I enter my 30th year in teaching and one of the biggest observations I have made over the last couple years is a noticeable difference in hunger. What I mean, I do not find students to be hungry for knowledge, for learning, for studying. I am convinced that students are very fragile, needing positive reinforcement at all times. They do not handle negative criticism very well at all. They get easily bored and lack patience, giving up quickly on skill development. They lack confidence and want the highest results, but with minimal effort, investment of time and energy. They feel entitled to everything and want others to solve their challenges for them. It's unfortunate really because for the most part they are generally capable of much more but are easily distracted and would rather choose to be lazy and uncommitted to working hard to achieving greater goals and success.
So, what's the answer? How do encourage young people to take more interest in their lives, more interest in their learning? How do we create appetite and sustain the hunger?
