Friday, September 18, 2009

Sheltered Reality by Joey Schmitz

Society tends to take a self assuming role as a “protector of the weak,” a screen to it’s children from the rest of the world. It seems most older generations feel the need to shield their kids from the evils of the world. They feel it is their duty to ensure the innocence of the younger era, but at what cost?
Most parents today feel their young are growing up in an unsafe environment. Perhaps the feeling is that their precious little teenage babies can’t learn unless in a safe, secure, risk-free bubble. It could be adults feel the entire world is out to get the young students, or maybe it is a feeling of fear that their children will realize everything they are told isn’t always true. In any case, the parents of today have the urge to block the eyes of the young from anything potentially harmful; whether that be physically or emotionally. The majority of the time this is seen in middle school and high school.
When these teens are over-sheltered they don’t see reality; they need to grow into the world they live in. If parents block every bit of possible harm from their offspring, these kids will eventually believe the world is made of sugar and lollipops. Not only is it completely ridiculous to try to keep kids from seeing what the world really is; it is utterly irresponsible. If people continue to attempt to cover the young generation’s eyes, they won’t be able to learn. School is a place where kids should feel safe; that is absolute; it shouldn’t mean students can’t see what is actually happening in the real world. Society continually make rules that prevent students from seeing what has be deemed “harmful.” By doing this, kids are becoming less and less informed about how to react in an unfamiliar situation. Even small things such as music or TV shows are seen as an evil to which these “special little toddlers” should never be exposed.
The American culture is turning these kids into citizens who
won’t learn to think for themselves. The censorship of parental figures and the school system is sending mixed messages. First, kids are told they can’t say this, or can’t see that. Then, there are told to think for themselves and to be problem solving students. How can kids solve the problem when they are being prevented from even knowing of their existence.
Instead of trying to avoid every hazard in the road by taking the safe detour, maybe kids should be taught how to spot the hazards and learn how to maneuver through them. It may be better to let young adults learn how to work through problems. Perhaps it would be better to expose the new generation to possible solutions to their problems instead of trying to pretend these problems don't exist. Why keep kids from seeing or hearing about society’s problems now when they will have to experience them once they are out of school and into the working world? Isn’t it a much better idea to offer problem-solving ideals than sense-numbing barriers?
Most parents today believe the best way to prevent kids from turning to harmful habits is by pretending that they don't exist at all. Youth today can handle the information as long as their parents are there to tell them what is really going on. Instead, too many teens are hold false beliefs and fake notions that everyone is out there to help them. When these kids are finally exposed to the true anarchy that is today; they end up succumbing to culture shock from the world they thought they knew.

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