Give young people the credit we deserve (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Give young people the credit we deserve

8:30am Wednesday 25th June 2008 in

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I have come to accept as the norm being encouraged and disheartened almost simultaneously. No wonder modern youths are so confused.

As I can’t drive (due to my income as a part-time waitress and a horrendous lack of co-ordination) I’m forced into catching lots of buses. During the journeys I become practically vegetative, which unfortunately means that my duty to the community is occasionally neglected.

So imagine after leaving the house at 7am to spend an hour-and-a-half of travelling on buses before college, then trailing down to catch the 16:20 for my 6pm shift. I could perhaps be forgiven for failing to place my full attention on the exact order of the arrival of other passengers at the bus stop.

Therefore, if I accidentally step towards the bus half-an-inch ahead of my place, even though I’m lacking the intent of queue-jumping, I have to accept that loud conversations will be held about my impudence from all corners of the vehicle for the entire journey.

Under these circumstances I could be forgiven for feeling a tad bitter at being labelled as a ‘good for nothing’ when I’m actually striving to be a good citizen by showing determination in my education.

It is equally infuriating when, with every year, more and more critics undermine the value of the qualifications that younger generations achieve.

I’m not going to pretend to possess an iron will and impenetrable focus – the fact is I like going to college because it’s packed with other 17-year-olds with whom I can distract myself.

However the fact remains: I go to college, I like college, and I have enough integrity to drag myself away from light-hearted banter with my friends and attend the exams imperative to my courses.

Consider the modern emphasis on ‘proper’ qualifications: a youngster has no prospects without hard evidence of their intelligence, an ideal that’s driven home with such vigour compared to in the past, when apparently other qualities were deemed worthy of society’s recognition, not simply academic ability. Maybe the fear of desolation is our motivation for success.

Using this cynical but honest approach merely proves the candour of our students today – much more than any A-level certificate can.

Maybe this is what’s disheartening other people of my age – what is the point in collecting a mountain of certificates if the rest of society is only going to rubbish them by the time the next news broadcast is shown?

So when you next encounter a lowly youth, if you suspect they have immoral intent, give them the benefit of the doubt, as, despite their front, they’re probably just rebelling against the pressures levelled at them by society. If they happen to be a student, give them a nod or a smile in recognition of their efforts. Failing that, why not simply lend these weary youths a hand onto the bus?