No, we're not raising a generation of nincompoops.

[victorthecook]

They're already here, and they're writing for news magazines. Today I read another of those scare articles (are we raising etc.) somewhere or other. It doesn't actually matter where -- more will come along if you wait a bit. If you're in a hurry, you can find previous years' (decades', centuries') editions with no trouble

Comments

[allenw01234]

[Frm LJS] I found the article you probably allude to. I think one of the author's points is that the youth faced with an ice cube tray didn't try to figure it out. In the author's view, he lacked the curiosity, persistence, and/or skills to figure out the problem rather than put the ice tray back and go on to something else.

Yeah, there are many an outmoded skill, but there are some that are timeless. How to read a map (a street map at least). Give directions to a location. Swim. Basic first aid. Laundry. Simple cooking. Simple sewing. Use a book's index, etc.

Not everything is digital, and not everything that is digital is correct.

[victorthecook]

Well, as I said, one article set me off but this is practically a genre.
Some skills are enduring -- but I think three of the ones you've named are on life support.

Certainly not everything is digital, but more and more stuff is. And there are certainly modern skills that aren't digital. Consider cooking with an induction cooktop versus a coal-fired stove. Or skateboarding. Or using those cool wheely shoes kids can get today.

And anyway, if you're twelve and in an unfamiliar house, do you risk breaking something or spewing ice all over the place? Maybe it's less socially risky to drink a room-temperature beverage, or to ask for help. And who would consider the risk that their host would write an AP story about their guest's ineptitude?

[allenw01234]

[frm LJS] 12 and unwilling to risk damage/mess -- could be, and if I were the guest, I'd be irked at the reporter. (Tho I suppose it is a hazard of visiting one