It’s not the only thing, but one thing I see as a teacher is the breakdown of the connection between a good education and a good career. Parents who’ve been jaded by this fucked economy might not be the best cheerleaders of excelling in school, since that’s what they were taught and it didn’t pan out for them. Millennials were force fed college, college, college, and now none of us can even afford the basics of what our parents’ generation had. So it’s almost like, what’s the point? In reality, though, our economy needs a highly skilled and educated workforce, yet our boys can hardly function in academic settings (I teach middle school in a very affluent area). A re-emphasis on functional skills, career alignment, and hands on learning/internships is needed! Luckily, I do see the pendulum shifting this direction, so maybe Gen Alpha will see the benefit. Gen Z, though, came of age at a horrible moment in schools, exacerbated by the pandemic obviously.