“Youth Lack Life Skills” is a persuasive, articulate, and well-written piece. Brielle Black correctly captures how schools today are failing to prepare students for the real world. She states that societal changes have left teenagers in the dust, causing confusion once they reach adulthood. With tough economic times, the pressure to be perfect when it comes to schoolwork is overwhelming for many adolescents. However, even if they can excel in academics, they are not prepared for independence.

Brielle argues that courses that teach skills needed outside the classroom are more important than ever. Older family members once taught children these life skills, but changes in society have minimized this generation’s chance at becoming self-reliant, prosperous adults. Being able to cook, clean, sew, and support a family will increase students’ self-reliance and will eventually save them money, allowing them to live happier, more stable lives.

I believe that adolescents today should learn more from their elders. Our grandparents lived in a world where college was optional, and they were taught how to manage a house and family when they were our age. Brielle writes, “The generation gap is far too wide; just as the older generation struggles to keep pace with technology, young people are lost when it comes to basic, practical life skills.” This rift between generations is unfortunate. Thirteen-year-olds and 80-year-olds have common experiences and should be able to work together. Instead, the ideals and benchmarks that today’s teenagers are forced to work toward drive these generations apart.

This article suggests that modern advances might not actually be “advancing” society at all. Instead, going back to the ways of past generations might be more beneficial for today’s teenagers.