"This is why encouraging kids to fail when it is safe is important. If they do not, they will not take bigger risks as they get older and cannot persevere. I have year 11 students dropping classes because the content is getting harder, not because they're failing - they just don't want to ever get a low mark and learn from that."
"A huge part of this decline is parents mistaking enabling behavior for advocacy. Every year, sixth-grade parents start toxic email campaigns after equally toxic WhatsApp group chats about issues like the length of passing periods or their 'civil rights' concerns behind requiring students to use their lockers instead of carrying a 40-pound backpack. This year, I had a parent demand a second, downstairs locker for her daughter so she would not have to carry all her materials between classes."
"When my dean made a schedule showing all the times the student could use her locker, the parent told me I was neglecting the development of the whole child by robbing her of socialization time. Another parent accused me of 'giving her child scoliosis.' 'When parents tell their kids they can be anything they want, while also saying they cannot handle a five-minute passing period or use a locker, it is a wild, contradictory stance."
Teachers observe many students lacking everyday self-care and practical skills such as tying shoes, opening snacks, and memorizing addresses. A growing reluctance to face safe failure reduces risk-taking, perseverance, and willingness to tolerate lower marks while learning. Parental enabling and advocacy often blur boundaries, producing demands that prioritize convenience over student development, such as locker exemptions and avoidance of brief passing periods. School staff confront toxic parent communications and contradictory messages that promise limitless potential while shielding children from routine responsibilities. The combined effects undermine independence, resilience, and readiness for increasingly challenging academic and life tasks.
Read at BuzzFeed
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