From the Head of Knox Prep – Gen Alpha: our resilient and creative next generation

"But then tomorrow, we can stretch further than we could the day before.

And the day after, we will stretch even further still."

If we just try; if we have a go. ‘Have a go’ has been the official unofficial motto of Knox Prep for as long as anyone can remember. And this year, ‘have a go’ we certainly did.

Seth Godin also says that if you’re afraid of breaking, the answer isn’t to stay still. The answer is to dedicate yourself to stretching. Have we stretched this year? Oh yes, we have.

For even in the depths of incredible adversity and hardship, there is always opportunity for growth – for stretching.

Mark McCrindle is a social researcher and he has studied this first generation of children and adolescents born in this 21st century. A group he calls Generation Alpha.

What has he discovered? By end of their generation of births there will be more than 2 billion 'Gen Alphas' globally. They will be the largest generation in history of the world. They are inclusive and collaborative, global in outlook and keen to learn. Most of them will see the 22nd Century.

There is no question that they will have great power in our world. But with that great power will come great responsibility. They are immersed in messaging about climate, environment and sustainability.

These kids care. They are learning to use their voices respectfully to speak up on global social issues, and to develop a strong belief in their ability to action change to make our world a better place.

How true that is. But they have been significantly impacted by COVID. For a 5 year old who has spent two years in this pandemic, that equates to 40% of their life! For our 10 year olds, it’s 20%. That is significant. So, what are the predicted long term impacts of COVID on Generation Alpha?

Well, the good news is it’s not all bad!

• They will be more creative and more resilient
• More open to trying new things and in different ways
• Many will keep some of the hobbies they picked up during lockdown
• Technology will remain integrated into their lives but they will value time away from screens too
• They will value time spent with family more as it has become an expected and regular part of their daily lives
• Working and learning from home will become a part of their future
• There will be a shift in who they define as aspirational everyday superheroes like medical researchers and nurses – that’s not a bad thing!
• They will appreciate what was lost by not being at school, particularly interpersonal relationships, and they will value these more highly.

Alphas have the same intrinsic needs as we all do…

• To be accepted
• To belong
• To be part of a community

McCrindle suggests that every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it.

The danger for us, as adults, is to teach and parent our children as we were taught and parented. For their world is a different place!

In teaching and parenting our Alphas, we need to:

• Place value on effort
• On valuing challenge and persistence
• On personal satisfaction of a job well done rather than being slaves of praise
• On helping them to build and repair their own confidence.

Mrs Sue Floro, Head of Knox Prep

This is an edited version of Sue's speech from Knox Prep Presentation Day 2021.

References:

• Seth Godin blog
• 'Generation Alpha', Mark McCrindle