Whether it’s a lack of work ethic, a sense of entitlement or an inability to accept change, people are often characterized based on what generation they were born into.
However, the preconceived notions held about generations are frequently inaccurate. Many 17-year-olds have a perfect work ethic, many 35-year-olds are humble and many 70-year-olds have been able to adapt to the new world.
Senior Andrea Golden said Generation Z has been stereotyped as lazy and addicted to technology.
“The alternate methods to get stuff done, like ChatGPT, kind of defines our generation,” she explained. “I think some people definitely use [technology] to take the easy way out…but I think overall we are a creative generation.”
Sixth-grader and member of Generation Alpha Audrey Howes said she believes there are unfair stereotypes about her generation, such as they’re addicted to YouTube.
“My sister, who was born in 2007, and I had basically the same childhood,” she explained. “We both went outside, we both played with toys and I didn’t even know what skin care was until a year ago.”
Freshman Katie Drummond said the technology usage Gen Z has grown up with has a negative impact on their teenage experience.
“Even in school, how we have phones and social media, it really changes the culture,” she explained.
“It changes anything you would do as a teenager because you never know if someone is going to be recording you.”
While sophomore Max Wright said he thinks Gen Z has been stereotyped as being addicted to social media, he added it is not necessarily their fault.
“I don’t think there’s something inherently wrong with our generation,” he said. “If TikTok had existed in the 1960s, they would probably have been just as addicted.”
Drummond said another difference between older generations and current teenagers is in the absence of new technology, they were able to be more carefree and laid-back because there was no social media to perform for.
“They didn’t feel the need to do everything for social media, for the picture,” she explained. “They were probably able to be more like themselves because they felt like they weren’t going to be judged as much.”
Golden said she can see the effects of social media in her everyday life.
“We really care what we look like,” she explained. “Because of Instagram photos and editing to make you look better, you are so wrapped up in what other people think of you.”
Wright said because technology has been so prominent, Gen Z now values it less. “We kind of take things for granted,” he said. “You hear stories about your grandparents just be-
ing excited to call someone on a phone.”
Wright added the constant access to technology Gen Z grew up with has made the generation more interconnected. He said the constant contact with the Internet has affected Gen Z because they have been able to say or see anything they want for their whole lives.
Golden said she thinks the addiction to social media stems from the COVID-19 pandemic because social media became an essential source of entertainment and communication for teens.
Senior Millie Evans said the COVID-19 pandemic has been the defining event in Gen Z so far.
She explained the pandemic has impacted children’s technology usage, but the pandemic has also had huge effects on children in the classroom.
Evans said because middle school is the time where students learn to take part in discussions, Gen Z has struggled in that sphere because some were learning through a screen as middle schoolers.
“We didn’t build up confidence, and that could cause problems in the future,” she explained.
Howes said that the effect of COVID-19 on her grade has been drastic.
“I was in the end of first grade when COVID first happened,” she said. “It really affected our
writing skills. I know so many kids who can barely write and their handwriting is not legible. We didn’t learn many things we needed to be successful.”
Golden said even though there are a few extra difficulties Gen Z has to deal with, she still believes she was born in the right generation. The resources Gen Z currently has access to has given the generation an advantage in life, she explained.
“Access to all the resources technology has given us has given us a leg up in life,” Golden said. “It has helped us navigate through certain situations, so I think I would not be happy in a different generation.”
