Generation Alpha Unleashed -- onto Teachers

A substitute teacher reflects on how Generation Alpha differs from Gen Z and how teachers can adapt their methods accordingly. This light-hearted exploration of generational differences reveals that Alpha students are the first fully digital generation, with distinct learning preferences and world perspectives.

• Fourth graders are split between Gen Z and Generation Alpha based on their birth years
• Generation Alpha grew up entirely in the digital age, making them extremely tech-savvy by nature
• Early childhood disruptions like COVID-19 have impacted social development and maturity
• Alpha students show increased global awareness and environmental consciousness
• They learn best in "gamified" environments that leverage digital engagement
• Every generation faces criticism from those who came before—60s had "groovy," Gen Z has "slay"
• Teachers must adapt to students rather than expecting students to conform to outdated methods
• Despite concerns about entitlement or anxiety, Generation Alpha brings positive qualities to education

Check out my Instagram where I break down Gen Z slang—I'll even play it for you at the end of this episode!

Transcript

Substitute Teachers Lounge Intro

Speaker 1 0:00

Greg Collins , june 10th 2025 . Substitute Teachers Lounge . I had the fourth grade all tore up the other day because we were sitting around . Somebody mentioned that they thought I was a cool sub , that somebody else mentioned I think Mr Jackson is a cool sub and they asked him why . And he said because he said slay the other day and I'm thinking that is a Gen Z word . And I got them all tore up after that because I said you know , only half of this class is Gen Z because of the way your birthdays fall . The other half is Generation Alpha .

Speaker 1 0:41

Today we're going to talk about Generation Alpha because there's a lot of stuff about it out there on the internet Substitute Teacher's Loud . All right , full disclosure . Now that I've done a little research on the generations . There's quite a bit of overlap and probably the whole fourth grade could be considered either , but it's so funny , the different generations . I'm going to talk about what the Internet says about Generation Alpha and you know I don't want to plagiarize , but I don't even know who to give the credit to now , because you know , when you Google something these days , the first thing that pops up is the AI summation , in fact , last week's episode . If you don't do anything else , even if you didn't listen , go back and listen to that interview where I interviewed a fifth grader and a kindergarten student , because the AI built into my podcast came up with the description for that and it almost made me choke up when I read it . It was so effective . So most of the notes I'm going to give you today and some comments are going to be the AI summary

Generation Divide in Fourth Grade

Speaker 1 2:10

. So thank you , ai . I will give you credit as soon as I figure out who the credit belongs to .

Speaker 1 2:17

As I think back over the generations , I asked the students they know my age , they know how old I am . I ask them what generation do you think I was in ? A lot of them will say millennial . I don't even know which group that is , but they usually come up with baby boomer and I'm kind of nervous in elementary school when I ask them well , what is baby boomer ? Sometimes I won't even ask them what does baby boomer even ? I won't even ask them what it does baby boomer even mean . They already know . I don't have to mention why they call it baby boomer . They already know . They knew that after world war ii was over , that people came back and had babies and that's where baby boomer came from and I'm proud of that . But but you know my generation , my goodness .

Speaker 1 3:06

I grew up as a teenager in the 60s . Was there a more radical decade than the 60s ? I mean , I've watched movies on Netflix about how we got into Vietnam . Should we have gotten into Vietnam ? Where the protests came from ? Why ? All of us , including myself ? Yes , I used to have hair down to my shoulders . I think I was a freshman in college when that happened because all of us guys back then wanted to look like the Beatles . My father would fuss at me for playing my music too loud , playing maybe the wrong kind of music . I never was much into the music that had swear words in it because I just thought that was kind of gimmicky to get the record to sell more . But every generation has its stuff to deal with and every group of teachers that has taught in a generation has had to live with what they're going through .

Speaker 1 4:07

I actually did a . It was supposed to be comical , I think . I think people liked it . I did an Instagram about Gen Z . It's probably been three or four months ago now . I'll play it at the end of this episode if you want to listen to it .

Speaker 1 4:21

So the latest thing that I have on Generation Alpha , it's kind of funny . My interest in doing this topic was because I read an article in an electronic newspaper and it was just ripping

Baby Boomers vs Modern Generations

Speaker 1 4:37

into Generation Alpha like we're not going to be able to teach them . They live in their own world . They won't care a thing about what I say , they will just turn the other direction and ignore us . They are selfish and egotistical . Well , those are pretty strong words and it made me think that couldn't be exclusively what that generation is known for . So I'm going to give you the highlights and this is highlights based on when I searched I actually searched Generation Alpha student , so you could do the same thing , get the same results .

Speaker 1 5:19

And it's funny , every generation has its own words . I mean 60s , you know . I don't think anybody says groovy anymore . People probably still say cool . Those were two big words . What's going on ? We would say things like far out and things like that . If you ever watch Back to the Future , you'll hear some of the old words .

Speaker 1 5:44

It's kind of funny to think that any generation is worse in teaching than the others . I am of the opinion that teachers I'm 67 , I'm old enough I can say this , if I want to . Teachers need to adapt to the type of students they're teaching . We can't just insist on . I've done it this way for 40 years . You're going to learn it the way I'm going to teach it because everybody's not as receptive as you want them to be . You're not as receptive If somebody tries to lay something on you and you don't want to hear it . You're going to ignore it , you're not going to pay attention , and that's kind of the way it goes sometimes . So the generation alpha here's what the internet says we need to keep in mind .

Speaker 1 6:32

First of all , they are the digital bunch , man . They are , I guess the best way to say it is . They grew up in a world where everything was digital . I mean everything . Think about the last time you checked your smartphone . I'm going to guess you've checked it . Since you started listening to this , I'm going to guess I've gotten kind of sloppy

Characteristics of Generation Alpha

Speaker 1 6:58

with mine . It's like any random thought now that pops into my head . I get on my smartphone , google it and see if I remember it correctly . It's like I can't wait . Sometimes I do it while I'm in church because I'll forget it when church is over . I'm still listening , preacher , I promise , but we do that all the time , so we're just as bad as they are .

Speaker 1 7:20

But they grew up in the digital age . They're one of the first groups . Gen z's highly digital too , but they're the first group that can say that their entire life . They came out of the womb with a smartphone in their hand , so to speak , from day one . That that's what they did . They had those early childhood issues , like COVID was five years ago now . So if you're in fourth grade , you're 10 , that happened when you were five . That is a very early time in your life . So they had to go through all that . Doggone it , man , that face . At least in the seven years that I've been substitute teaching , that affected kids more than anything else , because it was amazing how much more immature they were just by missing out on that year of I don't know what would you call it just interacting with each other , interacting with kids their own age , all that , that kind of thing .

Speaker 1 8:23

Well , critical thinking . You could say that , as they navigate information , we should probably focus on emphasizing critical thinking skills , because they probably didn't get much of that on their own . They like to learn in environments that are for lack of a better phrase gamified . The state of Kentucky . Now our Kentucky High School Athletic Association recognizes game competition and has high school programs with awards and all that kind of stuff . So they have , in fact , adapted to that .

Speaker 1 9:05

Now , their global awareness it almost seems like it's a little . They really have a strong awareness of social issues and things going on in the world because ,

Teaching Challenges and Adaptations

Speaker 1 9:20

again , it's all around them . They can't get away from it . Even if they don't watch the news on TV , even if they don't have a smartphone , they've got friends with smartphones . They keep up with that kind of thing . They're probably more concerned about the environment than I was back in the 60s . We probably need to be more concerned . There's more things to be concerned about and that's one of the things they think about too . All those are their characteristics . I think that , on the positive side , that should affect how we teach them and I think they are the most tech-savvy they may be entitled .

Speaker 1 10:02

That's what that first article was about Maybe a little bit more anxious than we've been before . But as far as their academic performance , we have read concerns about declining reading and math skills , because a lot of kids would read at home in the old days . What are they doing home now ? A lot of kids would practice math in the old days . What are they doing home now ? A lot of kids would practice math in the old days . What are they doing now ? I don't know . That old article mentioned increased misbehavior in the classroom . I don't know about that . Maybe you're seeing something different than I have . But I'll just close this out by saying Generation Alpha is here . We are the teachers and the substitute teachers that are going to try our best . Since we can't talk them out of being in their generation , we'll adapt to them and try to change our teaching methods accordingly they said I was the lulu

Gen Z Slang Performance

Speaker 1 11:03

.

Speaker 2 11:03

What does that mean ? But then I realized it's just a Gen Z thing . So I studied Gen Z words and I got all the deets . You may think I'm cray cray , but now I can eat . Now don't be jelly , because if you know , you know I won't dish you because you're slow to the show . So I'm just dropping bars with the words I sang . I know it's a sus , but it's a Gen Z thing . Man , oh man . I slayed that song and this Baby Boomer thing sits far out and groovy . Can you dig it ?