusses how the switch from a play-based childhood to a phone-based childhood has significantly harmed Gen Z, and offers several low-cost solutions that can help.
Write an original discussion post in which you:
- Summarize Haidt's main points regarding one of the following four topics in his talk: 1) The International Adolescent Mental Health Crisis, 2) The Decline of Play-Based Childhood (1980 - 2010), 3) the Birth of Phone-Based Childhood (2010-2015), or 4) Damage Far Beyond Mental Health.
- Discuss your thoughts on Haidt's four "foundational norms" for correcting the problem. Are they specific, achievable and relevant? Are they likely to succeed? What pushback will there likely be? How could we overcome the pushback?
- Finally, are you persuaded by Haidt's argument that the change from play-based to phone-based childhood is the origin of Gen Z's alarmingly high rates of anxiety and depression and are you persuaded that the solutions he suggests could work? Why or why not?